WORKSHOP
(1) Kushner said, 'If I had to choose between God's goodness and God's power, I would rather limit His power than limit His goodness'. What is the theological problem with this statement?
(2) What is the meaning of 'Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh' – 'I will be what I will be'? How does this set God apart from Man?
(3) How do we reconcile our ability to have free choice (i.e. God is not in control of my actions) with God's omnipotence? Does our ability to have freedom of choice mean that God is limited in this world?
(4) What is the purpose of God giving us free choice?
(5) How does free choice affect our understanding of suffering in this world?
(6) What is a 'Gilgul'? What is the function of 'Gilgul'?
(7) Give an example of a 'Gilgul' found in the Torah, of someone who came back to this world to rectify the sin of another.
(8) What promise did God make to our forefathers that set a limit to the suffering the Jewish people will endure in this world?
ANSWERS
(1) Q: Kushner said, 'If I had to choose between God's goodness and God's power, I would rather limit His power than limit His goodness'. What is the theological problem with this statement?
A: Kushner's response posits that God's power has limitations. This cannot be true. God by definition is All-Powerful. To say anything else is fundamentally flawed.
(2) Q: What is the meaning of 'Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh' – 'I will be what I will be'? How does this set God apart from Man?
A: Maimonides explains that only God can say, "I will be whatever I want to be." Humans are limited by their humanity. Only God is able to be whatever He wants to be and act however He chooses.
(3) Q: How do we reconcile our ability to have free choice (i.e. God is not in control of my actions) with God's omnipotence? Does our ability to have freedom of choice mean that God is limited in this world?
A: God is not limited in any way. God chooses to limit His involvement in this world in order to give us free choice. This is His gift to us – the ability to choose who we wish to become through our actions.
(4) Q: What is the purpose of God giving us free choice?
A: Free choice gives us the opportunity to choose to do good – and to gain our just reward. In order to choose good, free choice must also allow for the possibility of doing bad. A bad act is one that goes against God's will, and this too will have consequences. Since a person also has the choice to do evil, when they choose the path of righteousness they are rewarded.
(5) Q: How does free choice affect our understanding of suffering in this world?
A: In giving a human being the option to do things that God does not necessarily approve of, there may also be consequences that God may not necessarily 'approve' of – such as the suffering that results from a negative act, or even, in its extreme form, the murder or of the innocent. God made free choice a supreme value, and in doing so, acknowledged that there are going to be consequences that will not always be pleasing in God's eyes.
(6) Q: What is a 'Gilgul'? What is the function of 'Gilgul'?
A: The term 'Gilgul' means reincarnation. A person can come back to earth in another incarnation for a number of reasons. A soul may, for example, come back to Earth in order to affect 'tikkun ha'chet', rectification of a sin from a previous incarnation.
(7) Q: Give an example of a 'Gilgul' found in the Torah, of someone who came back to this world to rectify the sin of another.
A: Mordechai from the Purim story is said to be a Gilgul of our forefather Jacob. Mordechai risked his life to not bow to Haman. Kabbalah tells us that Jacob lived a perfectly righteous life with one exception: He bowed down to his brother, Esav. Mordechai's refusal to bow to Haman, even though it put his very life at risk, served to rectification the mistake of Jacob, allowing this soul to return to God in a perfected state.
(8) Q: What promise did God make to our forefathers that set a limit to the suffering the Jewish people will endure in this world?
A: God promised our forefathers that the Jewish people will be the eternal nation, and will inherit the Land of Israel.
SUMMARY
Source 1 states the three apparently contradictory tenets of faith raised by Rabbi Kushner in the previous class. If the statement 'Good people suffer' is true, then surely one of the other two statements in source 1 must be wrong. In this lesson, Rabbi Blech explores the question of God's omnipotence.
In his book, Kushner states: "If I had to choose between God's goodness and God's power, I would rather limit His power than limit His goodness." In effect, Kushner is saying, "If God were omnipotent, He would be able to save us from suffering." According to Kushner, the suffering of good people in this world 'proves' that God's abilities are limited. In effect he is saying, "I would rather believe that God is not able to help a person who is suffering, than contemplate the alternative – a seemingly good God allowing a person to suffer." This is easier to believe than Kushner's alternative – reject the statement that 'God is good'. Our previous class rejected that notion. Kushner's conclusion does not reflect the Torah approach to suffering in this world.
Rabbi Blech states that God, by definition, is All-Powerful. When Moses met God at the Burning Bush and asked, "If the Jewish people turn to me and ask me 'what is Your name (essence),' what should I tell them?" God replied, "Tell them Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh – I will be what I will be." Maimonides explains that only God is able say He will be whatever He wants to be. Human beings that are limited, but God is All-Powerful.
There is one area of God's Omnipotence that can help us to understand suffering in this world. God chooses to place a limitation on Himself in one area in this world. In order to give us free choice, God limits His involvement in the world. In giving us free choice, He is also giving us the choice to do things that He will not approve of – even if they cause suffering to others.
If God stopped people every time they attempted to do something wrong, people would no longer have the ability to choose between good and evil. Therefore God limits His involvement and intervention so we can retain our free choice. Since we can choose to be wicked, when we choose to be righteous, we are rewarded. By this logic, when a person chooses to do wrong, he will be punished.
Sometimes a person will suffer or die before his time, even though he is undeserving. In such a case, God 'owes' this soul its just reward – or in certain cases the ability to complete his time on Earth again. Rabbi Blech introduces the concept of 'Gilgul'? (reincarnation) as one method of God giving a person another chance to complete his mission on earth.