Theodicy
Here is a domain in which the split between philosophy and relationship that we've been exploring for the past few posts comes to the fore.
I developed a philosophy about theodicy, tzadiq vera lo, why tragedy visits people who live far more righteously than others who seem to be free of it. I explored four different reactions to tragedy, comparing them to the different kinds of tragedy named by chazal, and suggested their role in our lives. See my essay "The Four Sons Confront Tragedy" written uncoincidentally the Pesach after 9/11.
However, when news of the tsunami reached me, I was still devastated. Because I was in downtown Manhattan on 9/11 it became my emotional yardstick for tragedy. I still carry around a huge burden of anger toward the people who perpetrated the attack. Now we're facing a tragedy that current estimates place at forty times the cost of life, with the real possibility of that number doubling due to the secondary effects of disease and hunger.
How can I not be angry? Or at least overwhelmed, shocked, and confused by my Father's actions? The words that came to mind were those of Avraham avinu, when he learned of the fate of Sedom and Amora. "Chalilah lekha mei'asos davar kazeh, lehamis tzadiq im rashah -- It should be far from you to do such a thing, to kill the righteous with the wicked; Chalilah lekhah, hashofeit kol ha'aratz lo ya'aseh mishpat -- that the Judge of the entire world would not do justice." I wrote something to this effect to an email list. As pointed out to me, and my brain knew this without their help, Avraham didn't voice his anger after the fact, but was pleading with G-d to avoid the tragedy.
And if our goal in life is to "walk yourself before Me and be whole" then we should be looking to see how everything we witness was intended to be witnessed by us.
But to be satisfied with the explanations means that one is willing to settle for ideas about His existance than actually connected with Him. My response, although certainly inappropriate, was at least a real one. I think that much of the reaction that my comment garnered was from our habit to think about G-d, rather than to truly relate to Him as Beloved, Father and Master (c.f. Yedid Nefesh).
Another problem is that kiruv has focused on our ability to market traditional Judaism rather than our ability to teach it. Not everything can be tied up in a nice bow with a simple and satisfying-sounding answer. First, with respect to effective kiruv, admitting to a student that we simply don't know is both more honest and more trust-gaining than pretending we have the answers to all the questions. As I wrote in "Four Sons", tragedy exists to be confronted, not explained away. For much of Judaism, the beauty is in its ability to let us frame the questions meaningfully and productively, not answer them.
I developed a philosophy about theodicy, tzadiq vera lo, why tragedy visits people who live far more righteously than others who seem to be free of it. I explored four different reactions to tragedy, comparing them to the different kinds of tragedy named by chazal, and suggested their role in our lives. See my essay "The Four Sons Confront Tragedy" written uncoincidentally the Pesach after 9/11.
However, when news of the tsunami reached me, I was still devastated. Because I was in downtown Manhattan on 9/11 it became my emotional yardstick for tragedy. I still carry around a huge burden of anger toward the people who perpetrated the attack. Now we're facing a tragedy that current estimates place at forty times the cost of life, with the real possibility of that number doubling due to the secondary effects of disease and hunger.
How can I not be angry? Or at least overwhelmed, shocked, and confused by my Father's actions? The words that came to mind were those of Avraham avinu, when he learned of the fate of Sedom and Amora. "Chalilah lekha mei'asos davar kazeh, lehamis tzadiq im rashah -- It should be far from you to do such a thing, to kill the righteous with the wicked; Chalilah lekhah, hashofeit kol ha'aratz lo ya'aseh mishpat -- that the Judge of the entire world would not do justice." I wrote something to this effect to an email list. As pointed out to me, and my brain knew this without their help, Avraham didn't voice his anger after the fact, but was pleading with G-d to avoid the tragedy.
And if our goal in life is to "walk yourself before Me and be whole" then we should be looking to see how everything we witness was intended to be witnessed by us.
But to be satisfied with the explanations means that one is willing to settle for ideas about His existance than actually connected with Him. My response, although certainly inappropriate, was at least a real one. I think that much of the reaction that my comment garnered was from our habit to think about G-d, rather than to truly relate to Him as Beloved, Father and Master (c.f. Yedid Nefesh).
Another problem is that kiruv has focused on our ability to market traditional Judaism rather than our ability to teach it. Not everything can be tied up in a nice bow with a simple and satisfying-sounding answer. First, with respect to effective kiruv, admitting to a student that we simply don't know is both more honest and more trust-gaining than pretending we have the answers to all the questions. As I wrote in "Four Sons", tragedy exists to be confronted, not explained away. For much of Judaism, the beauty is in its ability to let us frame the questions meaningfully and productively, not answer them.
posted by micha @ 12/31/2004 10:07:00 AM
