9:09 AM
Gil Student
R. Avraham Yitzhak Kook on evolution and the age of the universe, as presented by R. Chanan Morrison on his Rav Kook website and Arutz Sheva:
So, too, if God created life via the laws of evolution, these are details irrelevant to the Torah's main message: the ethical teaching of a world formed and governed by an involved Creator...
The Torah concealed much with regard to the process of creation, speaking in parables and ciphers...
God limits revelations, even from the most brilliant and sublime prophets, according to the ability of that generation to absorb the information. For every idea and concept, there is significance to the hour of its disclosure...
To summarize:
* Ancient Jewish sources also refer to worlds that existed prior to the current era of six thousand years;
* One should not assume that the latest scientific theories are eternal truths;
* The purpose of the Torah is a practical one - to have a positive moral influence on humanity, and not to serve as a primer for physicists and biologists. It could very well be that evolution, etc., are the tools by which God created the world.
* Some ideas are intentionally kept hidden, as the world may not be ready for them, psychologically or morally.
