Portion of the Portion

The Inclination of Man's Heart is Evil

In our time, brain researchers have uncovered the sources of many of mans darkest thoughts, such as pride, envy, greed, anger, lust, and gluttony.
This new research can explain where our behaviors come from and help us understand why we may continue to engage in behaviors that we know are wrong. Techniques such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), give neuroscientists the ability to study the biology behind bad intentions. Scientists have not found any one sin center in the brain but have singled out different areas of the brain that are responsible for different types of sins. That means no one can create any miracle drug to prevent us from sinning. Could it get us off the hook, and allow us to say that our brain’s circuitry makes us transgress and it is out of our control?
This seems to be what verses in the Torah say - At the end of last week’s portion HASHEM states: “G-d saw that man’s wickedness on earth was increasing. Every impulse of his innermost thought was only evil, all day long (6:5)-  G-d regretted having created man because of his sinful nature (6:6). And in this week’s portion after the Flood, G-d says: “Never again will I curse the soil because of man, for the inclination of man’s heart is evil from his youth…” (8:21).
So if we are so evil, how can we be expected not to sin? And how do we actually stop ourselves from sinning?
Researchers such as Mario Beauregard of the University of Montreal would say there are specific areas in the brain that control this. For example in his research on lust (which takes over the whole brain), he found that to control our thoughts we call upon the right superior frontal gyrus and right anterior cingulate gyrus. He and others propose that these brain areas form a conscious self-regulatory system. We, as opposed to animals, are able to control our own neural processing. This network sets us apart from all other creatures. This makes us human.
We can’t rely solely on human nature because ‘man’s heart is evil’. Man could not do it on his own. We need laws - whether it was the laws HASHEM gave to No’ach after the Flood or all our laws of Torah that are meant to keep us in line. Halacha enables us to choose what is good to do and not necessarily what we would naturally want to do. It enables us to overcome our ‘evil heart’. Where and how Halacha works on our brain is a
question for modern day neuroscientists to research further.
This cake is sinful because of all its calories and cholesterol. For those on a diet, use low calorie substitutes or follow your YETZER HATOV
. DAIRY 4-LAYER CHOCOLATE SIN CAKE

1 cup flour
1 cup chopped nuts
8 Tbsp (125g) butter, melted
250g cream cheese
1 cup sugar or powdered sugar
1 small whipping cream
2 sm. pkg. chocolate pudding (or 1 chocolate and 1 vanilla)
milk to make pudding
First Layer: Mix flour, pecans and butter and pack in bottom of baking dish. Bake at 350F for 15 minutes. Let cool.
Second Layer: Beat cream cheese, sugar and the whipping cream and spread on cooled first layer.
Third Layer: Mix the pudding with milk as per directions on package. When thick spread on second layer.
Fourth Layer: Spread a small carton of Cool Whip on third layer. Sprinkle with nuts and/or chocolate chips.
Refrigerate and serve in squares.

• Other Portion of the Portion
• SHOV'VIM TAT
• The Women in Sh'mot
• Fanatic? Who Me?