WHAT IS GOD? MY POSITION.

Rabbi Rifat Sonsino, Ph.D.

Feb. 12, 2019

In the past few years, I have written a number of articles and books regarding the Jewish concepts of God, and indicated that, even though almost all of our sacred texts conceive of God in theistic terms (“a personal God”), many Jewish thinkers have advocated different points of view on this subject. I have not as yet presented a comprehensive picture of where I stand on this issue. This short blog of 10 points will attempt to do just that.

I grew up as an Orthodox Jew in Turkey but became a Reform Rabbi in the USA. Theologically speaking, I now consider myself a religious naturalist, and have been influenced by Rabbis like Roland B. Gittelsohn and Mordecai M. Kaplan.

1.     What is God? For me, God stands for the energy of the universe. Based on my observations of nature, with its continuous process of change, growth and decay of almost everything, I assume that there is a power that keeps the universe going on its course. It is to this internal energy that I give the name God. Our world was not created in the way in which the Bible describes it out of nothing. The answer to this puzzle must come from the world of modern science (Big Bang theory, perhaps). 

2.     What is my relationship to God?  God is not a personal being. God does not know me, care for me or responds to my prayers. God is also beyond gender, neither male or female.  God simply is the energy animating the universe. It is our duty to understand how this world operates in order to make sense of our existence.  All I want is to be given the sustaining tools of a meaningful life, the wisdom to accept my limitations and the skills to overcome them within nature’s possibilities. I hope for wholeness and contentment.

3.     Do I believe in miracles? The universe is a wonderful place. Every moment is awesome and note-worthy. I do not believe in miracles defined as an intervention by God into the normal workings of nature. When something incredible occurs, it is because we still have not learned how the world really operates or how the laws of nature made this change possible.

4.     Do I “believe” in God? Faith is often understood as a firm belief in something for which there is no proof. For me, however, “to believe” in God means to affirm convincingly God’s existence after careful examination of all the available data. 

5.     What is the purpose of prayer? There are three types of prayer: petition, praise and gratitude. For me, the purpose of prayer is to express gratitude for our existence and formulate praises for the magnificence of being alive. Petitionary prayers can at best be expressions of our wishes. I do not expect any divine response to my prayers, but I do feel the need to formulate prayers of praises and gratitude. They make me feel better.

6.     How do I explain evil? I believe there is such a thing as evil caused by human beings or nature: at times, saintly people suffer, the wicked thrive (e.g., The Nazi Holocaust), and volcanoes create destruction.  However, this is not because God is unwilling to respond to our pleas, but because God is neutral and operates according to set patterns. We do not always know why is the universe working in this way, and need to study nature harder to find the reasons for what we see as unfairness. Over the years, we have made a great deal of progress in our attempt to understand God, but we still have a long way to go.  I also maintain that human beings are not born with a sense of morality but are taught to become ethical individuals. Most of them achieve this high level, others do not. 

7.     How free are we? Past thinkers have debated the issue of determinism versus free will for a long time. I maintain that we are constrained by our limitations of time and place. We do, however, have some free will within our limits, and we should cherish that freedom.

8.     How do I read the Bible (or Torah)? I view the Bible as a great compendium of Jewish legends and teachings reflecting the time of its composition. Some parts are obsolete, but others still motivate me to moral action. As the early Rabbis did it in their time, we, too, need to reinterpret its message to make it relevant to our times, because the Bible represents our foundation and heritage. It made us who we are today.

9.     Do I believe in an afterlife? I do not believe in hell or paradise. Nor do I believe in the dichotomy between soul and matter. We are one unified whole. After I die, I will be buried in the ground, or cremated, and my bones will eventually disintegrate. Hopefully, my name, my reputation, and my writings will survive for a while, and I will continue to live through the memories of my children, grandchildren, friends and students. I do not expect anything else. I am grateful to be alive and pain-free for the moment, but will take whatever comes my way. I hope it will be meaningful and tolerable.

10.  Does religion still matter? Yes, it does, for it gives us a perspective on a meaningful life. However, it needs to be based on rationality and modern thinking. It should not promote fundamentalism and obscurantism, but encourage peace and mutual respect, allowing the free debate of all existential questions of our time.