Emuna

Cognizance of the World to Come changes one's entire way of relating to our world. One who possesses such a faith does not look for worldly rewards; instead, he dedicates his life to preparation, in order to guarantee his place in the World to Come.

Our relation to the Almighty does not find expression in the World to Come alone. Already here, in this world, God reveals Himself and exerts His special providence over Israel. He provides for Israel in a miraculous and revealed manner.

The guarantees of reward in Judaism are not of the sort that it is impossible to prove; they are not related to an afterlife. It does not say in our Torah, “If you will perform this commandment, I will bring you gladness and pleasure after death.”

God willed that creation consist of varying levels. In this manner the world is capable of attaining perfection. Therefore, humankind itself consists of levels: there is the Chosen People, and there are other people who do not belong to this group.

Following the Giving of the Torah, the Israelites made a Golden Calf and began to worship it. Such a sin, it would be expected, should have brought irrevocable disrepute upon that generation. But this event deserves to be seen in a different light.

After a student has studied for a number of years and has received a firm Torah foundation, it is best to direct him according to his talent and ambition – whether in the field of Torah, viz., education or the Rabbinate, or some practical vocation.

“How can we be expected to accept the entire story of the Exodus or the Revelation at Sinai, or, for that matter, any other praises of Israel, when we consider how greatly they transgressed against God by making and worshiping the Golden Calf?”