[Avodah] Vayidom Aharon

[Micha Berger]

On Tue, Aug 01, 2023 at 05:28:54PM -0400, Joel Rich via Avodah wrote:
> A question a student was trying to ask (or the one that's been on my mind
> for a while) is that if it is the case that Aharon was comforted by Moses
> telling him that bkrovai akadeish was fulfilled through them, then it's not
> much of a paradigm for those who suffer and who don't have an understanding
> of why things happen.

Yes and no.

Being comforted that somehow this fulfils a purpose doesn't necessarily
tell you how. So, what we have of Hashem's explanation is quite vague.
Nor are we told why the Kol Yakhol didn't orchestrate His "Aqadeish" in
some less painful way.

For that matter, anyone with bitachon (of the Chazon Ish's definition)
believes that their suffering has a role in the Diving Plan. Even if
they don't have even have a declaration of biqrovai aqadeish.

And, frankly, feelings are rarely rational. I don't know how much it
actually helps to know with the head that losing one's children has a
purpose in being maqdish the Mishkan and/or proclaiming Hashem's Qedushah.
R Elya Lopian defines Mussar as the art of moving something just one amah
-- an idea, from the head to the heart. This is why we make decisions
we know are bad ones; why knowing halakhah doesn't guarantee keeping it.
Knowing why, and again I think this is a very partial "why" does little
(although admittedly not nothing) to mitigate emotional pain.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger                 The day you were born is the day G-d decided
http://www.aishdas.org/asp   that the world could not exist without you.
Author: Widen Your Tent                  - Rav Nachman of Breslov
- https://amzn.to/2JRxnDF