Ask the Rabbi with Rabbi Chaim Mintz
You have mentioned that adversity in this world is meant to be a test. But what about a child who is born with autism or Down Syndrome? Is that considered a test for the child or for the parents?
Rabbi Chaim Mintz responds:
Does the Child Understand?
There are many levels of these conditions. If the child is so severely affected that he has no understanding of God Who commanded us to do His mitzvos, then the child is halachically exempt from keeping the Torah, and does not have the capacity of being tested. It is obviously the parents who are facing a test. They are the ones who need to take care of the child, requiring inordinate amounts of love, patience, and sensitivity, not to mention time and energy.
Out on a Business Trip
However, at the same time, the child’s condition has some purpose that pertains to the child himself. Every soul sent to this world has a mission to accomplish. It might be a reincarnation (gilgul) that has been sent back to this world in a different body, in order to take care of some “unfinished business” that is impeding its ability to receive its full reward in the Next World. For instance, if someone steals, repentance (teshuvah) itself does not absolve the sin until the article is returned and he is forgiven by the person he wronged. If he did not return the stolen object during his lifetime, his soul may have to return to this world to make amends. So if the child is suffering, it may be to atone for something done in a previous lifetime.
Just Do Your Best
There can be many different possibilities of what the child’s mission may be, and we can never know the exact purpose of why God sent this particular child this exact condition. But if the parents do their best to care for him, and the child does whatever he is capable of doing to fulfill God’s will, the purpose of this difficult situation will be served.
In short: If the child is so severely affected that he has no understanding of God, then it is not the child being tested, but the parents. At the same time, the child still has a mission to accomplish.
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