Q&A: Is There Reward for Something That Doesn’t Depend on Me?
Originally published:
This is an English translation (via GPT-5.4). Read the original Hebrew version.
Is There Reward for Something That Doesn’t Depend on Me?
Question
Hello and blessings,
I wanted to ask: if two people wrote a textbook that benefits the public,
in one person’s book 100 people read it, and in the other person’s book 200 people read it.
It’s commonly said that the second will receive a greater reward (in Heaven) for the fact that more people read the book.
Is that true? And does it make sense? (Of course, assuming both of them made the same effort.)
Answer
I have no idea, but I don’t see why there should be any difference.
Discussion on Answer
Maybe moral luck.
By the way, I seem to remember that there is a topic like this in moral philosophy, dealing with the future significance of my actions in the present. It has a name, which I’ve forgotten.