The last Torah portion in the book of Leviticus, Bechukotai,
opens with God’s conditional promise that if we follow the mitzvot, we will
reap abundant reward. After a
description of the bounty God bestows upon the righteous, the portion then
turns to the punishments that will afflict those who do not heed God’s words:
“If you fail to obey Me, I will go on to discipline you sevenfold for your
sins, and I will break your proud glory. . . Your land shall not yield its
produce, nor shall the trees of the land yield their food. . .” (Lev
26:18-20). The catalog of curses in this
list far exceeds the aforementioned blessings, in both number and intensity; it
even speaks of parents forced to eat the flesh of their own offspring.
What do we make of this theology of reward and
punishment? There are a couple things to
note before dismissing this perspective outright. First, throughout the portion, the Torah
speaks communally, to the Jewish people as a whole rather than to individuals.
Responsibility is collective here: if the society as a whole is just, it will
prosper, and if it is oppressive it will not stand—but within that society,
certain virtuous men and women may still suffer, and others, who are
malevolent, may thrive nonetheless. There
is no promise that if I, as an individual, lead a moral life, I will be blessed
with health and prosperity. Furthermore,
this doctrine of reward and punishment only works in one direction. Even if one
accepts the notion that good is rewarded and wrong-doing is punished, that does
not mean that all suffering is punishment for wrong-doing. This is the failing of Job’s friends, who falsely—and
arrogantly—assume that Job must have committed a sin to incur God’s wrath.
Still, even with these caveats, many of us—myself included—find
it difficult to accept a theology of Divine reward and punishment, even on the
national level. Such a worldview fails
to align with the reality we see, day in and day out. I believe that no matter how much we wish it
were otherwise, sometimes the world is just not fair.
And yet I still find wisdom in this week’s portion, because
on an important level, environmentally-speaking, it communicates a core
truth. We now know that the land and the
weather do respond to our communal moral choices. The relationship is complex, and does not
follow a simple equation of reward and punishment meted out by a supernatural
God, but it is the way of the world.
When we act responsibly, we are more likely to continue to enjoy the
blessings of land and air and water.
When we abuse our power over the rest of God’s creation, we are likely
to incur environmental degradation, with sometimes-dire consequences.
Collectively-speaking, good behavior does indeed offer
benefits and irresponsibility surely carries a steep cost.
This week, try to be extra-conscience about the way that you
and your household live on the earth.
What actions of yours constitute a blessing? A curse?
For Randy Newman's funny and insightful take on the world's fairness, or lack thereof, see:
No comments:
Post a Comment