blogs/rabbi-huberman

One of my most remarkable moments as a rabbinical student occurred when, during my first month of classes, I was challenged by one of my teachers.

In a class called “Personal Theology,” I was asked in front of fellow students, “Do you believe that when you pray for the health of someone, it actually makes a difference?”

After thinking a moment, I replied, “Yes, I do.”

“Then I think,” the rabbi told me, “that you're going to have to develop a more mature understanding of God.”

I was shocked. Wasn't this rabbinical school? Aren't we supposed to believe in the power of prayer?

As I sat there stunned, the rabbi continued. ”Do you think that God had the power on that horrible day, with the flick of a finger, to divert those two airplanes from crashing into the towers?

“Do you believe that God could have prevented the Holocaust?”

The interaction with my teacher affected me so profoundly that an hour later I walked into the head rabbi's office and declared, “I don't think I can do this.”

But the rabbi sat me down and calmed me. He said, “you have just wandered into one of Judaism's major debates: Does God intervene in our daily lives, or not?

“Get used to it,” he continued. “Throughout your career, you will face this dilemma, and will have to explain it almost every day.”

And as my career has unfolded, I've found that the head rabbi was right.

The matter of prayer, and God's interaction with it, not only perplexes those of the Jewish faith, but worshippers of all religions.

The issue takes center stage this week as our sacred scripture occupies itself with public health. This week's reading is not the most inspiring<