The unified theory of being

Salomon KONINCK, A Philosopher, 1635, Oil on canvas, Museo del Prado, Madrid

Schneur Zalman of NY commenting to the From conversation into interpretation post:

I met "Rabbi" Dr. Zalman Schacter-Shalomi in Philadelphia in 1977, when I spent a Sabbath at his tisch and his community. Reb Zalman told me then that he had hoped that the new Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Schneersohn, given his engineering and scientific background would change the nature of a Chassidic discourse from an abstract Maamar reflecting ancient Greek Philosophic discourse to a mathematical methodology and hoped the Rebbe would use chalk and blackboard to arrive at a unified theory of being. I agree with you Tzemach 100% we are totally lacking this sort of view today. Knowledge is fractured into religious and secular.

Here at YU we have scholars who are very frum in observance teaching Bible criticism or the like. I remember hearing that Prof. Bloch a faculty member at the University of western Ontario and a Lubavitcher with beard, etc. Once Prof. Bloch remarked in response to a question on how a Frume Yid could teach certain philosophic concepts - that being a philosopher is his job, a parnossah. We are lacking a unified theory binding all knowledge in a continuum, without skipping a beat as was true in the times of the Chazal and as reflected in Shaas. I always thought that master of DACH like the Rebbe or his brother (Israel Arieh Leib ) and Barry Gourary - men who all had scientific, and a physics background were the people to bring it all together.

I think that the real study and chakirah in Ein od bilvado, Techyas hameisim and the nature of Hashem and his relationship to us is going on in the world of physics, astronomy and mathematics. Talk of time travel, study of the "measurements" of the Milky Way and the Stars, etc. Study of the nature of time in regards to light, etc. seem to deal with issues the Kabbalah and our traditions talk about. It�s unfortunate that our religious leaders (with the exception of the Rebbe) probably do not have even the faintest idea about all these issues, and are not interested either.

Chassidic leaders are more interested in technicolor robes, leadership and thickness of female hose rather than the fundamentals of G-D's creation on earth. Only a few Breslover chasidim I met were even interested in these issues. Imagine a Rav Yoel Kahan who also had a physics and mathematical background to understand time, space the universe from a modern scientific vantage point. People like the Rebbe, his brother and his nephew had the qualities to throw new light on these core issues.

As I said and Tzemach said the idea we are advocating is to destroy the barriers (artificial) between the natural sciences and Religion. Torah is everything not just a legal system, just as Shaas includes data about the total human experience. Chazal were great doctors, astronomers, and navigators, etc. as well as rabbis teachers and judges.

I mentioned the Rebbe's brother and nephew as people who had they remained Chassidic (Barry was a Shmoer Shabbes) with their knowledge of science and Chassiduth could have contributed much to the realignment of chassiduth in line with scientific discoveries and advances of the 20th century. The Rebbe of course chose not to integrate science into Chabad theology.

I don't advocate lowering the bar, punkt farkert, hiking the bar having as Chabad leaders men like Reb Yoel Kahan who could also understand physics, astronomy and math. Alas we still wait for the one who can teach us a unified theory of life using all that Torah-science can offer.

No doubt Barry Gourary, and Leibel Schneerson were not the 20th centuries greatest scientists. Neither for that matter was the Lubavitcher Rebbe (just a factual matter). Yet their yichus, Jewish Chassidic knowledge would have made them ideal candidates to do what we are talking about.

Do the readers here think its just a coincidence that so many members of this family dedicated to teaching Jewish metaphysics and kabbalah were interested in Math and Physics in the 20th century? Mention can be made of the Rebbe, Reb Mendel Hornstein (engineering), Leiebe Schneerson, Bere Gourary, Dalia Roitman (the Rebbe's niece a scientist in the Weitzman Institute). Moving just a tad, the study of the human mind occupied the mind of Dr. Fishel Schneersohn a Kopuster eynikel. These people did not become Zionist leaders, Yiddish poets, playrights, politicians, Judaic scholars as did the modern children of the Twersky and Friedman dynasties. No, the Schneersohns chose science and not by coincidence.