Part 2: "Divine Providence"
Chapter 6: "The System Behind Divine Providence"
Paragraph 5
The overarching point to be made about this system is that there are rules
and procedures involved; that nothing comes about by happenstance or
accident; and that the entire process is rooted in G-d's wisdom.
It's also important to understand that everything that happens in the course
of it follows patterns and configurations we humans can understand, and in
the realm of space and time rather than in G-d's unfathomable, infinite
realm. For as has been said many times within Ramchal's writings, G-d
manifests His will in this world through patterns we can discern and within
time and space *just so that we could understand His wishes for us*. For if
He interacted with us in His own unique way, we'd be utterly nonplused and
undone, and His interactions would thus have been in vain (see 2:6:1).
This acquiescence to time, space, and discernability explains why various
things are planned for in the course of different times of the year. We're
taught, for example, that the quantity and quality of food is decided during
Passover and Shavuot respectively, that the amount of rainfall (which is also
a metaphor for the economy) is decided during Sukkot, and that our personal
well-beings are judged on Rosh Hashanah. After all -- why otherwise would G-d
Almighty and His heavenly "board" need to limit themselves to these
particular times of year to make those decisions?
That principle also explains the various rules of protocol and procedure the
"board" follows, and other seemingly mundane and strangely picayune
goings-on. The wise will take this principle to heart and extrapolate it to
other ways G-d interacts with us, and will be struck by the immediacy and
poignancy of G-d's ways in this finite world.
This series is dedicated to the memory of Yitzchak Hehrsh ben Daniel,
and Sarah Rivka bas Yaakov Dovid.
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