Q&A: Evil in the World
Evil in the World
Question
With God’s help,
Hello, Rabbi Michael,
Forgive me for the heretical thoughts below, but I think that sometimes it is better to raise the issue than to silence it. “It is a time to act for the Lord,” etc.
In any case,
inasmuch as we assume that God is absolutely good,
isn’t our world the greatest contradiction to that? After all, evil exists in the world—whether from nature, like hurricanes and diseases; whether from human choice—Hitler and Balaam; or whether from heavenly punishments like suffering, and after death, Gehenna, etc., etc.
Isn’t this decisive proof that God is not good?!
Or, if He really is good, then perhaps there is another entity—a bad god—that prevents Him from carrying out His goodness. (Also ancient, etc.; we would have to assume that there are two powers, good and evil.)
I saw that the Rabbi addressed on the site evil that comes from choice (though that doesn’t get us very far, because there are still many other kinds of evil), but even there—He could have prevented the choice of evil, so that people would only act on different levels of good. For example: whether to give charity joyfully or not give at all. But there should not be an option to murder the poor person, God forbid.
I would be glad for a response, and forgive me if my question is not in the spirit of the site.
Moses
Answer
Hello Moses.
First, any substantive question is in the spirit of the site.
Regarding evil, I addressed it here in several places. Human evil is a result of our choice. If the Holy One, blessed be He, intervened every time we wanted to do evil, there would be no value to our good deeds, because they would not be done by choice (since we could do only good). As for natural evil, I explained here that perhaps a world that operates according to the laws of nature, which the Holy One, blessed be He, wants for His purposes, necessarily entails these results as well. The alternative is only to create a world without laws (that is, one in which at every moment He decides מחדש what will happen in it), and that is not what He wants (for example, because we would not be able to function in it rationally, since there would be no way to predict what will happen).
Discussion on Answer
Indeed, that is true. I suggest you read the sources I referred you to.
Please point me to a specific link,
because I couldn’t find anywhere an explanation of what limitation He has that would prevent Him from doing that, such that there would be justification for continuing to say that He is the highest good possible.
Thank you
There are many links. All you need to do is search, as I wrote. But as a public service, see, for example, Column 547.
So, pardon me, let’s ask at the most minimal level: couldn’t He create a world in which a baby’s teeth grow in without pain? Couldn’t He make water as readily available as air, so that no one would die of thirst? And so on…
Thank you