Q&A: Infinity and Contraction
Infinity and Contraction
Question
According to the common assumption that God is infinite, is it possible to accept the Vilna Gaon’s approach that the contraction is literal, and that God, by virtue of His nature, cannot be present in our world? If so, it turns out that God is finite, since our world is His limit. Is it possible to reconcile these things?
Answer
I think this question is rather lacking in meaning. Obviously I am not Him, and therefore He is not present in my own place. I am there. Of course, this is not a physical place, so it is not entirely clear what “presence” means in this sense. All I can say is that I am not Him. If you call that saying He is not infinite, then He is not infinite. Rabbi Shem Tov Gפן brought an analogy for this from dimensions. If we assume that we are three-dimensional and He has a higher dimension, then we do not take up any space from His space, and therefore this does not make Him finite. Just as area does not reduce volume in any way.