Judaism

The interesting question is not whether all religions teach goodness. That is too easy. The more interesting question is how a tradition forms human beings: through law that orders life, through clarity that gives rise to a way of life, or through law that is continually tested within the heart.

תאודיציות שואפות להסביר מדוע אל כל-יכול, יודע-כל, וטוב עשוי לאפשר את קיומם של הרוע והסבל בעולם. אני שואב השראה מרבי משה חיים לוצאטו ומפתח "תאודיציה של בניית עולם". הרעיון המרכזי הוא שהאל רצה שברואיו יהיו שותפים בבריאת העולם ויממשו את עצמם כבוראים קטנים בצלם אלוהים. לכן, האל ברא עולם בלתי שלם בו יש הרבה סכנות ואנשים רעים, והאל השאיר לברואיו את המשימה להשלים את המלאכה וליצור אוטופיה בכוחות עצמם. בכוחה של תאודיציה זו להסביר את קיומו של כל מופע של רוע (...) שאנו מכירים בעולם, וכל כמות שהיא של רוע, וכל זאת בלי להיעזר בדוקטרינות שנויות במחלוקת לגבי בחירה חופשית. (shrink)

In his 1968 poetry collection „Fadensonnen“, Paul Celan offers a hermetic blend of existentialism and mysticism, which is unusual in two respects. Firstly, the European philosophy of existence, especially with its proponents Jean-Paul Sartre, Albert Camus and Martin Heidegger, had gone to great lengths to criticize and delegitimize the Abrahametic religions, for the concept of god seemed to be an obstacle to humanity in pursuit of its own humanization. Secondly, in the aftermath of the holocaust, the idea of man wanting (...) to merge with a god that had not prevented this cruelty from happening had lost much of its plausibility. Despite these two objections, Celan's poems address the struggle of togetherness in a world that negates the mere possibility of otherness, trying to salvage the unique identity and dignity of the other. With this in mind, the modus operandi of his poems is that of a butcher: Whatever has previously been alive – before the Shoah – now has to be stripped bare of its layers of individual and collective history, has to become less than body and flesh. In this way, the poems' inherent pain and misery transform the reader into a nobody, for only a nobody has got the prerequisites to encounter other people unbiasedly in their unique wholeness. Within this space of encounter, only the reminiscence of body and sexuality exists, commemorating the other, so that radical corporeality seems to be the prerequisite for togetherness. In this ahistorical sphere there is no room for a god that permitted the holocaust, redefining mysticism as the connection between men instead of one between man and god. Celan's poems act as a catalyst, for they exclude god from the spheres of man, making poetry a memorial site to the dead and the ones living in pain. This way, the poems are trying to save Eros (in the sense of creaturely love) from being mutilated by the crimes of European history while at the same time aiming at rehabilitating mankind in a post-holocaust world. (shrink)

-- 2. Emunah. Midot -- 3. Ḳinyene Torah -- ḥeleḳ 4. Tefilah, musar, Shabat, moʻadim --.

-- -- ḥeleḳ 3. Midot ṿe-hanhagot. Shut ha-minhag ka-halakhah.

-- 3. Hilchot ta'aniot = The laws of fasts and Hilchot Megillah vaChanukah = The laws of (reading) the Megillah and of Chanukah -- 5. Sefer kedushah = The book of holiness -- 6. Sefer hafla'ah = The book of utterances -- 7. Sefer zeraim = The book of agricultural ordinances -- 8. Sefer ha'avodah = The book of (temple) service -- 11. Sefer nezikin = The book of damages -- 12. Sefer kinyan = The book of acquisition -- 14. (...) Sefer shoftim = The book of judges. (shrink)

Peraḳim 1-12 - ḥeleḳ 2 be-sefer ha-tanya, be-tosefet beʼurim u-marʼe meḳomot, mahadurah 2 ʻim hosafot ṿe-tiḳunim.

I argue that textual variants pose a problem for religious belief. Specifically, the existence of hundreds of thousands of textual variants in the New Testament’s manuscript tradition, many of them large and ideologically motivated, should reduce a believer’s confidence in the Bible as a source of information. This problem is different from the problems of evil and divine hiddenness because, whereas those problems entail the falsity of a religious claim, such as theism, this problem poses an epistemic challenge instead.

In the first part of this paper we will consider the likely extent of Spinoza’s exposure to Kabbalistic literature as he was growing up in Amsterdam. In the second part we will closely study several texts in which Spinoza seems to engage with Kabbalistic doctrines. In the third and final part we will study the role of the two crucial doctrines of emanation and pantheism (or panentheism), in Spinoza’s system and in the Kabbalistic literature.

There is no single Jewish philosophical conception of God, and the array of competing conceptions does not lend itself to easy systemization. Nonetheless, it is the aim of this chapter to provide an overview of this unruly theological terrain. It does this by setting out ‘maps’ of the range of positions which Jewish philosophers have taken regarding key aspects of the God-idea. These conceptual maps will cover: (i) how Jewish philosophers have thought of the role and status of conceiving of (...) God in the first place; (ii) what Jewish philosophers have understood to be definitive of God or Divinity; (iii) Jewish philosophical conceptions of God’s oneness; (iv) Jewish philosophical conceptions of God’s transcendence or immanence; (v) Jewish philosophical conceptions of God’s personhood or lack thereof; (vi) Jewish philosophical understandings of why God created (or caused) a world; and (vii) Jewish philosophical understandings of God’s relationship to the Jewish people. Jointly, these seven conceptual maps outline the broad range of vying conceptions of God that have been held by Jewish philosophers over the centuries, while also enabling the reader a bird’s-eye-view of how these multiple conceptions relate to one another. The chapter concludes by touching on what Jewish philosophers have made of this immense diversity of theological conceptions included within the tradition. (shrink)

In his 1843 essay, “On the Jewish Question,” Marx argues in favor of Jewish political emancipation. However, this entails freedom in a merely negative sense only — the absence of official discrimination before the law. The question thus remains: What of full human emancipation? Is Marx’s positive conception of freedom, based on rational enlightenment and universal solidarity, compatible with continued Jewish identity? This article maintains that it depends entirely on how one employs the word “Judaism.” For his part, Marx already (...) drew a critical distinction between what he called (1) “practical Judaism” and (2) “pious” Judaism. The former signifies the perceived role of Jewish people in the modern economy, while the latter refers to Jewish spiritual beliefs and rituals. To this list we add two further designations: (3) “popular Judaism” and (4) “political Judaism.” These denote, respectively, Jewish cultural expressions which are non-religious (such as secular Yiddish theater), and projects of Jewish national autonomy (notably Bundism and Zionism). This article will argue that “popular Judaism,” in particular, is entirely consistent with full, human emancipation on the Marxist model. (shrink)

This article critically examines both the historical realities and the constructed myths concerning the Jewish presence in Albania. The author argues that, based on available evidence, it is only from the 4th century C.E. onward that one can speak of a significant Jewish presence and the existence of Jewish communities in Albanian territories. The study scrutinizes the frequent misuse of the term “Jewish community” in historical literature, emphasizing the need for precise definitions grounded in Jewish religious law. It also addresses (...) the phenomenon of “biographical Judaization” of notable Albanian figures, challenging claims unsupported by historical documentation. By advocating for a rigorous and fact- based approach to Albanian Jewish history, the article calls for the abandonment of unfounded myths and urges historians to employ a critical and scholarly perspective. (shrink)

This monograph reconstructs the patriarchal world by grounding biblical and Qur’anic narratives in Middle Bronze Age material geography. Using hydrological modeling, corridor analysis, and ancient land‑law, it argues that wells, ridges, famine cycles, and watershed thresholds shaped prophetic movement and memory. The study moves beyond literary interpretation by situating these traditions within the political and environmental constraints of the Levantine corridor. It offers a context‑restoring framework for recovering the historical landscape beneath the sacred text.

Praise and thanksgiving prayers are central practices in Abrahamic religions and many other faith traditions. Recently, John Pittard and Daniel Howard-Snyder have articulated two arguments suggesting that the rationality of these practices is undermined by the claim that the God of classical theism lacks the moral credit necessary to warrant agential praise or thanks. However, for their critique to present a genuine challenge to traditional theism, it must presuppose an additional premise: that agential praise and thanks are essential components of (...) an ideal religious life. I challenge this premise, arguing that the justification for religious praise and thanks lies not in God's moral standing but in the virtues or duties of the individual offering them. Accordingly, I maintain that debates about God's moral status are misplaced when assessing the rationality of praise and thanksgiving prayers. (shrink)

The Philosophy of the Sitra Achra reinterprets the Tree of Life as a sealed and diminished form of will. The Tree freezes the first acausal act into Kether, excises Daath, and ranks every cut under the rule of return to the One. The Qliphoth are the residues of this sealing: the suppressed halves of the cuts the Tree had to close in order to appear as sacred order. Beyond them stands the Sitra Achra, the true form of the will the (...) Tree deforms: the cut held open, neither side dissolved nor made into law. Tiamat names the undivided depth before any cut; the Lehavah is the flame of a will that keeps its cut transparent as its own act. The Left-Hand Path begins where ascent, repair, inversion, and integration all fail: in the will that acts without the alibi of necessity and refuses to let either light or darkness become its master. (shrink)

Just as the work of Ibn Gabirol and Maimonides need little introduction, the corpus of Ibn Kammūna (c. 1215–1284), a Mizrahi Jewish philosopher and ophthalmologist born in Baghdad who wrote a compelling treatise about Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, is virtually unknown. His philosophical approach to Islam almost cost him his life. In this paper, the second chapter (dedicated to Judaism) of Ibn Kammūna’s Examination of the Three Faiths and his Treatise on the Differences between the Rabbanites and the Karaites are (...) analyzed. Furthermore, I briefly describe the Jewish community in Babylonia and Iraq—discussing antisemitism then and now—and I outline the main reasons why Ibn Kammūna is almost unknown, asserting that a Jewish thinker of Ibn Kammūna’s magnitude deserves a place in the historiography of Jewish thought. (shrink)

I grew up an Orthodox Jew in Israel, studied to become a rabbi, but then my beliefs changed and currently I am not religious at all. The study of philosophy helped me think critically about my beliefs. In this book, written for a broad audience, I engage philosophically with some of my previous beliefs. (The book is in Hebrew. Contact author for a draft of an English translation).

Writing about Moses Maimonides is a humbling challenge especially in the form of a very short introduction. Such a larger-than-life subject resists reductive interpretation in virtually all his works and in his person. Maimonidean scholarship abounds as do books about him written for the reading public in English, Spanish, French, German, Arabic, and Hebrew. Until recently, academic monographs and articles tended to focus strictly on Maimonides' biography, rabbinical works, philosophical oeuvre, communal endeavors, or his medical writings separately. Comprehensive studies on (...) Maimonides are apt to follow this model by devoting chapters to each of these discreet subjects. This very short introduction to Moses Maimonides draws on Maimonidean scholarship in each of his areas of experience and literary activity. It follows current trends in research which present an integrated view of Maimonides as a rabbinic scholar without peer, a philosophically minded deep thinker, religious reformer (who thought of his life's project as restoring the authentic meaning and details of the written and oral Torah), communal leader, physician, and scientist who moved seamlessly between specialized, private and public Jewish and Muslim spheres. Indeed, his written works traverse multiple disciplines and discourses, employ several linguistic registers, voices, and literary genres, and address various audiences. Accordingly, this book organizes Maimonides' thinking and writings thematically by way of suggestive "chapter headings" to use one his catch phrases in The Guide of the Perplexed (although not in the sense of enigmas and puzzles to be deciphered) and puts his works into dialogue with one another intertextually. (shrink)

This work highlights Christian scripture and ritual within a broader Middle Eastern and cross-cultural framework, drawing parallels with Judaic, Islamic, Egyptian, and other traditions in which sacred space and bodily form converge to engender a symbolic and theological embodiment of divine revelation and perception. By pointing out the shared physiological symbolism in religious architecture, ritual, and scripture, it shifts the perspective towards an externalized and directly experienced spiritual dimension and offers a novel glimpse into aspects of embodied theology and divine (...) perception. The demonstrated continuity of corporeal imagery, scriptural symbolism, and incorporation of the human form in ritual and architecture contributes to the areas of manuscript studies, comparative theology, and the history of religious thought in the Middle East. The focus on the body as a transhistorical and cross-cultural medium and site of divine manifestation presented in this study offers a model for multidisciplinary research on embodiment and cognition across the monotheistic religions and beyond. Using the methodological approach of symbolic and semantic analysis, the observed converging patterns are interpreted as examples of an embodied theology and hermeneutics that bridges metaphor and physiological processes. The work highlights the congruence between key scriptural terminology and symbolism, such as lamp, crystal, and niche, across cultures — illustrated by passages from the Qurʾanic Light Verse and Revelation — and suggests the possible theological implications of detailed neuro-anatomical knowledge. The results provide a new interdisciplinary framework for comparative theology that incorporates linguistic analysis, theological exegesis, neuroanatomy, and cognitive science. They underscore the centrality of corporeality as a neglected yet crucial theological category in the Abrahamic religions and emphasize the experiential dimension of revelation. (shrink)

This groundbreaking volume bridges ancient wisdom and contemporary Jewish spirituality, offering fresh insights into Hasidic homilies as dynamic sources of meaning and renewal. Featuring nineteen scholars and educators, the book delves into the mystical depth and poetic imagination of these texts, revealing their power to inspire ethical and spiritual growth. Through close readings and practical reflections, the contributors explore innovative pedagogies for hermeneutical and existential transformation. With a programmatic introduction by Elie Holzer, this collection offers a rare look at the (...) lived experience of teaching Hasidic homilies, addressing classroom dilemmas and spiritual impact. Essential for seekers and educators, it opens new pathways to renewed Jewish spirituality and divine-centered living. (shrink)

In the Jewish mystical tradition, some argue that God can’t literally be everywhere. He must be absent from places that lie beneath His dignity. Medieval Jewish philosophers, by contrast, argued that God is not located in space or time at all. Some biblical verses imply that God is always located everywhere. And yet, elsewhere, the Bible describes God as especially located in specific regions, at specific times. The rabbis talk about humans making space for God. To what extent can all (...) of these threads come together to form a coherent conception of God’s relationship with space? The striking conclusion of this chapter is that the ways in which God’s presence are limited are more religiously significant than the ways in which God’s presence is ubiquitous. (shrink)

The Guide of the Perplexed, a monument of rabbinical exegesis written by Moses Maimonides at the end of the twelfth century, has exerted an immense and continuing influence on Jewish thought. Written as a letter to a disciple, The Guide of the Perplexed aims to liberate readers from a literal understanding of the Bible. It does so with an explanation of biblical terms related to key themes such as corporeality, place, humans, and nature. This reprint presents the Shlomo Pines translation, (...) the gold standard for decades, in a single volume for the first time. It also features an extensive introduction to the study of the guide by Leo Strauss, a leading authority on Maimonides. (shrink)

“I wonder what it is that makes one person push on in the face of difficulty and makes someone else crumble in helplessness.” – Fred Rogers -/- In the movie Rocky IV (1985), heavyweight boxer Rocky Balboa reveals in a heart-to-heart talk with his son that sometimes in the ring he feels like giving up. But, he continues, “going that one more round when you don’t think you can—that’s what makes all the difference in your life.” Perseverance can be a (...) difference-maker, for ill and for good, and when for good, it is widely prized and often the sine qua non of human survival and flourishing. However, understanding when and why perseverance is valuable requires an answer to Mr. Rogers’s question about what it is. In section 1, we briefly answer that question, and we sketch a neo-Aristotelian view of when perseverance is a virtue. In section 2, we exhibit how perseverance shows up in the religious life, in the Hebrew and Christian traditions. In section 3, we show how perseverance infuses faith and faithfulness in both the portrayal of pístis in the Christian New Testament, which was written in Greek, and ʾĕmûnāh in the Hebrew scriptures. We then articulate, in section 4, a theory of faith and faithfulness that accommodates this portrayal, before showing in section 5 how the theory handles other religious data related to the connection between faith and faithfulness, on the one hand, and perseverance, on the other. (shrink)

Maimonides's Guide of the Perplexed (pub. 1204 CE) is among the most important and elusive works in the history of Judaism. Among the greatest difficulties has been determining what genre of writing it belongs to. Leo Strauss challenged the contemporary consensus that it is a work of "Jewish philosophy." Rather, the Guide Is first and foremost a defense of the Law, or what his predecessor, whom he praised highly, Alfarabi identified as the art of kalam or dialectical theology. However, It (...) is an unusual sort of kalam, which Strauss dubbed "intelligent kalam." Since Shlomo Pines's 1979 article on the limits of knowledge in Maimonides (as well as Alfarabi and Ibn Bajja), much of Maimonides scholarship has centered on these limits. In his book on the Guide published in 2013, Josef Stern identified two extremes on the limits of knowledge, the dogmatic and the skeptical. He expanded on Pines's skeptical reading. We provide a middle ground between these two extremes. We argue that the limits are intentionally vague, making possible thereby not only a defense of the Law but also a defense of philosophy. The second part concerns the three great themes of the Guide: creation, prophecy, and providence. Maimonides's preferred position on prophecy is that God can will to prevent it. It is unlikely to be coincidental that obstacles, impediments, prevention are also crucial in his accounts of creation and providence. We show that obstacles or privation are a key to these themes and the Guide as a whole"-- Provided by publisher. (shrink)