Q&A: Evil in the World
Evil in the World
Question
Hello Rabbi,
According to the basic belief in Judaism that God chose us and we chose Him, and according to certain approaches—and it seems to be your approach as well—this boils down to the obligations of the human being toward God (for it to count as being "for the sake of Heaven"), while God is exempt from any obligation toward man.
Do you think that, from a values-based perspective, this approach is acceptable? In other words, that the relationship is one-sided? A person is obligated to serve God, and God owes nothing to man.
The truth is that I’m speaking out of boiling anger over the horrors that happened to the Jewish people, in addition to the bloody history of the people that has suffered the most in the universe, I think….
Answer
In addition to obligation, there is also the value of the commandments in and of themselves. They are probably beneficial in some sense, and it is right to observe them even beyond the obligation to obey the command. As for fairness, there are many questions about the Holy One, blessed be He, and this is one of them. You have to decide whether you trust Him that He has an explanation, or not.