G‑d and Us

You don’t have to believe; you just have to listen.

I feel uncomfortable with the idea that G-d is always watching me. It seems stifling to think that I am under constant surveillance.

I envy people who have faith, with their strength and clarity. How can I acquire similar faith?

G‑d is surely not a hypocrite. If He tells us to do something, He should do it Himself as well. So shouldn't G‑d be obligated to feed the poor? Why doesn't He help His own children rather than commanding us to do it for Him?

"Believe in yourself. There's nothing you can't do, if you put your mind to it. " Nothing you can't do? Sounds pretty divine. A pity it's not true...

The statement, “I believe there is a G-d,” is meaningless. Faith is not the ability to imagine that which does not exist. Faith is finding relevance in that which is transcendent.

If your faith in G-d is not enough to get you out of bed in the morning, what about G-d's faith in you?

I realize that I don’t like this idea of one day not being here anymore. Perhaps G‑d and the eternity of life are just constructs of our mind to protect itself from that which it can’t handle?

"Only on the firm foundation of unyielding despair can the soul's habitation be safely built." Who said that? Does anyone believe that?

If G-d is perfect, why did He create us? A perfect being isn't missing anything, so why would He need us?

It wasn’t kosher, and I knew it. But I was hungry. In a weak moment, I ate the sandwich. And then . . . nothing happened. I was not struck down by lightning, I didn’t get sick or collapse, the sky didn’t fall.

I would like to think that if I mess up, G‑d eagerly awaits my return, and when I perform a mitzvah, G‑d is pleased. But this contradicts everything I was taught about G‑d...

What's the difference between No-thingness with a capital N and vanilla nothing with a lower case n? What makes one Nothing G-d and the other just nothing?

I feel that I cannot observe a religion if I am not certain that it is true. Is there a proof that could give me a 100% certainty that G-d exists and gave the Torah to the Jewish people?

How do we reconcile our religious belief in Divine Providence with the mechanistic world we seem to live in?

A personal G-d? It would be nice to think I could have a personal relationship with G-d, or that I matter in some way to Him. But I'm a rational person.

I got into Jewish things and spirituality around a year ago, and I was feeling really motivated and inspired. But now I just don’t have the passion for it anymore. What happened?

This is not a question about why people choose to do evil or why evil is visited on the innocent. It is a broader question. Why did G‑d create evil and what purpose does it serve?

When did G‑d stop talking to us or interacting with us, and why?

What’s all this business about being “G-d-fearing”? What are we supposed to be scared of?

The difference between love and respect is that when I love, I am preoccupied with my feelings toward you; when I respect, I am focusing on your presence rather than mine . . .

I don't mean massive temples with human sacrifices. What about a civilized idolater, in the privacy of his own home? What's so terrible?

Monotheism is a dangerous belief. Perhaps one of the most dangerous beliefs there is. For monotheism to enter the world safely, it must be married to a deeper belief…

Think of prayer as G-d talking to Himself -- through you

How can I exclaim, “love G-d with all your heart” when I don’t really feel that way?

Please don't tell me "We can't understand G‑d's ways." I am sick of hearing that. I want an explanation

We cannot accept the cowardly theology that G-d is not responsible -- that anything that happens in the world that doesn't mesh with our idea of His goodness is just an amoral and indifferent act of nature...

Adam wasn't supposed to eat from that tree. Cain and Abel were supposed to talk things out. Everyone was supposed to get along. That was Plan A

Why can we say that biblical tragedies were punishments, yet contemporary ones are “the mysterious way of G-d”? Have today’s rabbis changed their perception of G-d to fit what’s politically correct?

If G-d "already" knows what I will do tomorrow, is not my freedom to choose nothing more than an illusion?

If evil had some explanation that we understood, would we be as outraged as we are now in the face of its incomprehensibility? Would we abhor it as much, would we fight it as vehemently?

If G-d is G-d, then obviously He is in no way altered or affected by His creations. But if a world full of people means nothing to Him, why did He create one?

How does one become a prophet? What is it like to experience prophecy? Does prophecy exist today?

We've had Nostradamus up to our noses, Bible Codes out of our ears, and every brand of pundit and prophet. Is there anyone out there with some bona fide inside information that'll help me sleep better at night?

Since there's no way to know anything with certainty about anything in existence, how can we know that G-d exists? All the evidence is from a "reality" that we have know way of knowing exists at all!

I accept that some sort of “Higher Being” created the universe. But why couldn’t there be many such beings?

Judaism is beautiful, no question about it. But is it true? I would like to believe so. But I will not believe for belief's sake...

What are words but representations of things and concepts that G‑d Himself created? Any words we use—even words like “infinite” and “ultimate abstraction”—are meaningful only in the context of our logic, and as such, utterly meaningless when applied to G‑d, the creator of logic and its terms!

My father-in-law put it in his typical engineer terminology, "By now, I have figured out which buttons to push. But I still have no idea how it works"

Who would you help? What punishments would you mete out? How would you handle this awesome responsibility?

The Creator of all boundaries is unbounded by any definition. Otherwise, He too would require a creator.

No matter how many times I write "G-d", the spell-check on the computer has no idea what I mean...

My name is Yael and I am 9 years old. I have a question for you: Why does G-d set us challenges if he knows our future? And if we do the wrong thing how can he be mad with us?

If I sit back and wait for money to fall from heaven, that is not faith—that’s lack of faith.

Don’t we trust that G‑d knows what’s best for us and does only good for us? Aren’t we lacking in our trust and faith if we pray to G‑d to change what is?

What is the Jewish standpoint on miracles? How important or unimportant is miraculous phenomena to the Jewish believer?

I don't mean the "miracle of childbirth" and "every sunrise is a miracle" -- I'm talking about splitting seas and voices-from-heaven kind of miracles. Why did the people of the Bible get all the special effects and we don't?

Obviously, the Egyptians did some really bad things, and something had to be done to free the children of Israel. But couldn’t G-d have found a more humane way to deal with the situation?

Is there any evidence that the supernatural exists, or has any bearing on our lives? Does the word "supernatural" even mean anything, other than "I don't understand this (yet)"?

...or are we supposed to simply accept that everything He send our way is for the good

With all the tragedy and suffering in the world, how am I supposed to believe? I would like to feel faith, but it doesn't come...

The Bible (Genesis 1:26) states that man was created in “G‑d's image.” What does this mean?

Why does a One G‑d need more than one name?

If the core of my being is a "spark of G‑d," then where is the me in me? Is this idea that I have of myself as an "individual" a lie?

The world seemingly runs by rules of cause and effect and laws of nature. If so, how does G‑d get His "foot in the door" in this world. Does He override cause and effect and the laws of nature?

Doesn't G‑d already know what we're going to say?

I can’t help but wonder why a person like me, who loves Judaism, was born a gentile. Why wasn’t my soul worthy enough to be born into the Jewish nation?

Rabbi, you say that we’re supposed to be good without anticipating rewards. What do you mean? Isn't there the concept of heaven, and rewards, in Judaism?

I recently read of someone who does palm reading to figure out people’s character traits, as well as to see hints about their future. Am I permitted to consult with him and get my palm read?

I have a lot of challenges in my life. What should I remember to help me cope?

If G‑d cares so much about the human race, why do we struggle so hard just in order to survive?

I don't understand. Why do the good die young? I have lost a friend who was the best person I know. And I can think of plenty of not-so-good people who are living it up. Where is the justice? Can you make any sense of this upside down world?

What is Judaism's take on miracles?

I’ve been feeling hypocritical lately for doing things that are Jewish once in a while, when there are so many “all-the-time” traditions that I don’t keep. I feel like I would be “taking advantage” of the once-a-year traditions . . . Therefore, I just don’t do any.

On the one hand, I can see gratitude as a sign of faith, as it means that we acknowledge the involvement of G‑d in our lives. But is faith required in order to be a grateful person? Don’t all decent people say “please” and “thank you”?

This question is from my nine-year-old daughter. I started answering and realized I was not talking on her level. Can you help? "Why would a supposedly good, just and loving G-d allow so much suffering in the world?"

I have been duly chiding myself, ever-reminding myself that my accomplishments are only possible by G‑d’s good grace, and, if so, why should I feel any more accomplished than the guy next door?

If a person loses a court case, or things seem to be going poorly for him, is that any indication that G‑d is displeased with the individual?

This topic has been intensely debated throughout the ages without any sign of abatement, you may be in for a very long journey. After all, it seems like every couple of months publishers bless us with a yet another new book on the subject...

Here's my problem: It says you have to love G‑d with all your heart. That leaves no room to love people. Doesn't the love of G‑d lessen our love of humanity?

I would like to better understand, how is it that we are promised love and redemption and all kinds of good things according to the prayers and the Torah, but terrible things happen to people I consider good and righteous?

We know that G‑d is the most perfect Being, and that everything exists solely because of Him. So could He make any mistakes?

Does G‑d pick on some people? I think He is picking on me, because I have suffered one loss after another for much of my life.

If the foundation for G‑d’s forgiveness and atonement was initially the sacrifice on the altar, how does one now find forgiveness and atonement, since the Temple and physical sacrifices no longer exist?

How can G-d be in the Holy Temple, where do mitzvahs, where we learn Torah, everywhere, and nowhere all at once?

I have a problem with organized religion. It tells us to light candles, go to shul, eat this, don’t eat that, etc., etc. What sort of G‑d demands these things from us? Surely we can find our own path to G‑d without being told exactly what to do.

If He is supposed to be everywhere, why is He nowhere to be seen? My logic says, if you are nowhere, you don't exist . . .

You see a ray of light from the sun shining in through your window. "Where did you come from?" you ask. It answers, of course, that it came from the sun. So you ask it, "Let me see what you look like as you are in your source within the sun..."

Rabbis don’t like answering this question. Not because they can’t. Because of the risk.

Everything is love. Even fear is love.

Zac, I know you are a very good boy, but have you ever been naughty?

The smooth and easy times may be pleasant, but the riches of life come when things take hard work.

Literally “blessed be G‑d,” it is used by Jewish people in everyday conversation as a way of expressing gratitude to G‑d for whatever we have.

In case you're feeling overwhelmed, here's a hand to hold and a little guidance.

Think of an observant lifestyle as an art form. Keep it natural.

Keeping your head, your heart, and your feet all on the same road.