Is Hashem good? | Imamother

shaynala

Sat, Dec 11 2021, 11:43 pm

just wanted to add, I don't have a source, but I heard that one of the big tests in the time right before Moshiach will be Emunah.
We will be suspended, as if, from a rope, that will be suspended over a river. and that rope will be shaken tremendously. We need to hold onto that rope and not let go.
not easy.
this was the question of Moshe Rabeinu- Why do Tzadikim need to suffer?
I'm not sure if I'm writing this clearly- please correct if not-
Hashem answered, "I will turn the world to Tohu V'Vohu (the nothingness before creation)"
Commentators explain the answer Hashem gave to Moshe Rabeinu-
"in order for you Moshe Rabeinu, to understand the reason why the Tzadikim need to suffer, I will need to unravel the entire creation and start again"
Picture an intricate tapestry that is sewn- if you want me to explain to you how to sew this tapestry, I will need to undo the threads and start again.
we are humans, and therefore our minds are limited.
I'm talking to myself also..Emunah is something we always need to work on..

shabbatiscoming

Sun, Dec 12 2021, 2:28 am

shoshanim999 wrote:

It might be a deep question but the answer is somewhat simplistic and unsatisfying.

Q: Is hashem good?

A: Of course hashem is good!

Q: Then why is there so much suffering?

A: We don't know, but even so, hashem is good. Just accept it.

That is easier said than done. This thread is not anonymous so I am not going to get into the specifics of my life, but Ive hada lot of pekalach, shall we say, and no, I do not think hashem is always good. Thats my opinion. And I do not just accept that he is good. Its too hard after some of the things I had to go through.

Learning

Sun, Dec 12 2021, 2:37 am

shabbatiscoming wrote:

This is the essence of our job in this world. Even though it doesn’t make sense. To accept it that it’s all for the best. Like Avraham avinu went to sacrifice his son happily even though it was destroying him completely

etky

Sun, Dec 12 2021, 2:54 am

Yes, I believe Hashem is 'good'.
The quotation marks that I used represent the idea that we, as humans, do not really have a full understanding of the concept of goodness and what it entails.
We cannot use our own paradigm of what it means to be a good human and impose it on the Supreme ruler of the world.
We also do not comprehend what the meaning of life or of this material world, is in the context of eternity.
And we do not know the degree of resolution to which hashgacha pratit extends and how it factors in with overall Divine Providence in this world.
But the concept that Hashem represents goodness in its absolute form and that the Torah that he gave us is a blueprint towards a good and moral life because Hashem is 'good', is the underpinning of our religion. We have to accept this precept blindly even if it flies in the face of our limited human reasoning.
Hashem and his ways are inscrutable.

shabbatiscoming

Sun, Dec 12 2021, 2:57 am

Learning wrote:

Again, to just accept it is easier said than done. And again, Im not getting into my specific life without being anonymous, but I have not always been able to "just Accpet it". And I know there are other frum jews just like that as well.

BadTichelDay

Sun, Dec 12 2021, 3:21 am

shoshanim999 wrote:

(...) I read one of the posters upthread saying that she's comforted that hashem "is with her". But it really comes back to the same question of how is hashem with her? Would she be comforted if she could see into the future that hashem will giver her suffering and hardship? Is that really comforting? I'm sorry if this is triggering for some people. I struggle with this and find that it's best for me not to think about it too much.

Not sure if you are referring to my post. But I would put it like this: Hashem being with me means to me, that He knows what's going on with me and that my suffering and hardship are part of His plan for the world, that they have a meaning to them, even if I don't necessarily understand the meaning. It doesn't mean that Hashem keeps all suffering away from me, but rather that it is something purposeful if it has to happen. Of course I would rather not suffer. But if I do, let me be in Hashem's hands with my suffering.

The opposite of that would be, c"v, if everything that happened was just random, hefker, accidents of nature, not meaning anything, like a snail being crushed by a car wheel (borrowing the example from Jabotinsky), the driver not even knowing it is there.
The snail's life and death are both meaningless and unaccounted for. I trust Hashem that my life and death have some meaning to Him, that they are a tiny part of the great history of Am Yisrael unfolding, that He knows me personally and hears me, that He controls whatever happens to me and everyone else and that it happens for a good reason. It's the knowledge that I'm not just a random snail.

Hidden

Sun, Dec 12 2021, 3:39 am

Just because you have a hard time accepting it and feeling it that doesn't mean Hashem isn't good.

Hashem is כולו טוב.

We may not see it, feel it right now - or even at all in our lifetime. But that doesn't mean it's not true.

Just like I don't understand the intricacies of the atom, that doesn't mean it's not real and true. The Torah teaches us that Hashem is good, I don't have to understand it to know it's true.

Hidden

Sun, Dec 12 2021, 3:50 am

Also, if you're referring to specific hardships in life that make you feel like Hashem is not good, I once heard something that has really helped me.

I think it was an אור החיים, that said that before we are born we are shown our tafkid that we need to accomplish in this world. We then choose EVERY SINGLE THING that happens to us in our life, as we see it as a means to reach our tafkid. That means when we are struggling and crying "why Hashem?!? why me?!" we actually agreed to it - not only that, but we chose it!

There was a beautiful story that I heard about a man from Israel who's daughter had serious medical issues and could only get treated in America. This man was constantly travelling back and forth, raising money for his daughter and his other children back in Israel.. Someone asked him, does it ever get too hard? Are you ever resentful?
He answered, how could I be resentful, I chose this!!! Who am I getting resentful at, myself?

Another story I heard about a man who was born without an arm. He was unable to live a productive life, get a job, etc. He used to cry and complain bitterly - Hashem, what do you want from me?
He had a dream one night, from his previous gilgul - he was an extremely wealthy man who once had a beggar come to him. The beggar did or said something very disrespectful, and the rich man slapped him. When he died, he was told that he did not pass this test and has to come back down. He BEGGED them to make him poor so he doesn't have this nisayon, and then asked that he shouldn't have an arm so he couldn't smack anyone.

I apologize in advance if any of the details aren't accurate, I just wanted to share as I know this concept has helped me so much in dealing with my challenges.

PinkFridge

Sun, Dec 12 2021, 8:25 am

shaynala wrote:

I went through a very very difficult time in my life; something objectionably difficult related to my young child.
I went through a very painful period of time; thoughts like- how do I really know everything that Hashem does is for the good? HOW CAN THIS BE GOOD??? and more, filled my mind.
does Hashem really love me? does Hashem really love my child? how can I feel secure in His love, when this happened to my child?
I gave myself space. I gave myself time in nature. I started to see all the things Hashem does for me that I need to be thankful for. I started to trust Hashem again. It took time.
slowly I started to remind myself:
Kol Mah D'avid, Rachmana L'Tav Avid.
I found solace in books about the Holocaust, and survivors who retained their Emunah. I watched Holocaust documentaries and the Emunah of the survivors gave me strength, gave me back some of my Emunah. I listened to music that inspired me- like Ani Maamin B'Nissim...
Hashem really really loves you. We don't know why. We can't know why. But know that we really will know why.
Here, on earth, there are no answers.
In heaven there will be no more questions.

Another beautiful post. There have been many.
When we look at survivors there are a few rules to bear in mind:
- we aren't saying, what we have is nothing compared to them. Instead we look for messages about how they got through it and can we tap in to those same strengths.
- I heard a line that I wish I would have written down right away so I could share it exactly and attribute it. No doubt the Holocaust was so horrific it's beyond our struggles. But it was shared. Now everyone is going through his or her own private and individual struggles and the journey seems especially lonely. We have to recognize this. Which is related to the first point: we shouldn't minimize what we're going through.

And when it comes to national trauma like the Holocaust it can be helpful to remind ourselves that we've been through this before, and we've endured, and may Hashem help us tap in to those strengths. It's there somewhere in our spiritual DNA.

PinkFridge

Sun, Dec 12 2021, 8:30 am

Learning wrote:

Best can be a hard word. But that it's all for a reason? Sure.
I heard a shiur from Michal Horowitz that I think was recent but am not sure about. She said that in this world we can't say Hatov v'hameitiv when things that seem bad happen. Our emotions are real.
I do have to believe that everything is for a reason and ultimately we will see the good. I have to believe that Hashem is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent. Hashem is perfect. Anything less, any pettiness, any weakness, is not our perception of Hashem. Maybe the ancient Greeks' perception of their gods, or religions that are somewhat dualistic in their belief in good and evil, that evil fights against Hashem and that Hashem "is doing his best" against evil. That's not Hashem.

PinkFridge

Sun, Dec 12 2021, 8:34 am

shabbatiscoming wrote:

Anyone who can "just accept" everything is a malach.
I just read a beautiful tribute to a Mrs. Brown in Yated. She was niftar last year at 101, born in America, no formal Jewish education but a home that gave her all the tools she needed. She had 2 children, a son who died as a bochur, and a daughter who died about 15 years ago, IIRC. She was a lovely, cheerful lady who gave chizuk to many.
But here is THE story, that I think many reading this thread will relate to: At a granddaughter's sheva brachos, the only child who got married without her mother, Mrs. Brown didn't get out of bed. She said that she wasn't getting out of bed till she thought of 2 things to be grateful for. And this is the woman who was always finding things to be grateful for, according to the previous pages of the tribute.
She was so real. As are you, shabbatiscoming.

miami85

Sun, Dec 12 2021, 11:53 am

PinkFridge wrote:

I don't want to derail things but how is he faithful to Gd if he doesn't even try to learn, teach, and espouse what Gd wants? Google Dennis Prager yom tov sheini.

One of the best approaches to this question is the magnificent book Making Sense of Suffering by Rabbi Yitzchak Kirzner, zt"l. (Written by Yonasan Rosenblum based on classes.

It's a really good question that I have asked myself, I'm not saying I take everything as "halacha l'moshe m'sinai" but in this case I believe what he's saying is correct.

It's one thing to be a "maamin" it's another to be observant.

camp123

Mon, Dec 13 2021, 8:18 am

If you believe in Hashem and you believe the torah is true then it follows that Hashem must be good.

It says in the torah the 13 midos of Hashem. He is רב חסד ואמת.

For me it's a purely interlectual deduction. I believe in the torah because I dont believe you can make up such a lie to so many people. If the torah is true, then God must exist and He must be good.

But, bad things happen.
The only answer is that there's a piece of the puzzle which we can't understand or even come close to understanding.

shabbatiscoming

Mon, Dec 13 2021, 10:10 am

camp123 wrote:

But for those that have had bad happen to them in life, and Im not talking about a hang nail or a scrapped knee, its not always just that simple that if god exists he MUST be good.

miami85

Mon, Dec 13 2021, 10:21 am

shaynala wrote:

Wow that medrash rings true today. Crime is permissable, teachers can't teach, stores get looted and it's "their fault", the definition of marriage is in shambles, what's man/woman?