Language:
English
Year of publication:
2014
Titel der Quelle:
Yad Vashem Studies
Angaben zur Quelle:
42,2 (2014) 123-154
Keywords:
Kaminka, Armand,
;
Holocaust (Jewish theology)
Abstract:
Rabbi Dr. Aaron (Armand) Kaminka (1866-1950) fled Austria for the Land of Israel in June 1938, following the Nazi "Anschluss" and his release from five weeks in a Gestapo prison. In October 1940, he published a 12-page essay entitled "Why Does the Way of the Wicked Prosper? Three Chapters in Rational Investigation of Theodicy", aiming to explain theologically the Nazis' successful conquest of Europe and the sufferings of the Jews under their rule. In his essay, Kaminka revised the notions of suffering and reward (as well as those of success, good deeds, etc.). According to him, both suffering and reward were of a spiritual, moral nature rather than of a material one. He believed that Israel's sin lay in its failure to fulfill its mission of spreading Torah among the nations. He explained the success of the Nazis, paradigmal evildoers, as temporary and a prelude to a terrible downfall.
Note:
See also in Hebrew.
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