In the Psalms: A Peculiar Argument to Win God’s Favor, by Dr. Jeff Mirus

By Dr. Jeff Mirus, Catholic Culture, April 19, 2024

Jeffrey Mirus holds a Ph.D. in intellectual history from Princeton University. A co-founder of Christendom College, he also pioneered Catholic Internet services. He is the founder of Trinity Communications and CatholicCulture.org.

In the Psalms, one of the arguments used with some frequency by those who feel abandoned by God runs like this: First, a rhetorical question is asked about whether the dead can praise God—the presumed answer being “No”. Second, the conclusion is drawn that God should aid the one who calls upon Him—so that the one aided can sing God’s praise. This rhetorical questioning is so similar to traditional Jewish humor that one might wonder about its theological sincerity, but I believe the popularity of the argument derives from the early Jewish ambivalence about the nature of what we call “the after life”.

The reader will remember that even in Our Lord’s time on earth, the Pharisees believed in the resurrection of the dead but the Sadducees did not. St. Paul actually used this disagreement on one occasion to escape persecution by his fellow Jews, declaring: “Brethren, I am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees; with respect to the hope and the resurrection of the dead I am on trial” (Acts 23:6)….

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