Class #17: Chapter 2: Pages 117-122: There Are No Tribulations Without Transgressions

So this section is called, There are no tribulations without prior transgression.

The principle that there are no tribulations without prior transgression is the foundation of Emunah.

of Judaism and of the entire world.

The renowned 13th century CE Kabbalist and Talmudic sage, Nachmanides, that's Ramban, writes in his commentary on the Torah and Parashat Bo, a person doesn't earn a share in the Torah until he believes that everything and every event in life is a miracle.

Like we said last time, That was like in the modim, when we say the modim in the Amidah, there's nisim v'niflaot, right? There's nisecha v'niflotecha.

What's the difference? Nisecha is open miracles, the things that are obviously against nature.

The guy's deadly sick, he gets saved.

The business deal's gone, it comes back.

Niflotecha, the wonders, is the stuff we take for granted.

It's the every second, everyday miracle we see in color.

We're digesting food, we're walking, we're talking, we're thinking.

There's apples growing on trees.

That's the niflotecha.

So what does Ramban say? Nothing is the product of nature or natural course.

Very simply, what he's saying is even what we call nature is a miracle.

It's pretty unbelievable.

Childbirth is the best example.

That's natural.

That's what happens.

You get together and you get pregnant.

You have a baby and the cells expand.

Okay, but it's wild.

It starts with one cell and it turns into a complex human being with different functions.

So even though it's nature, no, no, no, it's a miracle.

And Ramban continues, whether on an individual or on a collective scale.

So this section is called, There are no tribulations without prior transgression.

The principle that there are no tribulations without prior transgression is the foundation of Emunah.

of Judaism and of the entire world.

The renowned 13th century CE Kabbalist and Talmudic sage, Nachmanides, that's Ramban, writes in his commentary on the Torah and Parashat Bo, a person doesn't earn a share in the Torah until he believes that everything and every event in life is a miracle.

Like we said last time, That was like in the modim, when we say the modim in the Amidah, there's nisim v'niflaot, right? There's nisecha v'niflotecha.

What's the difference? Nisecha is open miracles, the things that are obviously against nature.

The guy's deadly sick, he gets saved.

The business deal's gone, it comes back.

Niflotecha, the wonders, is the stuff we take for granted.

It's the every second, everyday miracle we see in color.

We're digesting food, we're walking, we're talking, we're thinking.

There's apples growing on trees.

That's the niflotecha.

So what does Ramban say? Nothing is the product of nature or natural course.

Very simply, what he's saying is even what we call nature is a miracle.

It's pretty unbelievable.

Childbirth is the best example.

That's natural.

That's what happens.

You get together and you get pregnant.

You have a baby and the cells expand.

Okay, but it's wild.

It starts with one cell and it turns into a complex human being with different functions.

So even though it's nature, no, no, no, it's a miracle.

And Ramban continues, whether on an individual or on a collective scale.