I don't think anyone knows this, but I have been taking a Jewish philosophy class for the past few weeks. I won't be saying the name of the organization or the Rabbi teaching it because I don't have very good things to say about it here.
This class is set up as a lecture - the first red flag. A philosophy class should include more discussion, but I decided that the Rabbi was going to teach us all of the different views of the Jewish people on many subjects. The second red flag that I saw was that he only taught one approach while leaving out many Jewish philosophies that I know exist, and taught this as the "Jewish way of thinking" I continued giving him the benefit of the doubt, but he continued pressing one singular Jewish way of thinking. Something that I love about Judaism is the continuous conversation between the Jews of generations. There typically is no correct answer because so many Rabbis disagree on so many things. There might be a majority opinion, but that doesn't mean that it is wrong to have an opinion that is not the majority.
In my class this week, the Rabbi was talking about how all things have a purpose, and everything happens for a reason. He said that this is wh
at Jews believed. If something bad happens, there is always a reason for it, something good always comes out of it. I challenged him. I asked him why G-d couldn't have set up the world in a way where we could get the positive outcome of a negative thing, without the pain and devastation that preceded it. He replied to me asking what I believed (he was trying to dodge the question if you ask me) I said that I believed that not everything happens for a reason, I don't believe that G-d purposefully creates human suffering. "That is against Judaism," He said. That is against Judaism. In my opinion, this is no way to teach a group of impressionable teenagers. I was shocked that he responded that way. Later, after that class, I went and found multiple sources from the Talmud and Mishnah that had Rabbis expressing my same opinion. I would like to know everyone's opinion on this if you think that what he responded with was appropriate or not. Also if anyone wants me to share the things that I found I would be more than happy to do so.
Hi Eden, thank you for sharing your experience! The idea of taking a Jewish philosophy class sounds interesting, but I'm sorry that you didn't find the particular one you took the most enjoyable. I don't think that what the Rabbi responded with was appropriate, and I think that it's great that you challenged him. I agree with you and believe that disagreeing, sharing new ideas, and expressing different opinions is such a big part of Jewish philosophy. It's unfortunate that he didn't try to facilitate an open-minded discussion. I'd be interested in the sources you found if you want to share them!
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