The Importance Of Humankind And Its Role In Creation.

In an earlier post, I discussed Rambam’s conclusion that it is futile to try to find a purpose or reason for the existence of the universe as a whole, other than that God willed it into existence and provided it with a built in mechanism for continuity and survival. Indeed, when we look at our universe we observe that there is an interrelationship and interdependence between its different components and that all components of the universe are necessary for the existence and survival of the other components and the whole. Just observing the innate urge for self-perpetuation that biological entities have, the survival of the fittest genetic adaptation that evolution teaches about species and their survival, is enough to confirm that idea. As the world we know was willed into being by God, we can say that this system of self-survival that we observe is God’s will. Understanding the role of each component for the survival of the whole is a way of deciphering God’s will. Rambam in a slightly different context writes:

“Study the book which leads all who want to be led to the truth, and is therefore called Torah (Law or Instruction), from the beginning of the account of the Creation to its end, and you will comprehend the opinion which we attempt to expound. … This is expressed by the phrase, "And God saw that it was good" (Gen. 1:4, etc.). You know our interpretation of the saying of our Sages, "Scripture speaks the same language as is spoken by man." But we call "good" that which is in accordance with the object we seek. When therefore Scripture relates in reference to the whole creation (Gen. 1:31), "And God saw all that He had made, and behold it was exceedingly good," it declares thereby that everything created was well fitted for its object, and would never cease to act, and never be annihilated. This is especially pointed out by the word "exceedingly"; for sometimes, a thing is temporarily good; it serves its purpose, and then it fails and ceases to act. But as regards the Creation it is said that everything was fit for its purpose, and able continually to act accordingly.” (MN1:13)

In other words, each component is “good” because God put in place a mechanism for its own self-survival and “all that He has made” becomes “exceedingly good” when it can exist in perpetuity. Looking at the entities that make up our environment, we note that each one has a built-in mechanism for self- survival adapted to its particular characteristic. Comparing the different biological categories, plants versus animals, each one has certain attributes that are geared to its specific needs in addition to common characteristics. Looking at animals, we note that they all have common characteristics while each species has its own particular ones geared to its own survival. The herbivores have characteristics that allow them to procure, digest and survive on vegetation while the carnivores have characteristics that give them the ability to hunt. Humans too have certain characteristics that are adapted to their special needs. God’s evolutionary law has allowed man to evolve with the ability to make tools to allow him to control his environment. That ability is needed for his own survival and makes up for the deficiencies in strength, agility and digestion. The human mind is necessary for all these special activities and from that standpoint is just another physical attribute no different from the ability of a monkey to swing between trees. The human mind however has an attribute that goes beyond that immediate physical necessity; it can think about abstract matters and, more importantly, can make choices that will affect how things will be in the long term sometimes many generations later. Human beings can change the natural progression of events. Nature is predictable while humans are not allowing them to affect nature’s predictability. This makes humans unique giving them an ability that exceeds what would be needed for the survival of the individual or even the species. I understand that to be Rambam’s statement quoted earlier, “When therefore Scripture relates in reference to the whole creation (Gen. 1:31), "And God saw all that He had made, and behold it was exceedingly good," it declares thereby that everything created was well fitted for its object, and would never cease to act, and never be annihilated.” The verse where everything is “exceedingly good” appears after the creation of man. The world can exist in perpetuity only once man was created. Man is the key to its parte post (going forward) eternity. That unique ability that humans have plays an important role in the perpetual continuity of our existence. The idea of searching for God and learning about His ways to emulate them is therefore no longer a purely intellectual quest but a very practical one. It is man trying to understand his role in creation and how he has to act to play his part in the continuity of the whole of existence.

The world was not created so that man can exist but rather man was created as a key component for the perpetual survival of the whole of existence. When God created man, He completed a perfect universe that now is self-sustained and eternal.