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The Spirit of Renewal: Finding Faith after the Holocaust
Poetic. Thought-provoking. Accessible. Trying to understand the Holocaust and addressing the question of faith after the Holocaust, Rabbi Feld places it within the context of responses to tragedy throughout Jewish history.
224 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 1991
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 19, 2024
The first hundred pages are not special, but then the book picks up. "Buber faces the terrible silence the awful absence of God. He recognizes the Holocaust as a moment when GOD disappeared from history, as an hour when prayers were unanswered. The Holocaust was a time of GOD's withdrawal from creation; a moment when holiness had no power on earth.
Yet this is no resolution either. For is not the hiddenness of GOD, God's absence when creation was turned into hell, a moment of absolute terror? Can we face a GOD who has withdrawn when death was rampant in the world? Can we pray to such a GOD? Can we enter into a relationship with this disappearing one? Does not our sadness overwhelm us? .....pp. 102-103
"What we learned is that technology, science, culture, and learning may be harnessed to write the most shameful pages of history. The Nazi rector, Martin Heidegger, one of the most respected philosophers of this century signed the dismissal of the Jewish professor, Martin Buber, who in turn was one of Germany's most respected theologians. The world of learning was no refuge from the madness. " p. 121
"What we can never say after the Holocaust is that GOD is the all powerful One who controls good and evil, or that history reflects the eventual triumph of the good." p. 139
"According to Rabbinic legend, Elijah is to found outside of the gates of Rome, wrapping bandages around the wounded poor. We imitate Elijah's calling..." by finding ways to help others. p. 142-143
"We believe not in an omnipotent GOD who will transform the reality closing in around us, which is the given of our lives, but in a GOD who in a delicate voice calls us from within that reality to break through its hardness and create a resting place for the Divine Presence. " p. 143"
"All Jewish theology is a conversation across time, each generation adding its own voice to the discourse. The questions that are the concern of our generation -- the understanding of suffering, the meaning of redemption - are the eternal questions of Jewish history." p.165
Yet this is no resolution either. For is not the hiddenness of GOD, God's absence when creation was turned into hell, a moment of absolute terror? Can we face a GOD who has withdrawn when death was rampant in the world? Can we pray to such a GOD? Can we enter into a relationship with this disappearing one? Does not our sadness overwhelm us? .....pp. 102-103
"What we learned is that technology, science, culture, and learning may be harnessed to write the most shameful pages of history. The Nazi rector, Martin Heidegger, one of the most respected philosophers of this century signed the dismissal of the Jewish professor, Martin Buber, who in turn was one of Germany's most respected theologians. The world of learning was no refuge from the madness. " p. 121
"What we can never say after the Holocaust is that GOD is the all powerful One who controls good and evil, or that history reflects the eventual triumph of the good." p. 139
"According to Rabbinic legend, Elijah is to found outside of the gates of Rome, wrapping bandages around the wounded poor. We imitate Elijah's calling..." by finding ways to help others. p. 142-143
"We believe not in an omnipotent GOD who will transform the reality closing in around us, which is the given of our lives, but in a GOD who in a delicate voice calls us from within that reality to break through its hardness and create a resting place for the Divine Presence. " p. 143"
"All Jewish theology is a conversation across time, each generation adding its own voice to the discourse. The questions that are the concern of our generation -- the understanding of suffering, the meaning of redemption - are the eternal questions of Jewish history." p.165
September 7, 2023
For the most part, Rabbi Feld reminded me of things I already knew! But it was worth reviewing things.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews