As in the case of Israel and the Torah, so in the case of G-d,
there are the apparent or conceivable attributes, and the hidden or
inconceivable attributes.
What is conceivable of the Divine Being is that He creates and forms
the universe and the creatures. Creating them from nothing, He constantly
vitalizes them, as it is written: 1
He who in His goodness each day, constantly renews the work of the Creation.
This means that G-d continuously renews the
existence of the world and all creatures, creating and forming them from nothing
every moment. In other words, the act of creation is continuous,
repeating itself in the same way as in the beginning of creation.
David, King of Israel, recognizes "Him that spoke and there was the world" by observing Nature, as he frequently exclaimed,
2
How great are Your deeds!, or, 3
How many are Your deeds! In Psalms, he teaches us wisdom, understanding and
insight to recognize in nature and in its
beauty-its Creator, our Father and King, blessed be His Name. By this
recognition King David is moved to a sense of admiration for the Creator and
devotion to Him, which he expresses so inspiringly in the holy Psalms. And this
is the secret of our prayers, which are in part composed of Psalms-the soul's
expression of yearning and desire to cleave to the Master of all the Universe,
the source of all life.
What is inconceivable about the Divine Being is the essence and entity
of the supreme Creator, and what lies beyond the point of Life creating life,
as it has been said, 4 It is not the essence of the Divine Being that He creates
worlds and creatures, and sustains them.
It is written: 5 From my flesh I
behold G-d. Man consists of body and soul.
Just as the soul fills and vitalizes the whole body, so does G-d
fill and vitalize the whole world. But can we say that the entire essence
and function of the soul is that it sustains the body? Similarly, we cannot say
that the entire essence of G-d is that He
creates and sustains the world and all its creatures. Here lies a great deal
that is inconceivable to the human mind. Nonetheless, the realization of G-d's
greatness must move us to a longing and yearning to cleave to the Creator of all
things.
