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Apr. 17, 2002

Letter to Dr. Becker about His Essay on R. Akiva and Theodicy (2002)

Theodicy
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Emunah and Bitachon - Issues of Faith and Trust in the Face of Tragedy (1994)

Introduction: A very, very difficult topic – the most intractable of all, and the greatest challenge to אמונה ובטחון. We cannot escape it. This talk – really, my avodah – is dedicated to the memory of Aaron Heller, ע״ה. We welcome his mother, Mrs. Klausner, and join all of you in extending condolences and expressing commiseration. חיזוק האמונה in the face of tragedy:a) Two problems-death itself; and death so young. The first focuses on אמונה ("how can a good God allow death?") and second on בטחון("how can we trust a God who takes away one so young?"). But at bottom they are one and the same.b) an ancient yet perennial problem: Israelis for fallen young comrades, Holocaust—and every death since Adam & Evec) Autobiographical-Joshua Kaufman and Saul Goodmanע״ה—I had to confront the fact of death, thought too young to ask the more advanced question, "but why so young?" I felt weak, vulnerable. I never forgot them—part of my maturing process— painful but inevitable. And, in me, led to compulsiveness about time and getting things done before it's too late; workaholic(here: story of Dov Sadan and how he was ab/e to be so prtoductive)d) Need to divide into 3 parts: philosophical, moral, emotionalPhilosophical- evil & death-the theodicy problem. Samuel, David, Solomon—צדיק ורע לו, רשע וטוב לו. Question asked; no answer givenYes, it is an injustice built into the fabric of life. JFK: "Life is unfair"; and so is death!Not to ask the question is escapism; to expect a satisfying answer is arrogance; to bow in faithful acceptance is true אמונה. Thus: JOB....Continuation: ר׳ינאי—אין בידינו לא משלוות הרשעים ואף לא מיסורי הצדיקיםAnd here is where אמונה comes in: acknowledgement of His justice although beyond our ken... That = essence of צדוק הדיןSo, do not expect me to answer question of "Why?" I know only that my אמונה insists that טוב ה׳ לכל ורחמיו על כל מעשיו; that there is an עולם הבא והשארת הנפש ותחה״מ; that by definition we are both physically and metaphysically limi…
Theodicy

Article

Foreword to From the Depths I Have Called to You: Jewish Reflections on September 11th and Contemporary Terrorism (2002)

The traumatic events of September 11th have left an indelible mark on the psyche of the American people – and, indeed, on people throughout the civilized world. The horror of the senseless killing and the noxious religious fanaticism that occasioned it left us perplexed, angry, and determined to uproot the evil that has been visited upon us. High among the issues suddenly thrust upon our consciousness were those of security and economics. We discovered our vulnerability—something most people in the world were fully aware of and were long coping with, but which we had never considered as a result of living between the two great oceans on each side of us. We now had to protect ourselves from the technologically adept madmen who probably had more such awful tricks up their proverbial sleeves. And the destruction of the d'win Towers, the icons of American capitalism and the symbols of our national and individual wealth, coming at a time of a slowing economy, accelerated the bad news and left many people unemployed or underemployed.These challenges have been, are, and will be met and overcome. American ingenuity and unity sometimes falter when things are going well, but become heroically active when adversity suddenly confronts us. Our military activity in Afghanistan, our readiness to stand up to terrorists of all kinds, has inspired and encouraged us. The civilized world suffered from piracy until it was conquered, and international terrorism too will be vanquished, albeit not without more pain and suffering.But beyond these two obvious consequences of the 9/11 catastrophe was something more insidious, more personal, and more unsettling. And that is the philosophical and theological dilemma that widespread suffering had thrust upon us. As a result, Americans turned to their respective houses of worship in numbers considerably greater than usual, the media uncharacteristically turned introspective, and people who never gave thought to the ultimate questions of existenc…
Theodicy

Correspondence

Exchange about Theodicy, Sickness, and Appreciating Life (1976)

Dear Uncle Norman, I received your letter and thank you for answering. Over the weekend I read over some of your sermons you sent. I specifically enjoyed the one about – "Till a hundred & twenty." Today however we received a most interesting piece of work – a letter from Shelley to "The Master of Universe" and you answer בשמו. It really קלע למטרה, and I have a few more question בנדון.1) How come G-d doesn't stop the suffering at a certain point & make it well again? Why can't He make the condition better to show His greatness & to לחזק the person's sick parent or relative or friend and he prays to G-d constantly (הרי זוהי המטרה) and even has a נצוץ של תקוה, and the end this sick person dies –הרי שבסופו של דבר, אמונתו של אדם נקטעת באיזשהו מקום. האדם סמך על הקב"ה שיעזר, התפלל בתמידות וסופו שלא נתקבלו תפילתיו. והוא אמנם אמר ומודה שהכל לטובה אך סך הכל זהו דבר שקשה מאד להבין בעצם מיואש זה ובמקום מסוים הוא מאד מאובזם וזה עלול בהחלט לערער את האמונה. אם כך אז הוא התקרב למשך התקופה שסמל ואחר כך מתרחק שוב מהקב"ה, או באופן קיצוני יותר.2) Why על חשבון the sick person? Why does he have to be sick & die if G-d wants to לקרב the other people to him? Does he get repayed בעולם הבא?Anyway, those are my questions for now. I would appreciate if you'd answer them when you have some time.Israel is beautiful obviously. There is "יריד שבוע הספר העברי" now and of course I spotted your book on one of the counters.Last night, ל"ג בעמר, the whole country was lit up with מדורות, even Shelli and Mommy made one. I went out to the Chasidic Festival and has a great time. Today, however, we just stayed home.Okay, that all for now. להשתמע!Wish you were all here.Bye, Love,YaelP.S. I notice that I should've written in Hebrew. It would've been more מובן & in only one language.
Theodicy