And guess what? It’s not a new struggle!
Even the greatest minds in Jewish tradition grappled with this. We're talking about the kind of head-scratchers that kept even MOSES, our teacher, up at night.
The text we're looking at from Da'at Tevunot tells us exactly that. Da'at Tevunot, "Knowing Wisdom," itself is a profound work, aiming to unravel some of life’s biggest mysteries. And here, it's laying it all bare: these aren't easy questions.
The Intellect – personified as a speaker in the text – admits that "in here there are difficult and very deep items." What kind of items? Well, precisely this: "The Righteous whom negative befalls, the Evildoer to whom goodness comes."
Think about it. How do you reconcile the idea of a just and compassionate God with the reality of suffering innocents and prospering wrongdoers? Is there a cosmic balance sheet we just can't see? The text emphasizes how incredibly difficult it is for us to truly understand this. The passage goes on to say it "were difficult to the great sages and prophets, and even to MOSHE our teacher may he rest in peace, and are impossible to grasp."
Impossible to grasp. Strong words, right? It doesn't offer a simple answer. Instead, it acknowledges the sheer complexity, the profound mystery at the heart of it all. Maybe the point isn’t to find an easy solution, but to acknowledge the depth of the question itself.
Perhaps it is a reminder that faith isn't about having all the answers. Maybe it’s about wrestling with the tough ones, knowing that even the wisest among us have struggled with the same questions. So, the next time you find yourself questioning the fairness of it all, remember you're in good company. And maybe, just maybe, the struggle itself is part of the journey.