Q&A: Faith, Meron
Faith, Meron
Question
Hello Rabbi,
Today I read another sentence about faith: “Faith is not a way to get answers; it is a way to live with the questions,” which a certain rabbi said because people do not understand the disaster in Meron.
Do you agree with that sentence? And if not, there is actually a good argument here, no? It is obvious that we do not understand everything, so perhaps an integral part of faith is to keep believing even if we do not understand?
Answer
No. Sometimes one has to live with questions, but that is not connected to faith. It is a rational principle. In science too, as Thomas Kuhn showed, when there is a good theory one does not abandon it even if it has difficulties, until the number of difficulties reaches too high a level, and then one replaces the paradigm.
Clearly, if I believe, not every difficulty will cause me to abandon belief. But when there is a sufficient number of difficulties, then certainly yes. Intellectual honesty is always required of us. Otherwise, no one would ever change any of his existing views.
The fact that we do not understand everything is not an excuse. Any idol worshipper will tell you the same thing. I too can tell you that every morning you must stand on one leg for five minutes, and after all, you cannot understand everything. Will you do it?
“Intellectual honesty is always required of us.”
Let us note that this is being written by a person (Michi) who said that he “understands why pogroms were carried out against the Jews of Eastern Europe in the 19th century,”
without having any serious knowledge of the reasons for those pogroms, but rather because of a powerful emotional issue he experiences vis-à-vis the Haredi community.
Also, let us note that the same person (Michi), who demands so much intellectual honesty, claimed that when Nachshon Wachsman was kidnapped, “almost the entire country prayed.”
That too is, of course, complete nonsense. There were of course many Jews who prayed. Far more than usual. But to define it as “almost the entire country prayed”—
that is a lack of intellectual honesty aimed at trying to highlight his position. There is no reason to think that almost the entire country (which includes almost all secular people) actually spoke with the Creator of the world and asked Him that we merit to free the late Nachshon Wachsman.
Intellectual honesty?
Michi?
Not really . . .