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Hana Bat Haim
The Rabbi answered, "To whom do you attribute the wisdom evidenced by an ant? Who is responsible for the ant's intricacy?"
"Nature," responded the king.
"And what is nature?" inquired the Rabbi, "Does it create? Does it possess wisdom? Where does nature come from? Who is it that creates all of the wonderful elements of nature which are so full of wisdom? You must admit that it is the Almighty Who created the magnificent world of nature, so full of Divine wisdom."
Foundations of Faith (51)
Rabbi Zalman Baruch Melamed
17 - 15. Perceiving God
18 - 16. God's Hand in Nature
19 - 17. According to Divine Guidance
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At the outset, God created the world in such a way that it operate according to a fixed order, fixed laws which we refer to as the "laws of nature." However, the wisdom evidenced by these laws' complex interaction must be attributed to the all-wise Creator alone. The wisdom that is revealed through the many wonders of nature is God's.
The sages illustrate this idea in a most wonderful anecdote:
A certain matron asked Rabbi Yose bar Chalafta, "In how many days did God create the world."
"Six," her replied. "As it is written, 'For in six days did God do this.'"
"And what has He been doing since then?" she queried the rabbi.
"He has been arranging matches," Rabbi Yose rejoined.
To this the matron responded, "Even I can do that! I have scores of slaves and maidservants and I can arrange matches between them in no time."
The matron took a thousand of her male servants and a thousand of her maidservants and she lined them up. Then she began to announce, "So-and-so shall wed so-and-so...and so-and-so shall wed so-and-so..." In this manner she succeeded in arranging a thousand marriages in one night. On the following morning, the servants came to her, some with a black eyes, others with fractured skulls, still others with broken legs. Male servants were shouting, "I don't want her!" and maidservants were shouting, "I don't want him!" The matron sent for Rabbi Yose. She told him, "I now can testify that your God is the true God, and His Torah is true, for everything that you said to me was sound."
We find, then, that God created the world in six days, and since then He has been "arranging" his creation, interweaving and correlating between the array of forces at work in the world. He is like an artist who utilizes various paints to create his work of art. Clearly, one cannot attribute the profound idea and the beauty of the painting to the paints themselves! Insofar as these matters are concerned, credit must be given to the painter. Likewise, the abundant wisdom and many wonders of creation are not to be attributed to nature's ingredients; they must be attributed to the Almighty Himself Who oversees and arranges them.
Having clarified the nature of God's relation to His creation, we can begin to understand how the actions of man, when carried out according to Divine guidance, can themselves take on a Divine character.
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 8- "Answering Questions on the Kuzari's Proof from Mass Revelation
Rabbis in Midrash
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Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 9 - "Seeing is Believing" (parag. 21-30)
These paragraphs elaborate on the theme that seeing and knowing is better than any attempt to prove logically, and begins explaining the difference between Israel and gentiles.
Ein Aya Various Universal Stages of the Geula Process
Rav Kook examines the various stages of redemption, explaining how (in addition to the obvious oft-mentioned stages of ingathering the exiles, reviving the Hebrew language, army, state etc.) the messianic dream of world prosperity, the State of Israel and world unity can and are realistically and logically gradually coming true.
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 8- "Answering Questions on the Kuzari's Proof from Mass Revelation
How do we know that the "claim" of mass revelation to 2,000,000 witnesses at Mt. Sinai is really true? This important class answers all of the questions skeptics ask about this claim of the Kuzari.
Ein Aya Armies Still Necessary for Balance & the War Against Wars
Rav Kook explains why the world was originally divided into the various seemingly contradicting ideologies and cultures, in order to develop each one respectively. Swords or armies symbolize how each respective ideology defends themselves, as well as deters their opposing ideologies and cultures. On the other hand, the messianic era will be one of peace, and Rav Kook explains the transition to that stage, which mankind is already undergoing.
The Land of Israel LGBT'S IN ISRAEL
The question was asked, how can one make Aliyah with the LGBT parades?
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 7 - Five Accumulative Proofs of G-d
As a preparation for the Kuzari's classic proof of G-d from the mass-revelation at Sinai, we start here with 5 other directions to strengthen our belief which also contribute to what the Kuzari will present as well.
Ein Aya Muscle & Meaning: The Dual Nature of Gevurah (Physical Strength)
Is physical strength and fitness a necessity or an ideal? Although it if often totally overlooked among topics of Judaism, Rav Kook writes that it clearly is also a necessity to deter the many enemies of Israel, but even in Y'mot HaMashiach, in the Messianic era, to a certain extent, it's ideal continues even after our enemies will have been finished off.
