[Avodah] Can we force Hashem to do something?

[Micha Berger]

On Thu, Feb 19, 2009 at 09:47:30PM +0000, rabbirichwolpoe at gmail.com wrote:
:> mal'akhim, since they
:> (particularly when up in Shamayim I there is broader agreement) have no
:> bekhirah. "

: Source please?

You asked the same when RABaruch cited RSYWeinberg (v2n005) as making
the same assertion I did.

The Rambam says so in the 5th ikkar.

The Or Samei'ach (in his essay in Hil' Teshuvah "HaKol Tzafui" writes
that mal'achim to have bechirah in potentia, but in practice the right
choice is obvious.

Taking the following from Sifsei Chaim (Pirqei Emunah uVrakhah II pg 142
unward:
Your position is that of the Seifer haChasidim (530) and Yalqut Re'uveini
(Bereieshis, in the name of Sodei Razia). They hold that mal'achim have
bechirah, but can make a decision based on what they think the facts
are. And thus can sin by erring on the facts. The Ramchal gives a similar
explanation for the Sitra Achara's rebellion against HQBH -- it was an
error in facts. (His intent was to make bad and good equally compelling
choices for people, and then got to thinking that this meant that good
and bad were equal, and thus Hashem's authority and his were as well.)

I forgot RYGB's source (back in our discussion in 2000), but he argued
that the Qabbalah idea that mal'akhim can sin through erring about
the truth applies in particular when the mal'akh is on shelichus, not
in shamayim. These sources would agree that when in Shamayim, the Or
Samei'ach is correct.

That's what I was remembering when I wrote my parenthetic remark.

The notion that mal'akhim have no bechirah is implied by R' Yaaqov Qatina
who notes they are called omedim / nitzavim. And thus mal'akhim only
have one leg because they are on pillars, as opposed to being walking
beings. They don't make decisions and thus they don't change.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger                 Time flies...
micha at aishdas.org                    ... but you're the pilot.
http://www.aishdas.org                       - R' Zelig Pliskin
Fax: (270) 514-1507