Thread by @JoshuaCypess

1/ You'd think that in the internet age, w/so much info avail., that ppl wouldn't be easily duped by cults. But a glut of info leads to misinformation & propaganda. The ability to refine & evaluate info is as crucial as access to data

2/ Even more so is a lesson I learned from my teacher, Rav Menachem Leibtag about free will. Back in the Bible, why did so many Israelites worship Baal when there were true prophets (e.g. Elijah) to prove God's primacy?

Because a miracle can be twisted just as any data

3/ This is why Elijah's spectacle at Mt. Carmel had no staying power. Data can & will be manipulated by human weakness.

So if there are open miracles to 'prove' God, that just means more ppl worship Avodah Zara

4/ So in our day, God's existence is hidden so the supernatural is presumed to be natural & science.

Were God to give an open miracle, it wouldn't 'prove' God's existence b/c people would immediately attribute it to Baal or Zeus.

5/ The problem is human frailty/anxiety/egotistical desire that manipulates all information to a desired end. The ability to think critically is thus more important the more data becomes available

This holds true even when God's prophecy & miracles return (bimheira biyameinu!)