Immortality of the Soul (1)

PERSONAL REDEMPTION: THE PARADOX

As we have seen, redemption has many facets.  However, at the core of the concept of redemption lies one central idea: the redemption of the individual and the immortality of the soul.  Rihal devoted to this issue his discussion at the end of the first section, as well as other passages, particularly in the third section [3:21].

     The discussion of the immortality of the soul must begin with the question of the place of this concept in the Scriptures.  However, even before we address this question, we should note the historical paradox surrounding this issue.  Rihal writes:

"Regarding the ultimate aim of the other religions which impressed you, our Rabbis preceded these religions in this regard, they were the ones who described Heaven and Hell." [1:196]

This is a historical truth, that many people tend to forget.  The nations of the world have accused the Torah of materialism, as it speaks of reward and punishment in this world, but mentions nothing of the spiritual reward in the world, of the spirit.  Rihal points out the absurdity that we have accepted: those same monotheistic religions which have accused the Jewish religion as such, actually owe their "spiritual" doctrines to Judaism.  All otheir doctrines are based on those of our forefathers in the days of the Mishna and the Talmud - in other words, the doctrines of our Sages.  This accusation is one example of the absurd paradoxes which have accompanied us throughout our long history.

     Our Sages have stated that belief in the world to come is one of the principles of Judaism.  But, what place does this belief hold in the Scriptures?  Why is it never mentioned explicitly?  The explanation of this phenomenon is found, in my opinion, in Rav Kook's remarks on this topic in his great essay, "Le-mahalach Ha-ideot Be-Yisrael."  Rav Kook's answer will help us understand how faith in the soul's immortality fits within the larger framework of Jewish thought.

     Rav Kook speaks about the immortality of the soul in the Scriptural vision as a "candle in the afternoon."  This Aramaic phrase describes a candle burning during the day, whose light is not seen because of the greater effect of the sunlight.  If we allow ourselves to translate it into more modern terms, we can consider a car emerging from an underground parking lot.  Once he is out, he cannot see that his lights are on.  Imagine his car driving for many hours with the lights on, until the sun sets, or if we want to be more dramatic, until the onset of a solar eclipse.  Suddenly, he becomes aware of the headlights.  People might even think that the driver had first turned on the lights at that moment.  In truth, however, the lights were on all the time; we were just not aware of them until the sunlight vanished.  If we are careful to note the differences - and we will discuss the most important of these soon - we can say that that belief in the immortality of the soul is present in the Scriptures as well.  Yet, in the Scriptures it is like a candle burning in the middle of the day, when another light is shining and does not allow us to see the burning candle.  This great light, the sun, is none other than the general, collective redemption, the redemption of the nation.  The fate of the nation, its future and redemption, are such central foundations that the insensitive reader may not notice the many lights shining along the way.  Only the observant driver notices these lights.  Sometimes we see a procession of cars with their lights on, usually following a coffin to the cemetery, the lights signifying a state of mourning.  At other times, lights are a symbol of protest against a particular phenomenon.  The belief in the immortality of the soul has all of these elements, because it teaches us that the cosmic accounting is far more complicated than many people would like us to believe.  There are at least two types of account books: the collective and public account book, which calculates and determines the fate of the nation, and the personal account book, which involves not history, but the personal biography of each and every one of us.  In this book there is either a light which accompanies man on his final journey to the cemetery - the faith in the immortality of the soul - or a light which constitutes a protest and a refusal to accept the world as it appears to us, through the lens of our physical existence.

THE RELIGIOUS CONFLICT

Methodologically, we ought now to follow in Rihal's footsteps and look more closely at these lights which shine in the daytime.  However, I would like first to discuss certain problems that arise from this belief.  Although the immortality of the soul serves as a significant building block of personal belief, at the same time it can become the source of many dangers.  In order to understand this, we must look back to before Christianity, to our classic adversary, idolatry.

     The Jewish belief in the immortality of the soul is one of the beliefs belonging to the general heritage of humanity; it comes to mankind as an inheritance from Adam.  The expression of this belief is the grave, which has accompanied civilization from the beginning.  The existence of the grave is the most outstanding expression of the idea that man is not like all the animals, his body is not all, and death is not the end for him.  Idolatry related to this belief in terms of its own categories and frames of reference.  One of the central concepts of idolatry is the compartmentalization of the world, the belief in a different god ruling over each aspect of existence.  According to this theology, in the underworld, the world of the dead, there rules a god who imprisons the souls.  This belief is expressed in many myths, among them the well known myth of Orpheus and Eurydice.  Pagan philosophy perceived death as the entrance into the kingdom of a different god, with no way out for either the person or the god.  This belief directly clashes with the basic Jewish principle of divine unity, the belief in God's absolute dominion which extends beyond death and the abyss.  As such, the possibility of resurrecting the dead constitutes one of the basic components of our belief in God.

(Translated by Gila Weinberg)