Truth in Judaism Northwest Vista College April 12, 2017

Is there one Truth (with a capital T)? Can there be multiple truths?

Jewish tradition grapples with this problem by declaring that we will not figure it out. That may seem strange, but we are not expected to figure it out. In the Jewish world, such enigmas can be answered with the word, teyku, a Talmudic Aramaic term that means, literally, "let it stand" or "let it be." The word is interpreted as an acronym for Tishbi yitaretz kushiot uva’ayot, meaning "Elijah the prophet (the 'Tishabite') will answer such questions (at the end of time)." In other words, some questions simply cannot be answered by us, though we are nevertheless expected to grapple with them and the implications they raise. The universe is just too overwhelming, and the greatness of God beyond imagination. Yet we are instructed to keep striving to understand.

Our Tanach includes many portions and stories that struggle with these issues without providing a final answer. Job, who suffers immeasurably, learns that no one is wise enough to give an account of the heavens (Job 38:37). And while Ecclesiastes considers it all a "striving after wind" (Ecclesiastes 1:14), the author continues striving nevertheless.

Our tradition does not expect us to find the answers to the riddle of Truth, but it does expect us to grapple with the questions. In Jewish tradition, the unity and oneness of God does not require a unity of opinion and belief. In fact, it teaches the opposite. Judaism stresses engagement in a process of struggling to understand, a process that ideally includes engaging in the quest with others. It will never provide "the" answer, but the very process of seeking and trying out answers, according to both Torah and Talmud, is in itself a spiritual act.

http://www.reformjudaism.org/learning/torah-study/va-etchanan/monotheism-and-problem-truth

Rebbe Asher Zvi the Magid of Ostroh, in his commentary on the Five Books of the Torah, Ma'ayan HaChochma, published just before his death in 1816.

Rebbe Asher Zvi addresses the question: Why must we strive to know the truth, even if it may be unknowable? He writes, "The consequence of falseness is that it is impossible to cleave to God. This is the meaning of the verse, 'Distance yourself from falsehood (midevar sheker tirchak) (Ex. 23:7) — through falsehood you will distance yourself from God, for God is truth and God's seal is truth. Therefore, one can only connect to God by means of truth."

By using the word connect/kesher he draws our attention to the Hebrew verb root kuf-shin-reish found in the word kesher (connection) and its related root shin-kuf-reish, which is at the core of the word sheker (to lie). The Magid points out that when we distance ourselves from falsehood in our unrelenting pursuit of the truth we are able to shift shin-kuf-reish to kuf-shin-reish, and thereby connect ourselves to God.

Why pursue truth? Because in doing so we draw ourselves nearer to God, we make a connection with a power greater than ourselves. It is a lifelong effort, this quest for truth, but its reward is a deepening of faith through connection. Even if the ultimate truth continues to elude us, we learn so much about ourselves and our Judaism along the way.

http://www.reformjudaism.org/learning/torah-study/va-etchanan/monotheism-and-problem-truth