Parshat Chukat

Conventionally, Science and religion are seen as at odds with one another. Religious teaching presents a particular perspective on the workings of the world, whilst science presents a contrary one. Whether it be the structure of the Cosmos (e.g. geo-centrism as seen in Rambam’s Hilchot Yesodei HaTorah), or the nature of causality (like we read daily in the Shema: “if you listen carefully to my commandments… I will give you the rain of your land in its due season… and [if] you turn aside, and serve other gods… there [will] be no rain”); science contradicts these narratives through astute observation and calculated logical derivation. Phenomena that used to be understood as mysterious and therefore divine, are now fully understood, dissected and explained with diagrams and formulas.  

So which one is it? Can this contradiction be resolved? 

As it turns out, Judaism has been wrestling with contradiction long before the scientific revolution. Even within the corpus of Jewish philosophy we can find plentiful examples of contradictions. One of the more famous of these is so apparent that it has been posed to me by many young teenagers: “If Hashem knows everything, past and future, and nothing is out of His control, how do I have free will?” And despite the weight of this question, many authorities felt that we, as believing Jews, were simply going to have to live with that contradiction (Rambam Hilchot Tshuva 5:4). 

We can present this question in slightly different terms, pointing to a famous story from this week’s parsha – Moshe’s decision to hit the rock, when he should have spoken to it, and his punishment forbidding him from entering the Land. Many commentators struggle to justify why such a simple misstep warranted such a severe punishment. Some focus on his anger (Sifrei Bamidbar), the missed opportunity to sanctify Hashem’s name (Rashi), and others look back to previous misdeeds that were included in the calculation for this punishment (Abarbanel). Still others present an entirely different answer: Moshe was the right leader for the generation of the desert, but he was not the right leader for the conquering and settling of the land (Ralbag). But surely we must say, either Moshe deserved this punishment because of his actions, or it was the necessity step for the Jewish People to be given a new leader? Do events unfold the way they do because it is what we deserve, or because it had to happen by Hashem’s plan? 

Interestingly, though scientific discovery has continued to establish order and certainty in our understanding of the world, the newest discoveries into the fundamental forces of our universe present many internal contradictions of their own. Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle, quantum entanglement, the observer effect, and more. Though I will not explain these topics here (ask Google to help you) they demonstrate fundamentally that, not only do we not understand the inner workings of our universe, but moreover, at the foundation of physical reality lies contradiction. 

But despite all of this, both Judaism and science keep chugging along just fine. Though for science, this lack of consistency presents a major issue, for Judaism it is actually a feature, not a bug. Indeed, this is the lesson of the opening mitzvah of our parasha, the chock of Para Aduma, which does not fit nicely into our logical view of the world – neither scientific nor religious (See Rashi).  

Contradictions are not only found in the books, but seemingly more often in the news. Israel’s victory again Iran is swift, whilst it is slogging in Gaza. Israel’s credit rating falls as it’s stock market climbs. Israel is hated at music concerts and making peace with Syria. But maybe this is precisely the message of the Para Aduma and other chukkim – we must learn to live with uncertainty, with contradictions and with paradox. We must continue to act with faith and fortitude, and realise that everything is in the hands of Hashem.