THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
30—Friday, March 29, 1974
Significant Study of Religion, Prayer
JUDAISM
AND TRAGIC THEOLOGY
By Frederick S. Plotkin
Foreword by Arthur A. Cohen
Schocken Books
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A Review by
ALLEN A. WARSEN
A cardinal element in the-
ology, especially Jewish the-
ology is the problem of suf-
fering, particularly innocent
suffering. And the never
ceasing question is always
"why?" Why personal pain?
Why natural disasters? Why
the Holocaust?
What's the reason? Is it
retribution for personal and
collective transgression? Is
it the incomprehensible way
of an incomprehensible God?
Or is it because "Man is
born unto trouble, as the
sparks fly upward?" (Job,
5:7).
These are some of the
questions also raised by Plot-
kin in his book. As in the
case of other thinkers, neith-
er can he explain these un-
answerable questions. Yet his
interpretation of the biblical
serpent and Satan provides
a means to a better under-
standing of this tragic enig-
ma and a better comprehen-
sion of the phenomenon
known as evil.
Difficult to explain is also
the matter of God's election
of Israel as his chosen peo-
ple and their tragic history.
If it be true that God rules
the history of Israel, why
then are the Jews singled out
to suffer calamity after cala-
mity?
What is the answer to this
dilemma?
Should Israel submissively
accept suffering as retribu-
.
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tion for moral disobedience;
or wait and hope for a pro-
mised Utopia to materialize?
". . . I will make a covenant
of peace with them; it shall
be an everlasting covenant
with them: and I will multi-
ply them, and will set my
sanctuary in the midst of
them for everymore . . . and
they shall be my people . . ."
(Ezekiel 37 : 26-280)
The author, of course, is
unable to solve this dilemma.
However, by tracing the his-
tory of Israel from the time
it entered into a covenant
with God, through the biblical
and post-exilic periods, he,
at least, is able to bring into
sharp focus this tragic prob-
lem.
At the same time he asks:
What is the Jewish view of
history? What are the forces
shaping it? Is it the product
of evolution? Socio-economic
forces? The consequence of
accidents, circumstances and
vicissitudes? Or is Jewish
history the fulfillment of a
divine purpose? The latter,
the author believes, is the
Jewish viewpoint. He realizes
though that this view ". . .
is extraordinarily hard to
present in any way which can
seem convincing to the "cli-
mate of opinion" in our day."
Most intriguing is Plot-
kin's exposition of panthe-
ism. Not only does he refute
the pantheism of Spinoza, but
also of Fichte, Schelling and
Hegel. Two of his objections
deserve to be quoted:
. . . experience tells us
that there is nothing in the
material world known to man
which is not either composed
of parts or a part itself; and
that, consequently, nothing
is complete and perfect in
its simplicity. How then can
this world be really one with
God. with the Being who is
in the highest degree and in
a truly objective way, sim-
ple?
. . . reason based upon
experience teaches us that
the purely corporeal world
lacks altogether the faculties
of understanding and free
will, and that these faculties,
even in the most gifted of
the human race, are in a
state of imperfection and per-
fectibility. It is, therefore,
absolutely impossible that
either the corporeal or the
spiritual world known to men
should be one with God who
is infinitely perfect, and
therefore under all aspects
without defect, and incapable
of evolving new perfections
or new modes of perfection
in his own being,
Not less significant is Plot-
kin's study of religion and
prayer. It encompasses prim-
itive religions, - psychoanaly-
tic theories and "weltan-
schaurigen" of some of the
world's greatest philosoph-
ers. Foremost among whom
are Rudolf Otto and Nathan
S'oderblom to whom he is in-
debted for "tracing the or-
igin of religion to a discrim-
ination of the sacred from
the profane, for placing the
apprehension of the Divine
at the center of the religious
conception, and the emotion
Look down from the heav-
ens, thy sacred dwelling-
place, and bless thy people
Israel, and the soil which
thou hast given us, and thou
didst swear to our fathers—a
land flowing with milk and
honey.—Deut. 26:15.
which the Divine produces at Judaism. To him it is a "con-
the center of worship." This tradictio in adjecto" since
leads Plotkin to state that Judaism is God and Torah
the Jew "has found in pray- and not sociology.
This reviewer will not pass
er not only a means of tri-
umph or a source of comfort judgment on the validity of
but also the way which leads the views presented in "Juda-
him to freedom, to the Di- ism and Tragic Theology."
vine
He is of the opinion, though,
. ."
No wonder, therefore, that that the book will provoke a
Plotkin is opposed to secular great deal of controversy.
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