The Torah on “Overpopulation”
Not Just a Midrash . . . Plus a new booklet and more
In Thursday night’s Torah class we studied chapters 41-43 of Yirmiya. Following the destruction of the Beis Hamikdash and the assassination of Gedalya, the remnant of Jews in Eretz Yisrael faced a dilemma: remain in war-torn Eretz Yisrael, where they feared retribution from the Babylonians, or move to Egypt, which promised a life of tranquility and prosperity.
Fortunately, they had a prophet in their midst, and they asked him to beseech Hashem for instructions. They promised to do whatever they were told, whether it seemed right to them or not.
What happened next is fascinating, with a strong mussar message that we can easily relate to. The class is embedded above and on Rumble here.
I can’t stand it when people dismissively refer to Aggadic teachings of Chazal as “just a Midrash”. Such chutzpah! Such ignorance!
I’ve been wanting to start a new series of lessons called Not Just a Midrash, in which I would share some of my favorite, timeless lessons from Midrash (I have many hundreds in my notes) on a wide range of topics.
So let’s start.
We’ve all heard from the Amalekites that the world is “overpopulated”, and the self-styled saviors of humanity have to eliminate lots of people (genocide and preventing babies from being born) and tightly control essential resources (tyranny and slavery) to save the world. They use more genteel language, of course, but that’s what it boils down to.
Here are some articles about a recent taxpayer-funded paper on the subject that a reader shared with me. It’s Science!
https://lloydmillerus.substack.com/cp/218852792
https://principia-scientific.com/the-new-plan-to-halve-the-human-population-by-2200/
The Science™, c. 2026: ‘Achieve Sustainability by Easing Population to 4 Billion by 2200’
Koheles Rabba 5:10:1 has the Torah’s answer for this, while demonstrating that there is nothing new under the sun.
A certain Cuthite — a heretic — challenged Rabbi Meir with a series of questions about techiyas hameisim, when the dead will be brought back to life.
If you think the world has too many people now, imagine what it will look like then! And that’s exactly what the heretic had in mind. After all, he was a rational man.
“Who will provide food for all these people?” he asked.
The following dialogue ensued.
“Have you ever been to Chamath Gerar?” asked Rabbi Meir, referring to a certain city.
“Yes.”
“In its season or not in its season?” There were certain times when there was a massive influx of people to the city.
“Both in its season and not in its season,” replied the Cuthite.
“And was food readily available?” asked Rabbi Meir.
“It was readily available.”
“In its season and not in its season?”
“Both. Because of the masses they would bring food to buy and sell.”
“So it will be,” said Rabbi Meir. “The One who brings the population will bring their food, as is written by Shlomo, ‘When the good is increased, those who consume it increase’. When those who consume the good increase, the good will increase.”
In other words, the same God who brings people into the world will provide their needs. That’s His department.
This underscores that alarmism about the world’s population and all that derives from it is not really about science or “the greater good”, but a war against God.
And it’s nothing new.
Indeed, it’s not just a Midrash. It’s a foundation of the Torah, for which we are supposed to be witnesses.
Hot off the press, issue #3 of my selected essays. This one is a collection of my essays on Tzohar and The Kefira Times. You can download it at the link below or here.
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I printed a small number of booklets to deposit in Anglo shuls that receive The Kefira Times. Each booklet costs about 5 shekels to print. If you would like to help with the cost of printing and/or distribution please contact me directly at weissmans@protonmail.com.
Please share the digital version widely and help awaken our community.
A couple of points to ponder:
Hate the sin, not the sinner strangely doesn’t apply to “haredim” and “haredi draft dodgers”. Funny how that works.
One of the new propaganda lines is that only those who have “skin in the game” should have certain rights and benefits. Do they have skin in the game . . . or meat in the grinder?
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