Tuesday, February 01, 2005

What is the purpose of evil?

A question is answered posed by a seeker. An answer is given and thought is provoked.

First of all let me preface this by explaining that I am not referring to you personally. I realize you are only echoing the words of the present thinking on this subject. However as JJ Slim and others have pointed out "we are what we think." Please take no affront here. Your post here does make things better because it gives us a chance to examine this thing called evil.
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You ask what choice and thereby describe the fall from grace in the garden of eden.

You say without choice everything would be good. Do you realize what you have just said? The purpose that we are "fighting to get back," is so that everything would be good. We woudln't have to fight if we could let go of evil.

You have given the classic argument for evil. It is the same argument that the serpent uses to win over Eve. The serpent says that you have a choice to sin. See how much better it would be to sin by exercising your free will. The voice in the garden however says, see how much better it will be by seeing more of the good things that are offered here. Make them indeed in our own image is what is said.

I know this is confusing but consider this: The choice we have is to increase our good. It is to increase our understanding of this good. It isn't true that good cannot be better. Look around you. Good is always increasing.

The classic adversary argument for evil says, "without evil there would be no good."
Ha. This is funny. It would be hilarious except most people buy this including those who say "what purpose would free will serve."

In many writings on Kabbalah I have seen this notion of asking for more pain or more suffering so that we can fulfill our tikkune. It has been an unconscious part of Judaism for too long. I break tradition here in asking for my good that I may fulfill my good unceasingly.

It is yes a matter of semantics. I know we all want our good and the good of others. It is just that in discussing evil we have to be careful what suggestions we are giving our subconsciousness.


Choose good

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