In the Torah, Nature is not divine. It's demythologized, de-divinized. the created world is not divine, it is not the physical manifestation the Creator. The line of demarcation therefore between the Divine and the natural and human worlds is clear. In Genesis 1, the view of God is that there is one supreme God, who is creator and sovereign of the world, who simply exists, who is incorporeal, and for whom the realm of nature is separate and subservient. He has no life story, no mythology, and his will is absolute.
In Torah, humans are created in the image of God, but humans are not, in fact, gods. They are still creatures in the sense of created things and they are dependent on a higher power. Even tzadikim are not gods.
This God transcends nature. He's not identifiable as a force of nature or identified with a force of nature. Nature certainly becomes the stage of God's expression of his will. He expresses his will and purpose through forces of nature. But nature isn't God himself. He's not identified [with it]. He's wholly "other". He is totally different. He has no Divine substance. He isn't kin to humans in any way either. So there is no blurring, no soft boundary between humans and the divine.
I write this because I have seen that this issue requires clarification. Though all the above points are clear in the Torah itself, you can see them explained by Maimonides in his Guide for the Perplexed and in Emunot VeDeot of Saadia Geon.
In Torah, humans are created in the image of God, but humans are not, in fact, gods. They are still creatures in the sense of created things and they are dependent on a higher power. Even tzadikim are not gods.
This God transcends nature. He's not identifiable as a force of nature or identified with a force of nature. Nature certainly becomes the stage of God's expression of his will. He expresses his will and purpose through forces of nature. But nature isn't God himself. He's not identified [with it]. He's wholly "other". He is totally different. He has no Divine substance. He isn't kin to humans in any way either. So there is no blurring, no soft boundary between humans and the divine.
I write this because I have seen that this issue requires clarification. Though all the above points are clear in the Torah itself, you can see them explained by Maimonides in his Guide for the Perplexed and in Emunot VeDeot of Saadia Geon.
