--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: How can a rabbi not live with doubt? The…" description: "\"How can a rabbi not live with doubt? The Bible itself is a book of doubt.\" — Arthur Hertzberg" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/574/arthur-hertzberg-27898_bible_how-can-a-rabbi-not-live-with-doubt-the_1167455.png" --- # How can a rabbi not live with doubt? The Bible itself is a… ![“How can a rabbi not live with doubt? The Bible itself is a book of doubt.” quote by Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/574/arthur-hertzberg-27898_bible_how-can-a-rabbi-not-live-with-doubt-the_1167455.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/574/arthur-hertzberg-27898_bible_how-can-a-rabbi-not-live-with-doubt-the_1167455.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/574/arthur-hertzberg-27898_bible_how-can-a-rabbi-not-live-with-doubt-the_1167455.png) > “How can a rabbi not live with doubt? The Bible itself is a book of doubt.” [Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Faith embraces doubt; questioning is integral to belief. **In simple terms:** Doubt is part of faith. Key Takeaway Accept uncertainty in belief. Themes faith doubt theology Mood contemplative inquisitive Type philosophical theological When to use this quote - religious study - personal belief - education Key Concepts existentialism spirituality Questions to Reflect On - How does doubt strengthen faith? - Can doubt coexist with conviction? A Different Perspective Doubt may erode confidence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bible/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Doubt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubt/) [Rabbi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rabbi/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) ## Related quotes > [“This is the Book about which there is no doubt, a guidance for those conscious of Allah”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augelicht/this-is-the-book-about-which-there-is-no-doubt-a-guidance-for-those/) augelicht > [“You see, one thing is, I can live with doubt and uncertainty and not knowing. I think it’s much more interesting to live not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/you-see-one-thing-is-i-can-live-with-doubt-and-uncertainty-and-not-3/) [Richard P. 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Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [“Better to live in doubt than to die in certainty.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ira-levin/better-to-live-in-doubt-than-to-die-in-certainty/) [Ira Levin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ira-levin/) > [As actors, you live in doubt; that's one of the truths of the particular job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-fox/as-actors-you-live-in-doubt-that-s-one-of-the-truths-of-the/) [Freddie Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-fox/) > [“To Hope is to Live To Doubt is to Fear You Choose”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i-choose-hope/to-hope-is-to-live-to-doubt-is-to-fear-you-choose/) I choose Hope > [In mid-career, I was at one and the same time the rabbi of a major congregation, writing books, and teaching at Columbia. I didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hertzberg/in-mid-career-i-was-at-one-and-the-same-time-the-rabbi-of-a-major/) [Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) > [A traditional rabbi is the man to whom the community and its members turn to rule on what Jewish law requires of them, particularly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-novak/a-traditional-rabbi-is-the-man-to-whom-the-community-and-its-members/) [David Novak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-novak/) > [Ironically, my rabbi was a bar mitzvah Nazi. So I got bar mitzvahed. And though I didn't want to, the theme of my bar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-eichner/ironically-my-rabbi-was-a-bar-mitzvah-nazi-so-i-got-bar-mitzvahed-and/) [Billy Eichner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-eichner/) > [“The blue-eyed rabbi in our village at Samotschin used to talk to me as though I were a grown person, even when I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-funder/the-blue-eyed-rabbi-in-our-village-at-samotschin-used-to-talk-to-me/) [Anna Funder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-funder/) > [The conventional explanation for Jewish success, of course, is that Jews come from a literate, intellectual culture. They are famously "the people of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/the-conventional-explanation-for-jewish-success-of-course-is-that/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [I would like now to shed light in your heart on the truth of things, for it was not my will, but that of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judas-iscariot/i-would-like-now-to-shed-light-in-your-heart-on-the-truth-of-things/) Judas Iscariot > [We want to create, never mind the leaders or the bishops or chief rabbis or imams, or Popes. We want to create a grassroots…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/we-want-to-create-never-mind-the-leaders-or-the-bishops-or-chief/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [ If he'd \[Jesus\] been a little more concerned for his own safety and well being he may have toned things down a little bit… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/if-he-d-jesus-been-a-little-more-concerned-for-his-own-safety-and/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [There's this great fear, and I find, lack of knowledge of Catholicism, just like I'm ignorant of other things. I think we should all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-hicks/there-s-this-great-fear-and-i-find-lack-of-knowledge-of-catholicism/) [Catherine Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-hicks/) ## More by Arthur Hertzberg > [I don't know where Bush is going - yet. But, Sharon obviously - I wrote somewhere in the last several months, that Sharon has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hertzberg/i-don-t-know-where-bush-is-going-yet-but-sharon-obviously-i-wrote/) [Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) > [My purpose is to have American Jews look away from the success story with which they've cheered themselves up, and to have them remember…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hertzberg/my-purpose-is-to-have-american-jews-look-away-from-the-success-story/) [Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) > [Most American Jews came from the lower middle classes, and therefore they brought with them not a lot of Jewish culture. The American Jewish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hertzberg/most-american-jews-came-from-the-lower-middle-classes-and-therefore/) [Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) > [I write to tell my grandchildren where they come from, and what their grandparents were up to, and I hope they will in their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hertzberg/i-write-to-tell-my-grandchildren-where-they-come-from-and-what-their/) [Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) > [Jewish fundamentalism is teaching that Jews can fight with guns and with civil war, against being relocated off the West Bank, and disobey the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hertzberg/jewish-fundamentalism-is-teaching-that-jews-can-fight-with-guns-and/) [Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) > [When you turn the discussion onto talk of religion, you will soon start to reveal a whole range of views ranging from the ardent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hertzberg/when-you-turn-the-discussion-onto-talk-of-religion-you-will-soon/) [Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) > [I think anti-Semitism is the meal ticket of the organizations that fight it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hertzberg/i-think-anti-semitism-is-the-meal-ticket-of-the-organizations-that/) [Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) > [I argue that the Talmud is about the constant struggle to understand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hertzberg/i-argue-that-the-talmud-is-about-the-constant-struggle-to-understand/) [Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) > [What are you going to do to preserve a tradition that is the peculiar and unique culture that Judaism inculcates? The American Jewish community…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hertzberg/what-are-you-going-to-do-to-preserve-a-tradition-that-is-the-peculiar/) [Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) > [You save your soul by saving someone else's body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hertzberg/you-save-your-soul-by-saving-someone-else-s-body/) [Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) > [On campuses, and when I speak to the younger intelligentsia, I am getting a hunger for the text - the authentic text for Jewish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hertzberg/on-campuses-and-when-i-speak-to-the-younger-intelligentsia-i-am/) [Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) > [I regard Christian and Jewish fundamentalism, and all other forms of fundamentalism, as the enemies of God - and I hope you'll quote me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hertzberg/i-regard-christian-and-jewish-fundamentalism-and-all-other-forms-of/) [Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) > [The world was created because God willed it, but why did He will it? Judaism has maintained, in all of its versions, that this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hertzberg/the-world-was-created-because-god-willed-it-but-why-did-he-will-it/) [Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) > [The Roosevelt enactment of Social Security was a moral revolution in our country: We were assured that we would never reach the very depths…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hertzberg/the-roosevelt-enactment-of-social-security-was-a-moral-revolution-in/) [Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) > [Nobody is in the process of making any changes that we can be specific about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hertzberg/nobody-is-in-the-process-of-making-any-changes-that-we-can-be/) [Arthur Hertzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) [Explore all 20 Arthur Hertzberg quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-hertzberg/) ## More Bible quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [From Augustine down, theologians have tried to compel people to accept their special interpretation of the Scripture, and the tortures of the inquisition, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matilda-joslyn-gage/from-augustine-down-theologians-have-tried-to-compel-people-to-accept/) [Matilda Joslyn Gage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matilda-joslyn-gage/) > [“God hates Hell. He hates the idea of people going there. He hates it so much that He was willing to take on human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-minton/god-hates-hell-he-hates-the-idea-of-people-going-there-he-hates-it-so/) [Evan Minton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-minton/) > [“The Devil can cite Scripture for his purpose, Sergeant,’ Anthony Payne replied. ‘That is from The Merchant of Venice, but it holds great truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-arnold/the-devil-can-cite-scripture-for-his-purpose-sergeant-anthony-payne/) Michael Arnold > [When you put your hand on the Bible, you are saying something much stronger than just telling your peers that you're going to tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-greenwood/when-you-put-your-hand-on-the-bible-you-are-saying-something-much/) [Lee Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-greenwood/) > [“Scripture also teaches that human beings are morally responsible creatures”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-peterson/scripture-also-teaches-that-human-beings-are-morally-responsible/) Robert A. Peterson > [“The wife of a junior officer cooped up in a horrible canvas partition in steerage for five months wrote: "I had enjoyed much peace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-taylor/the-wife-of-a-junior-officer-cooped-up-in-a-horrible-canvas-partition/) Stephen Taylor > [O Word of God incarnate . . . It is the golden casket Where gems of truth are stored; It is the heaven-drawn picture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walsham-how/o-word-of-god-incarnate-it-is-the-golden-casket-where-gems-of-truth/) Walsham How > [How can I trust that the Bible is reliable?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-horton/how-can-i-trust-that-the-bible-is-reliable/) [Michael Horton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-horton/) > [Every plant which my heavenly father has not planted with be uprooted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesus-christ/every-plant-which-my-heavenly-father-has-not-planted-with-be-uprooted/) [Jesus Christ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesus-christ/) > [Where I come from you're not raised to think on your own. It's not that you're pushed to read the Bible. The Bible is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abel-ferrara/where-i-come-from-you-re-not-raised-to-think-on-your-own-it-s-not/) [Abel Ferrara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abel-ferrara/) > [“I felt like praying or something, when I was in bed, but I couldn't do it. I can't always pray when I feel like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/i-felt-like-praying-or-something-when-i-was-in-bed-but-i-couldn-t-do/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [What comes to mind when you think of heaven? Heaven is referred to in fifty-four of the Bible's sixty-six books, and the final two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-jeremiah/what-comes-to-mind-when-you-think-of-heaven-heaven-is-referred-to-in/) [David Jeremiah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-jeremiah/) > [“While it is in one sense a result of God’s presence within us, the New Testament also describes a process involved in our “putting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallas-willard/while-it-is-in-one-sense-a-result-of-god-s-presence-within-us-the-new/) [Dallas Willard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallas-willard/) > [The definition of a Church is crystal clear in the New Testament. We see the picture of it. They came together the first day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/the-definition-of-a-church-is-crystal-clear-in-the-new-testament-we/) [John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) [Browse all 8,465 Bible quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bible/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "How can a rabbi not live with doubt? 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