Timeless Torah

The Lubavitcher Rebbe was a man of ideas - childhood, education, marriage, work, illness, bereavement, science, technology, feminism, leadership, war, money - to him, these were much more than life-events and tools: they were concepts to be developed in our life's quest for G-d. Unlike his predecessors who spent their education solely in Yeshivas, (shortly after his marriage, and upon the encouragement of his father-in-law, the Previous Rebbe) he enrolled in the University of Berlin and took courses in philosophy and math. Similarly, in Paris, he continued his studies at the Sorbonne and at a Parisian engineering college. Throughout his life, he constantly borrowed ideas from science to buttress the values of Torah.
On many occasions he addressed the faith/science nexus. On the question of their perceived contradictions, the Rebbe rejected the “apologetic” approach which reinterpreted biblical passages to better fit the prevalent scientific theory. There was a time, wrote the Rebbe in his numerous letters, when scientists believed that certain ‘facts’ could be ‘proven’. Today, however, it is universally acknowledged that the scientific method does not ‘prove facts,’ but rather assigns greater or lesser probability to a hypothesis. The believing Jew, who holds in hand a document which he knows to be the revealed word of the Creator of nature and its laws, has no reason (including science itself) to modify that truth because it seems to contradict an hypothesis to which science, in its present stage, has assigned a certain degree of probability.
Instead, the Rebbe saw the faith/science relationship as essentially collaborative, rather than combative. Indeed, even the Zohar predicts that, “In the sixth century of the sixth millennium, (1740-1840 in our calendar) the gates of supernal wisdom (chassidus) will be opened, as will the springs of earthly wisdom (science), preparing the world to be elevated in the seventh millennium.”
According to the Zohar, this dual revolution (the downpour of divine wisdom along with an upsurge of earthly knowledge), are both a vital preparation for the Era of Knowledge. How these revolutionary advances in science prepare the world for the coming of Moshiach, can be understood in three ways.
1) As a tool: On the most elementary level, the scientific revolution has facilitated, to an unprecedented degree, the dissemination of Torah. Years ago, a teacher could communicate directly only with those who were within range of his voice; today, his words (and even his image) can be broadcast all over the globe. In these and numerous other ways, science has enabled the spread of the divine wisdom on a scale that could not ever even have been imagined.
2) As an analogue: On a deeper level, the scientific revolution has actually enabled us to better appreciate and relate to the divine reality. Example: Integral to our faith is the concept of "divine providence" (hashgacha p’ratis): that G-d observes and holds us accountable for our every act, word and thought; that He is aware and concerned with every event in the universe, from the birth of a star in a distant galaxy to the turn of a leaf in the wind, and that they all figure in His master plan of creation.
In earlier generations, the concept of an all-seeing eye that simultaneously observes billions of actions, and of a Consciousness that is simultaneously aware of innumerable events and their effect upon each other, were beyond the realm of reason. One could believe it, for faith has the capacity to accept even the most illogical of truths; but one could not rationally relate to it. Today, when we can converse with an astronaut landing on the moon and use a silicon chip to compute millions of data a second, it requires no "leap of faith" to understand that He who imparted such potential in His creation certainly possesses it Himself. This is but one example of how modern science has transformed our very vision of reality.
3) As a revelation of G-dliness: Until recently, the world was perceived as being comprised of dozens of elements and driven by a number of distinct forces. But the more science developed, the more it uncovered the unity behind the diversity. Even the difference between matter and energy was shown to be but an external distinction between two forms of the same essence. Indeed, science is rapidly approaching the point of being able to demonstrate that the entirety of existence emanates from a singular source.
Story: A professor of math had just begun learning Torah. His new interest had caused him to buy some basic Jewish texts, a Chumash, siddur, etc. He proudly displayed his new acquisitions on his book shelf next to several math treatises. A rabbi visiting his home commented that it seemed disrespectful to place the two (Torah and math) on the same shelf. The professor, who realized that he was a novice on this issue, wrote to the Rebbe asking his opinion.
“Those who feel this way,” replied the Rebbbe, “don’t understand math.” Simply put, both disciplines ultimately reveal some of the wisdom of G-d Himself. (In truth, they reveal different aspects: Torah, G-d’s ‘internal mind’ while science exposes His ‘external mind’.)
Of course, the ‘windows of heaven’ (chassidus) have already unleashed this truth. Complementing this revelation is the scientist, who is currently formulating this truth in mathematical equations and demonstrating it in state-of-the-art atom-smashers. From above and from below, our world has been primed for the Age of Knowledge. This is but one of the bold ideas presented to us by our Rebbe.