Leibowitz and Philosophy
Hello Rabbi Michael. How are you?
How is Leibowitz's claim that God is transcendent and does not appear in the world philosophically correct? After all, the moment you say that God does not appear in even the smallest angle in the world, this is a limitation of God, since He is infinite and not limited.
Thanks in advance!
This question brings us back to the question of reduction. It is precisely because of your argument that some have argued that God has not reduced and that He is still everywhere. Furthermore, we and the world do not really exist, because if we are not Him, then this is His limitation (there is something besides Him). They claim that reduction is an illusion (our view of the true reality), but this is of course nonsense. Whose illusion is it? After all, in reality we are He Himself, so who is in control here? In whose consciousness is this illusion taking place?
Therefore, it is clear that there are things outside of God: us and the other objects in the world.
Now you may ask whether this is not a reflection of His unlimitedness. This can be answered in several ways: 1. No, because He chose to shrink, and of His own free will He returns the world to chaos (so that He may simply exist). This is not a real limitation. 2. The shrinkage is done in a lower dimension. We live in a world of three dimensions, and the Holy One, the Blessed One, can be seen as existing in a higher dimension (4, or infinity if you want. Of course, I am not talking only about the dimensions of space, but about any parameter you wish). In such a situation, three-dimensional objects do not reduce any part of the space of the higher dimension (just as a surface does not reduce anything from the volume within it. See MM. P. 7, rabbinical commentary on Shabbat on the cheek of the Asherah trees), and therefore there is no limitation on Him here.
There is a series of my recorded lessons on the site about Tzimtzum, and you can see the details there (although I think the series was more than three lessons):
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0BwJAdMjYRm7IRmkxVjZRdmRmWm8
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