COVID’S CLUE

Rabbi Moshe Ben-Chaim

Maimonides was an undisputed Torah giant. He quoted Moses’ Torah (Bible) when discussing pandemics: “They aren’t natural, but divine punishments. Ignoring their divine warning will generate even worse catastrophes.”  Thus, through COVID-19, God intends to educate mankind. But where in this plague are the clues to our sins? Every race has been infected. We also see that most children are unaffected. 

A core truth is unavoidable: every member of mankind is an identical biological organism. This is certainly sensible, as we all descend from a single couple. Now, take the next step: If we are all identical biologically, do we also all share the same psychology? It appears so: we all prefer happiness and pleasure over sadness and pain. We all have a sense of fairness and justice, and we view kindness as better than hate. We have affection for those with whom we see more often. And intellectually, we all agree 2+2=4 and we realize proof outweighs mere belief. In all matters—biologically, psychologically, morally, philosophically and intellectually—all humans share one design. 

COVID exposes our identical natures. This truth exposes multiple religions as problematic. Religions intend to provide man with a blueprint for happiness. Religions even claim their religions are of divine origin, and they further claim “their” religion is the true religion. But as all races share the identical design, we all would benefit equally from the identical religion. This is similar to all races be treated identically for cancer: racial differences don’t determine different treatments.

The question then is proving which religion is truly of divine origin: a question of validating historical claims. Does any religion offer anything more than an individual’s claim of divine communication? If a person today claimed that God spoke to him and gave him a new religion, would we be correct to abandon our lifestyle and accept the word of a single person, who might be delusional? Well, this is primarily what most religions claim. No religion aside from Judaism claims mass witnesses of a divine event. An intelligent person should not blindly accept anything, regardless of the masses that follow blind faiths: mass followers do not equate to mass witnesses. We accept as 100% true that Caesar and Alexander existed, and at certain times. We accept that Aristotle existed. The same about Pharaoh. A unanimous communication of witnessed events validates a history. But there is no history of masses witnessing a divine event, other than what the Bible records. Therefore, we accept as historical fact the 10 Plagues, the splitting of the Reed Sea, and God’s communication of Torah to the Jews at Mt. Sinai 3333 years ago. 

God communicated a single religion, because there exists a single mankind. God did not give multiple religions. And no religion offers validation of their claims, no religion except Judaism. 

God is exposing our identical biological nature through COVID, and He also exposes the fallacy of multiple religions. There is only one mankind. We will all benefit equally from the only religion God gave man. 

Perhaps this also explains why children are mostly unaffected: children have not yet made the free will error of following a man made, unvalidated religion. COVID’s message does not apply to innocent children. 

We are so careful to take care of our bodies not to contract COVID. But God didn’t create man to simply live biologically. He also gave mankind an intellect. God’s plan is that man distinguish himself from the animal kingdom by engaging that intellect. We should be equally careful when selecting a religion. For it is only through a correct selection that we will attain the happiness God’s Bible teaches we can attain, and through which we secure the afterlife. If we don’t seriously consider the purpose of our brief lives, we forfeit the most grand opportunity God wishes we each receive. We lose the most fulfilling life here, and an eternity afterwards.