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February 27, 1987

The Face of God? In Response to R. Lamm (1987)

General Jewish Thought Hidden Face of God
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Replies to Dr. Lamm on The Face of God (1987)

(Note: Letters, in order to be considered tor publication, must be typed and double-spaced. All letters must be signed, although names will be withheld upon request. Due to the large volume of mail, we regret that we cannot acknowledge or return any letters.) You recently published a number of articles by the distinguished Rabbi Dr. N. Lamm based on a lecture given by him at Stern College. I have read these articles concerning the “Face Of G-D" in connection with the Holocaust with great interest and would like to make a few remarks.Rabbi Lamm quotes three opinions with regards to the Holocaust, that is, it was a punishment either for assimilation, for a godless nationalism represented by the Zionist movement, or for not doing sufficient for the rebuilding of the Holy Land.Rabbi Lamm rejects these three explanations as they contradict each other, therefore none of these can be right. It also seems to him abhorrent that G-d Almighty should send such a terrible punishment to the Jewish people. I beg to differ. Is it not possible that all three opinions are justified? Can they not refer to three different wrong attitudes by three different groups in Jewish life.There was one group centralized mainly in Western Europe that tried to assimilate individual Jews to their unJewish environment. Do we not all know the explanation of the Meshesh. Chochmo on Vayikro Ch-27 V.44 in which he predicted that from Berlin, the cradle of Reform, Antisemitism would spread all over the world, and that this sefer was published in 1928. It had been written many years before, when no one thought of Hitler as a menace to the Jewish people and as a threat to the world.And who can overlook the prophecy of Ezekiel (Ch-20, V.32,33) “And that which enters your mind shall not happen to pass. דג)ד949 that which you say let us be like the nations and the families of the earth to serve wood and stone. As I live say the L-rd G־d if I will not reign over you with a Strong Hand and Outstretched Arm and …
Hidden Face of God

Speech

The Face of God: Thoughts on the Holocaust (1986)

1. In my attempt to formulate a Jewish approach to the Holocaust, it should not be expected that I will venture an answer to the ancient question of צדיק ורע לו (“the righteous whom evil befalls”), the vexing problem of the suffering of the innocent and the prosperity of the wicked, one that puzzled such Biblical giants as Samuel, David, and Jeremiah. The problem of theodicy—“justifying” the ways of God to man, offering rational explanations for the ethical and philosophical dilemmas presented by the disjointedness and inappositeness of conduct and circumstance, the quality of one’s moral life and his fortune or misfortune—has a long and honorable history. But there is no one theodicy in Judaism. From Job to the Sages of the Talmud, from Maimonides to Luria to the Besht, there is only one constant, and that is the question of צדיק ורע לו, the righteous who is afflicted with evil. The number of answers varies with the number of interpreters. No one approach has official, authoritative, dogmatic sanction in Judaism, although each has something of value to contribute. And the question remains the Question of Questions for Judaism, as it does for every thinking, believing human being. How, then, shall we approach the problem? Let us begin by dividing it into two parts: first, the universal problem of suffering, the cry of צדיק ורע לו, why should the innocent suffer, intensified in the Holocaust by its unprecedented magnitude and cruelty. In kind, the Holocaust mystery is a continuation of the ancient question of evil and suffering—more urgent perhaps, but essentially the same. The second part is not universal-metaphysical but national-theological. The Holocaust is not only a human challenge to God’s justice and goodness, but a Jewish challenge to His faithfulness and promise. The absolute novelty of the Holocaust lies in its threat to the continuity of the Jewish people as such. It not only outrages man’s ethical sensibilities, but it throws into disarray most of our n…
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Correspondence

Exchange with Shaul Bald about "The Face of God" (1987)

I am writing you regarding your worthy address on the Holocaust. I’m enclosing a maamar by the Or Hachaim Hakadosh which I believe has relevance to the topic of שואה. He reveals that certain rishut done by reshaim can cause a holocaust. Though not mentioning the aveira or aveirot that cause this catastrophe, he does state that people should curb their taava serucha. For if they do not do so, they may cause the death of countless נפשות, small and big, for which baal aveira is responsible.
Hidden Face of God