Rabbi Irwin Wiener, D.D.
There is no absolute proof of the existence of God. All beliefs are based upon faith. God has provided enough clues. However, each of us must arrive at our own conclusions, because God is personal as well as universal.
And yet I wonder, even if there were proof, would we still question God’s existence? There have always been doubters and deniers, and it became the norm when we entered the Age of Reason. God had to be proven.
From the very beginning, we have also questioned the purpose that God had for all of us. What was the purpose of creation? What is the purpose of humanity?
It is not hard to deny the existence of God. There is war and killing. There is famine and desolation. There is crime and tragedy. There is sickness and despair. Innocent people die, and evil people don’t.
And yet I suggest that it is not hard to believe. There is beauty in nature. There is orderliness of the seasons. There is complexity as well as simplicity. There is the ability to create and enjoy what has been created, added by our own hands and with our own thoughts. There is the capacity to love and be loved.
Can we ever be close to God and talk to God? Do we really believe, even though we cannot see? We talk to God through prayer and deed. We reason with God by seeking answers to complex questions. We see God through our connection with each other.
There have always been questions, dating back to Abraham as he dialogues with God regarding the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.
And then there is the question of evil. How do we reconcile evil and God at the same time? Why would God put evil in front of us if the intention was to bring the harmony of heaven to Earth? If there is God, why all the suffering?
There are no absolute answers. However, I suggest that the answers lie somewhere in the concept of free will. God essentially gave humanity the ability to choose. We, in essence, are responsible for our decisions, given the choices. God, perhaps, hopes that we will choose the right path so that we will derive comfort.
I would also suggest that we ask the wrong questions. We should not be asking why or what or where. What we should be asking is how—how do we, humankind, relieve the suffering and the misery and the pain? How do we, the family of man, come together, as the master plan of creation was designed, to comfort and sustain and live together?
The miracles we seek lie in the ability to survive. Hope in the goodness of the human spirit is another weapon we possess that will bring us ever closer to our Creator. There is a partnership. God’s part was accomplished by giving us the tools to be self-sufficient, and our part is to take these signs and wonders and apply them to a survival kit and then acknowledge the God who partnered with us.
There is no straight path to God. There are glitches and detours and speed bumps. The destination is the essential expression of our connection. Labels are not the answer to finding God. There should be sincerity of purpose and the realization that, as we are different, one to the other, so is the journey we embark upon as we continue to seek unity with God.