Philosophical Reflections about the Shoah

מצגת בנושא: "Philosophical Reflections about the Shoah"— תמליל מצגת:

1 Philosophical Reflections about the Shoah
Tikva Seminar #3

2 There are many ways to study the Holocaust:
A. Historical facts. B. A manifestation of anti-Semitism, and all that such a “psychosis” entails (in the words of Jean-Paul Sartre in Anti-Semite and Jew). C. Political considerations including the need for a scapegoat for Germany’s and other countries’ woes. D. A program of genocide. E. The experience of being consigned to a ghetto and/or concentration camp. F. The phenomenon of the righteous gentile. G. The response of the other nations of the world to the activities to which the Jews were subjected. H. The collusion of the indigenous population. I. The manner in which the extermination program impacted the German war effort. J. The connection of the Shoah with the establishment of the State of Israel. K. The She’eilot and Teshuvot that were written. L. Etc.

3 A philosophical/theological approach focusses upon:

4 Or perhaps, more pointedly, “How could the Holocaust have happened
In light of our beliefs concerning (1) God and (2) human nature?” Question I

5 (1)

6 שמות פרק לד (ו) וַיַּעֲבֹר יְקֹוָק עַל פָּנָיו וַיִּקְרָא יְקֹוָק יְקֹוָק קל רַחוּם וְחַנּוּן אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם וְרַב חֶסֶד וֶאֱמֶת: (ז) נֹצֵר חֶסֶד לָאֲלָפִים נֹשֵׂא עָוֹן וָפֶשַׁע וְחַטָּאָה וְנַקֵּה לֹא יְנַקֶּה פֹּקֵד עֲוֹן אָבוֹת עַל בָּנִים וְעַל בְּנֵי בָנִים עַל שִׁלֵּשִׁים וְעַל רִבֵּעִים: Exodus 34:6-7 And the LORD Passed by before him, and Proclaimed: 'The LORD, the LORD, God, Merciful and Gracious, Long-suffering, and Abundant in Goodness and Truth; Keeping Mercy unto the thousandth generation, Forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin; and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and unto the fourth generation.'

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9 (Regarding the horrors of 9/11/01): “The numbing numbers of lives lost, a number made worse still by the fact that so many died in the midst of selfless acts or rescue or in radiant prime, leaving children, spouses, parents, siblings and friends to grieve, makes us wonder about the oldest of theological conundra: How does God Allow evil? How does one maintain a commitment to God in the face of such tragedy?... Americans feel acutely the force of the question, ‘Where is God?’” --David Schatz, “From the Depths I have Called You” in Contending with Catastrophe: Jewish Perspectives on September 11th, ed. Michael Broyde, Beth Din of America, NY, 2011, p. 198

10 (2) “Man was made to mourn: A Dirge” Many and sharp the num'rous ills Inwoven with our frame! More pointed still we make ourselves Regret, remorse, and shame! And man, whose heav'n-erected face The smiles of love adorn, - Man's inhumanity to man Makes countless thousands mourn! Robert Burns 25 January 1759 – 21 July 1796

11 Selection at Auschwitz determining who will be killed immediately
And who will be sent to slave labor or for medical experimentation

12 French Existential Philosopher
Jean Paul Sartre French Existential Philosopher

13 "Man is condemned to be free
"Man is condemned to be free.” --Jean Paul Sartre (Being and Nothingness) Sartre believes we are condemned to be free because we had no choice in the matter of being free. He allows humans only one instance of non-freedom (the ultimate paradox?), that is when we a thrown into this chance world by chance. After this we are responsible, in an absolute sense, for everything we do. (Rob Harle, )

14 בראשית פרק א (כו) וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹקים נַעֲשֶׂה אָדָם בְּצַלְמֵנוּ כִּדְמוּתֵנוּ וְיִרְדּוּ בִדְגַת הַיָּם וּבְעוֹף הַשָּׁמַיִם וּבַבְּהֵמָה וּבְכָל הָאָרֶץ וּבְכָל הָרֶמֶשׂ הָרֹמֵשׂ עַל הָאָרֶץ: (כז) וַיִּבְרָא אֱלֹקים אֶת הָאָדָם בְּצַלְמוֹ בְּצֶלֶם אֱלֹקים בָּרָא אֹתוֹ זָכָר וּנְקֵבָה בָּרָא אֹתָם: Beraishit 1:26-27 And God said: 'Let us Make man in Our Image, after Our Likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.' And God Created man in His Own Image, in the Image of God Created He him; male and female Created He them.

15 בראשית פרק ב (ז) וַיִּיצֶר יְקֹוָק אֱלֹקים אֶת הָאָדָם עָפָר מִן הָאֲדָמָה וַיִּפַּח בְּאַפָּיו נִשְׁמַת חַיִּים וַיְהִי הָאָדָם לְנֶפֶשׁ חַיָּה:

16 תלמוד בבלי מסכת סוטה דף יד עמוד א ואמר רבי חמא ברבי חנינא, מאי דכתיב: )דברים יג( "אחרי ה' אלקיכם תלכו"? וכי אפשר לו לאדם להלך אחר שכינה? והלא כבר נאמר: (דברים ד) "כי ה' אלקיך אש אוכלה הוא"! אלא להלך אחר מדותיו של הקדוש ברוך הוא, מה הוא מלביש ערומים, דכתיב: (בראשית ג) "ויעש ה' אלקים לאדם ולאשתו כתנות עור וילבישם," אף אתה הלבש ערומים; הקדוש ברוך הוא ביקר חולים, דכתיב: (בראשית יח) "וירא אליו ה' באלוני ממרא", אף אתה בקר חולים; הקדוש ברוך הוא ניחם אבלים, דכתיב: (בראשית כה) "ויהי אחרי מות אברהם ויברך אלקים את יצחק בנו", אף אתה נחם אבלים; הקדוש ברוך הוא קבר מתים, דכתיב: (דברים לד) "ויקבר אותו בגיא", אף אתה קבור מתים.

17 Pre-Flood: בראשית פרק ו (ה) וַיַּרְא יְקֹוָק כִּי רַבָּה רָעַת הָאָדָם בָּאָרֶץ וְכָל יֵצֶר מַחְשְׁבֹת לִבּוֹ רַק רַע כָּל הַיּוֹם: And the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. Post-Flood: בראשית פרק ח (כא) וַיָּרַח יְקֹוָק אֶת רֵיחַ הַנִּיחֹחַ וַיֹּאמֶר יְקֹוָק אֶל לִבּוֹ לֹא אֹסִף לְקַלֵּל עוֹד אֶת הָאֲדָמָה בַּעֲבוּר הָאָדָם כִּי יֵצֶר לֵב הָאָדָם רַע מִנְּעֻרָיו וְלֹא אֹסִף עוֹד לְהַכּוֹת אֶת כָּל חַי כַּאֲשֶׁר עָשִׂיתִי: And the LORD smelled the sweet savour; and the LORD said in His Heart: 'I will not again Curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again Smite any more every thing living, as I have done.

18 Based upon what we now know concerning the Shoah,
Based upon what we now know concerning the Shoah,* must our beliefs about God and human nature be revised? If not, why not? and if so, in what ways? *(or for that matter, other attrocities perpetrated by man upon man throughout human civilization)

19 Question II Is the Shoah just another manifestation of evil, albeit on the grandest of scales, or something sui generis, that is incomparable to all events that have ever taken place before over the course of human history?

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21 What is the difference between dealing with an abstract idea vs
What is the difference between dealing with an abstract idea vs. a real, visceral, objective manifestation of that idea?

22 Philosophers and theologians will usually address the Shoah as a form of evil, as opposed to something unique in history, even though from a Jewish point of view, never has a program of genocide been carried out against our people so ruthlessly and efficiently throughout recorded history, in order to even try to begin to get “their arms around the problem,” assuming that it can be understood philosophically and theologically at all.

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24 The existence of EVIL, gives rise to two fundamental possibilities:
The universe in which we find ourselves is random and there is no meaning, order, or significance to anything that occurs, or The universe is Created, Ordered and Maintained by a Benevolent and Caring God, Whose Actions are simply not discernible by /comprehensible to the human mind. Traditional Judaism will only allow for the second possibility.

25 The term theodicy (from Greek theos - "god" + dike - "justice")… usually refers to an attempt to resolve the evidential problem of evil by reconciling God's traditional characteristics of omnibenevolence, , omnipotence, and omniscence (all-loving, all-powerful, and all-knowing) with the occurrence of evil in the world. …the term 'theodicy' was coined in 1710 by German philosopher Gottfried Leibniz in his work, Theodicee. --

26 Lacking omnipotence In polytheism the individual deities are usually not omnipotent or omnibenevolent. However, if one of the deities has these properties the problem of evil applies. Belief systems where several deities are omnipotent would lead to logical contradictions. Ditheistic belief systems (a kind of dualism) explain the problem of evil from the existence of two rival great, but not omnipotent, deities that work in polar opposition to each other. Examples of such belief systems include Zoroastrianism, Manichaeism, and possibly Gnosticism. The Devil in Islam and in Christianity (and Judaism) is not seen as equal in power to God who is omnipotent. Thus the Devil could only exist if so allowed by God. The Devil, if so limited in power, can therefore by himself not explain the problem of evil. (Lawrence Kushner’s Why Bad Things Happen to Good People makes this argument.)

27 Free will God's creation of persons with morally significant free will is something of tremendous value. God could not eliminate evil and suffering without thereby eliminating the greater good of having created persons with free will who can make moral choices. Freedom (and, often it is said, the loving relationships which would not be possible without freedom) here is intended to provide a morally sufficient reason for God's allowing evil… "Natural" evils such as earthquakes and many diseases are sometimes seen as problems for free will theodicies since they don't seem to be caused by free decisions…they are caused by natural laws that must operate as they do if intelligent, free agents are to exist…

28 Afterlife Another response is the afterlife theodicy… Pascal’s Wager (also known as Pascal’s Gambit) is a suggestion posed by the seventeenth century French philosopher, mathmatician, and physicist Blaise Pascal that, since the existence of God cannot be proved or disproved through reason, and there is much to be gained from wagering that God exists (and there is an afterlife) and little to be gained from wagering that God doesn’t exist (and there is no afterlife), a rational person should simply wager that God exists and live accordingly. Bertrand Russel argued: “If you looked at the matter from a scientific point of view, you would say, ‘After all, I only know this world. I do not know about the rest of the universe, but so far as one can argue at all on probabilities one would say that probably this world is a fair sample, and if there is injustice here then the odds are that there is injustice elsewhere also.’ Supposing you got a crate of oranges that you opened, and you found all the top layer of oranges bad, you would not argue: ‘The underneath ones must be good, so as to redress the balance.’ You would say: ‘Probably the whole lot is a bad consignment;’ and that is really what a scientific person would argue about the universe.

29 Definition of evil as absence of good
…Evil is only privatio boni or an absence of good such as in discord, injustice, and loss of life or of liberty. Some believe that this doesn't completely solve the problem of evil, as the question remains why God neglected to create those goods that are found to be lacking in the world. A common concept takes this one step further, defining Evil as a relative absence of God, Himself. A correlation is usually drawn to heat vs cold or light vs dark. Just as cold and darkness do not truly "exist," except as a comparison (the less heat that is included, the colder something feels) so too does evil not truly exist, except as a comparison (the less God is included, the more evil something is). This comparison does not contradict the omnipresence of God, since energy is present even in cold things.

30 The Danger of Theodicies: “Treating evil as if it were explicable would blunt our moral responses… “Suppose I meet a friend who is undergoing a terrible illness and needs my help. No one would deny I am obligated to help. But why should I help? After all, he (presumably) deserves the suffering… “Should evil be viewed as something positive, something contributing positively to the totality?...” David Shatz, “From the Depths I have Called to You”, p. 217

31 בבא קמא פה. דתניא דבי ר' ישמעאל אומר: "ורפא ירפא" מכאן שניתן רשות לרופא לרפאת. תוס'. שניתנה רשות לרופא לרפאות - וא"ת והא מרפא לחודיה שמעינן ליה? וי"ל דה"א ה"מ מכה בידי אדם, אבל חולי הבא בידי שמים, כשמרפא נראה כסותר גזירת המלך קמ"ל דשרי:

32 Jewish traditional sources re the possibility of our ever understanding why God either Does things, that at best, we don’t seem to understand, or at least Appears to Allow them to happen:

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34 תלמוד בבלי מסכת קידושין דף לט עמוד ב דתניא, רבי יעקב אומר: אין לך כל מצוה ומצוה שכתובה בתורה שמתן שכרה בצדה, שאין תחיית המתים תלויה בה; בכיבוד אב ואם כתיב: )דברים ה( "למען יאריכון ימיך ולמען ייטב לך", בשילוח הקן כתיב: )דברים כב( "למען ייטב לך והארכת ימים, " הרי שאמר לו אביו עלה לבירה והבא לי גוזלות, ועלה לבירה ושלח את האם ונטל את הבנים, ובחזירתו נפל ומת, היכן טובת ימיו של זה? והיכן אריכות ימיו של זה? אלא, "למען ייטב לך" - לעולם שכולו טוב "ולמען יאריכון ימיך" - לעולם שכולו ארוך. ודלמא לאו הכי הוה! ר' יעקב מעשה חזא... אמר רב יוסף: אילמלי דרשיה אחר להאי קרא כרבי יעקב בר ברתיה, לא חטא. ואחר מאי הוא? איכא דאמרי: כי האי גוונא חזא; ואיכא דאמרי: לישנא דחוצפית המתורגמן חזא דהוה גריר ליה דבר אחר, אמר: פה שהפיק מרגליות ילחך עפר? נפק חטא.

35 Kiddushin 39b For it was taught: R. Jacob said: There is not a single precept in the Torah whose reward is [stated] at its side which is not dependent on the resurrection of the dead. [Thus:] in connection with honoring parents it is written, “that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee”. In reference to the dismissal of the nest it is written, “that it may be well with thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days. “ Now, if one's father said to him, ‘Ascend to the loft and bring me young birds,’ and he ascends to the loft, dismisses the dam and takes the young, and on his return falls and is killed — where is this man's happiness and where is this man's prolonging of days? But “in order that it may be well with thee”, means on the day that is wholly good; and “in order that thy days may be long” on the day that is wholly long. Yet perhaps there was no such happening? — R. Jacob saw an actual occurrence… R. Joseph said: Had Aher interpreted this verse as R. Jacob, his daughter's son, he would not have sinned. Now, what happened with Aher? Some say, he saw something of this nature. Others say, he saw the tongue of Huzpith the Interpreter dragged along by a swine. ‘The mouth that uttered pearls licks the dust!’ he exclaimed. [Thereupon] he went forth and sinned.

36 ישעיהו פרק מה (ז) יוֹצֵר אוֹר וּבוֹרֵא חֹשֶׁךְ עֹשֶׂה שָׁלוֹם וּבוֹרֵא רָע אֲנִי יְקֹוָק עֹשֶׂה כָל אֵלֶּה: I Form the light, and Create darkness; I Make peace, and Create evil; I am the LORD, that doeth all these things. )בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְדֹוָד אֱלֹקינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם. יוֹצֵר אוֹר וּבוֹרֵא חֹשֶׁךְ. עֹשֶֹה שָׁלוֹם וּבוֹרֵא אֶת הַכל.) רש"י (ז) יוצר אור - לצדיקים: ובורא חושך - לבבל וכן עושה שלום ובורא רע: מלבי"ם ...ר"ל ע"י שברא המציאות עצם בעל מקרים שמצד זה הוא משתנה בהכרח, עד שיבואו החשך והרע בעקבות האור והשלום שהוא המציאות, עי"כ ברא חשך ורע, ובכל זאת אני ה' עשה כל אלה, בל תשאל למה ברא חשך ורע, ר"ל למה הניח לו מקום בהמציאות, ולא המציא את הנמצאים באופן שישמד ההעדר לגמרי, עז"א כל זה עשה ה' המהוה המציאות, כי לולא זה לא היה אפשר לעשות ולגמר המציאות כפי שרצה חכמתו ורצונו יתברך כנ"ל. ובכל זאת הכל עשה מצד הטוב כמ"ש אני ה' עושה כל אלה, מצד שרצה להמציא ולהוות נמצאים, לא מצד הרע, רק לא היה אפשר שיתגלה הטוב הזה באופן אחר (ועיין במורה נבוכים פע"ג מח"א ופרק יו"ד מח"ג וספר האמונות לרס"ג מאמר א פ"ד ויתבארו לך הדברים היטב):

37 שמות לג Shemot 33 יח וַיֹּאמַר (משה): הַרְאֵנִי נָא, אֶת-כְּבֹדֶךָ. 18 And he (Moshe) said: 'Show me, I pray Thee, Thy Glory.' יט וַיֹּאמֶר, אֲנִי אַעֲבִיר כָּל-טוּבִי עַל-פָּנֶיךָ, וְקָרָאתִי בְשֵׁם ה', לְפָנֶיךָ; וְחַנֹּתִי אֶת-אֲשֶׁר אָחֹן, וְרִחַמְתִּי אֶת-אֲשֶׁר אֲרַחֵם. 19 And He said: 'I will Make all My Goodness pass before thee, and will Proclaim the Name of the LORD before thee; and I will Be Gracious to whom I will Be Gracious, and will Show Mercy on whom I will Show Mercy.' כ וַיֹּאמֶר, לֹא תוּכַל לִרְאֹת אֶת-פָּנָי: כִּי לֹא-יִרְאַנִי הָאָדָם, וָחָי. 20 And He said: 'Thou canst not see My face, for man shall not see Me and live.'

38 דברים פרק לא (יז) וְחָרָה אַפִּי בוֹ בַיּוֹם הַהוּא וַעֲזַבְתִּים וְהִסְתַּרְתִּי פָנַי מֵהֶם וְהָיָה לֶאֱכֹל וּמְצָאֻהוּ רָעוֹת רַבּוֹת וְצָרוֹת וְאָמַר בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא הֲלֹא עַל כִּי אֵין אֱלֹקַי בְּקִרְבִּי מְצָאוּנִי הָרָעוֹת הָאֵלֶּה: (יח) וְאָנֹכִי הַסְתֵּר אַסְתִּיר פָּנַי בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא עַל כָּל הָרָעָה אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה כִּי פָנָה אֶל אֱלֹהִים אֲחֵרִים: Then My anger shall be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide My face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall come upon them; so that they will say in that day: Are not these evils come upon us because our God is not among us? And I will surely hide My face in that day for all the evil which they shall have wrought, in that they are turned unto other gods.

39 תהלים פרק מד (כג) כִּי עָלֶיךָ הֹרַגְנוּ כָל הַיּוֹם נֶחְשַׁבְנוּ כְּצֹאן טִבְחָה: (כד) עוּרָה לָמָּה תִישַׁן אֲדֹנָי הָקִיצָה אַל תִּזְנַח לָנֶצַח: (כה) לָמָּה פָנֶיךָ תַסְתִּיר תִּשְׁכַּח עָנְיֵנוּ וְלַחֲצֵנוּ: (כו) כִּי שָׁחָה לֶעָפָר נַפְשֵׁנוּ דָּבְקָה לָאָרֶץ בִּטְנֵנוּ: (כז) קוּמָה עֶזְרָתָה לָּנוּ וּפְדֵנוּ לְמַעַן חַסְדֶּךָ: Nay, but for Thy Sake are we killed all the day; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Awake, why Sleepest Thou, O Lord? Arouse Thyself, Cast not off for ever. Wherefore Hidest Thou Thy face, and Forgettest our affliction and our oppression? For our soul is bowed down to the dust; our belly cleaveth unto the earth. Arise for our help, and Redeem us for Thy Mercy's sake.

40 תלמוד בבלי מסכת ברכות דף ה עמוד א אמר רבא ואיתימא רב חסדא: אם רואה אדם שיסורין באין עליו - יפשפש במעשיו, שנאמר )איכה ג'( "נחפשה דרכינו ונחקורה ונשובה עד ה'"; פשפש ולא מצא - יתלה בבטול תורה, שנאמר: )תהלים צ"ד( "אשרי הגבר אשר תיסרנו קה ומתורתך תלמדנו". ואם תלה ולא מצא - בידוע שיסורין של אהבה הם, שנאמר: (משלי ג') "כי את אשר יאהב ה' יוכיח."

41 תלמוד בבלי מסכת עירובין דף יג עמוד ב תנו רבנן: שתי שנים ומחצה נחלקו בית שמאי ובית הלל, הללו אומרים: נוח לו לאדם שלא נברא יותר משנברא, והללו אומרים: נוח לו לאדם שנברא יותר משלא נברא. נמנו וגמרו: נוח לו לאדם שלא נברא יותר משנברא, עכשיו שנברא - יפשפש במעשיו. ואמרי לה: ימשמש במעשיו. Our Rabbis taught: For two and a half years were Beth Shammai and Beth Hillel in dispute, the former asserting that it were better for man not to have been created than to have been created, and the latter maintaining that it is better for man to have been created than not to have been created. They finally took a vote and decided that it were better for man not to have been created than to have been created, but now that he has been created, let him investigate his past deeds or, as others say, let him examine his future actions.

42 R. Chayyim Ozer Grodzensky’s and R
R. Chayyim Ozer Grodzensky’s and R. Elchonon Wasserman’s theological responses to the Shoah: The Jews have brought these things onto themselves by means of: 1) eclipse of faith, 2) assimilation, 3) Jewish nationalism, 4) humiliation of Tora scholarship. The horrors of this period constitute the birthpangs of the Messianic Period. The antidote to such oppression and persecution is a return to observance and Tora study. Gershon Greenberg, “Orthodox Theological Responses to Kristallnacht…”, in Holocaust and Genocide Studies, Vol. 3, No. 4, pp , 1988.

43 Job and Friends

44 1 Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said:
Job Chapt. 38 1 Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said: 2 Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge? 3 Gird up now thy loins like a man; for I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto Me. 4 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare, if thou hast the understanding. 5 Who determined the measures thereof, if thou knowest? Or who stretched the line upon it? 6 Whereupon were the foundations thereof fastened? Or who laid the corner-stone thereof…

45 Trans. of "קול דודי דופק" R. J.B. Soloveitchik

46 “Man is born like an object, dies like an object, but possesses the ability to live like a subject, like a creator, an innovator, who can impress his own individual seal upon his life and extricate himself form a mechanical type of existence and enter into a creative, active mode of being…” Kol Dodi Dofek , p. 6 “When the man of destiny suffers, he says to himself, ‘Evil exists and I will neither deny it or camouflage it with vain intellectual gymnastics. I am concerned about evil from a Halachic standpoint, like a person who wishes to know the deed which he shall do; I ask one simple question: What must the sufferer do so that he may live through his suffering?’…” Ibid., p. 7

47 “We do not inquire of the hidden Ways of the Almighty, but rather about the path wherein man shall walk when suffering strikes. “We ask neither about the cause of evil nor about its purpose, but rather, but how it might be mended and elevated. How shall a person act in a time of trouble? What ought a man to do so that he not perish in his afflictions?” Ibid., p. 8.