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Short Summary
Main recommendation: Rather than speculating about why God is causing the coronavirus pandemic, respond to the crisis by rising to the moment through giving to others, growing in relationship with God and people, and treating every good act as potentially world-changing. Rabbi Daniel Rowe argues that for collective events, prophecy is needed to answer such questions, so speculation is not a reliable guide.
Key Points
- Rabbi Rowe cites the book Tomer Devorah as teaching that an individual can read messages from God in their own life without prophecy, but not reliably answer questions about mass events.
- He introduces Hashgacha Pratit, the concept that God drives history in ways greater than humans can see, which makes it hard to say God acted "because of" a specific human failing.
- He frames the crisis as a call to react, and suggests our response may itself be part of God's plan, which humans do not know.
- Rowe links the Messianic era to humanity's collective good actions, rather than to predicting when it will arrive.
- He cites Rabbi Sacks on the Hebrew word Mashber (birthing stool), presenting it as a stronger parallel to the Chinese idea that crisis and opportunity share a word.
Details Worth Noting
- Concrete instructions:
- Ask "How do we rise to the moment?" and avoid simply getting through the crisis or being crushed by it.
- Reflect on whether you have furthered your relationship with God and with others.
- Look for ways to give to people in isolation and to those beyond your circle who need help.
- Act on every good deed as if it could tilt the whole world, since the speaker says small acts can spread quickly, as the virus did.
- Stop wallowing in self-pity, fear, and anxiety, and focus on usefulness and giving to others.
- The speaker argues that a crisis can be followed by building something greater than before, both nationally in Jewish history and individually.
- The speaker says he hopes the Messianic era is near but states he does not know, since he lacks the gift of prophecy.
- Rowe notes that the virus spreading from a market in China to seven billion people within weeks shows how interconnected humanity is.
Bottom Line
The video shifts the question from "why is this happening" to "how should we respond," advising that the crisis is an opportunity to grow and give, while acknowledging that God's plan is unknown.
