In Defense of Theological Realism

There is a contemporary Jewish problem of "evil" in the way God too often appears as immoral in the Hebrew Bible and rabbinic literature. This problem has become acute with the raising of moral consciousness in the West, and is sometimes invoked in support of theological non-realism. I advance a theology that requires some modification in traditional Jewish thinking, and which retains the goodness and reality of God. My remarks assume a theistic background and are intended for devotees of traditional Judaism who have this problem. I am not addressing atheists to convince them of God`s goodness and reality. In my theology, I support moderate scholarly views on the historicity of the Hebrew Bible, advance a view on the authority of the rabbis, and stress the centrality of a personal closeness to God, in the manner of Hasidic teachings.