DOCSLIB.ORG

The Two Inclinations in Judaism

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Two Inclinations in Judaism THE TWO INCLINATIONS IN JUDAISM John D. Rayner Introduction Two facts about the human condition stand out. The first is that, like all animals, we are doomed to die; the second that, unlike other animals,‘o'r at least to an incomparably higher degree, we are capable of both good and evil - unlimited and evil. virtually good V Between these facts - of our physical mortality and our moral ambivalence - it has sometimes been thought that there is a connection. For since evil often leads to death, it is tempting to think that to conquer evil would be to conquer death as well. But that is logical fallacy, since evil is not the cause ,of .. only , ‘ a V death. Even if we were all saints, we should still die. Because that is fairly obvious, there has sometimes been a tendency to change the subject from physical death to spiritual death. The good, it is said, will live for ever in some other world; the bad will be destroyed or else suffer a fate worse than death in the form of eternal torment. Such notions have ‘ui- been entertained in different ways both in Judaism and in Christianity - the COLLEGE ._.—\...4 /. famous ‘resurrection verse‘ in Daniel (12:2) played a key role in them; but I .. mention them only to make it clear that they do not fall within our purview. CK Of the two basic facts about the human condition, it is only the moral ( .4 -—.U. LEBRARY ambivalence that concerns us. Whether or not there is a hereafter, our life on B! earth is of limited duration. But while it lasts, we can and do perform both ~ A—v- which’has good and evil. The question is why. It is a theoretical question LEO h- ,\ exercised the philosophically minded all through the ages; But it is also a EU practical since the maximisation of good and the diminution of evil .1 .— question, is the most urgent of all practical tasks. But in order to make any headway with it we need to understand what causes the twofold tendency. To that question many different answers are to be found in the literature of Judaism, as of Christianity. But on the Jewish side most of them are contained in, or related to, the Rabbinic doctrine of the Two Inclinations, which it is my assignment to expound. Since it is a Rabbinic doctrine, I need not spend much time on its antecedents in the biblical and intertestamental periods. Nevertheless I cannot entirely avoid it. For Judaism is the religion of the Hebrew Bible as interpreted by the Rabbis, and the interpretation cannot be entirely separated from the text. Body and Soul One way of accounting for the duality of human beings in the moral sense is to point to their duality in a more fundamental, constitutional sense. They are, it is said, a compound of two' kinds of stuff: matter and spirit. In so far as they are made of matter, they are prone to sin; in so far as they are made of spirit, they tend to act nobly. This dualistic view is not, however, characteristic of the Hebrew Bible. Of course, the contrast between the high and low status of human beings is frequently noted and emphasised, not least in the 8th Psalm: 'When I look at Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars which You have established - what are human beings that You are mindful of them, mortals that You care for them? Yet You have made them little less than divine, and crowned them with glory and honour!’ But the contrast is not generally stated in terms of a matter-spirit dualism in which matter is bad and spirit is good. To quote Otto Baab, ‘Matter is not intrinsically evil or corrupt, and carnality is not a sin in Hebrew thought' (pp. __;10_8f). ‘And again: 'man's physical nature is not the reason for his sin,.._I-Iis proneness to yield to the lusts of the flesh results from his eagerness to escape the problem created by the conflict between his spiritual freedom and the limitations of his physical nature. His sin consists in choosing sensuality, not in the possession of a body which makes sensuality possible' (The Theology of the Old Testament, p. 248). On the contrary, the chief locus of sin is not 1273, the flesh, but :‘7 or :25, the heart which, though in its literal sense a bodily organ, stands as a metaphor for the mind. There are of course traces of matter-spirit dualism, apparently showing Greek influence, especially in the later books (e.g., Eccles. 12:7). But they become a great deal more pronounced in the Apocrypha, Philo and the New Testament, and they left their mark on Rabbinic Judaism. Of special interest here is the Rabbinic exegesis of the phrase in the Second Creation Story that God 'formed Adam out of the dust of the ground' (Gen. 2:7), where the Hebrew word 13‘”. for 'formed' has a double yod, which is interpreted as pointing to the duality of human nature. According to one interpretation, which sees in the verb an allusion to the noun 13’ for 'inclination‘, God compounded Adam of two inclinations, good and evil (Gen.R. 14:4), According to another, which relates the verb to the noun .178” for 'creation', the process involved two stages which brought into being respectively the earthly and heavenly aspects of human beings. This led the Rabbis to say of them: 'Like animals, they eat and drink, procreate, secrete and die; like angels, they stand erect, speak, think, and see visions‘(Gen.R. 14:3). The matter-spirit duality of human nature is certainly found in Rabbinic literature. Thus the Rabbis could conceive of an sun E‘Jw, a world-to-come in which 'there is no eating or drinking or procreation or trading or jealousy, but the righteous sit with crowns on their heads, feasting on the radiance of the arm, the Divine Presence' (Ber. 17a) - in other words, a purely spiritual form of existence. Yet one senses a hesitancy to concede that the two components are ultimately separable, and therefore a reluctance to let go of the belief in D’nnn n‘mn, a resurrection in which body and soul are finally reunited. Above all, there is no straightforward identification of the two aspects with good and evil respectively. As Moore points out, it is not the case 'that the evil impulse resides in the body while the good impulse proceeds from the soul. That the physical organism, as material, is evil per se, sense the origin of error, the appetites and passions the source of moral evil - these ideas, which through prevalent philosophies had gained wide currency in the Hellenistic world, have no counterpart in Palestinian Iudaism' (Iuduism in the First Centuries of the Christian Era, Vol. I, p. 485). The general Rabbinic view sees the two components of human nature as different but inseparable, and both alike involved in good and evil. Typical is a well known passage in which body and soul together appear before God to be judged, and each accuses the other, whereupon a parable, found also in .other traditions, i_s told about two orchard keepers, one lame and one blind. During the royal owner‘é‘aAbsence the lame man stands on the shoulders of the blind man, and picks the fruit. When the king returns to find the fruit gone, each has a ready excuse: the lame man that he can‘t walk ahd the blind man that he can't see. Then the king orders the lame man to climb on-the blind man's back, and judges them together. So, too, is the moral, God judges body and soul together (Mekhilta on Exod. 15:1; Lev.R. 4:5). The Divine Image As we continue our search for the causes of the moral ambivalence of human nature, we should remind ourselves that it is both sides of it, not only the evil but also the good, that call for an explanation. Why do we generally recognise and desire, and often though by no means always do, what is good? About that, at least, Judaism has been clear and consistent all through the ages: the good in us is a consequence Of our having been created in the image of God. God, says the first chapter of Genesis, created Adam n‘nbx E1533, in the divine image (1:27). D’n'7R man, in the divine likeness, reiterates the fifth chapter (5:1). And the greatest of the Rabbis, Akiva, remarked: ‘I-Iow privileged we are to have been created 1353:, in the divine image; how much more privileged still to have been made aware that we were created in God's image' (Avot 3:14). This doctrine is central to the Jewish understanding of human nature; It has never been questioned, let alone repudiated, and it has been regarded as a necessary and sufficient explanation of the 2m "13*, the Good Inclination, which is the voice within us that prompts us — often, alas, unheeded - to choose and do what is right. It does, however, raise a question, which we can't ignore: What then of the story of the Garden of Eden? Does it not mean that the high status of human beings, and with it their Good Inclination, has long since been forfeited? There is also a prior question: How seriously should the Garden-of-Eden story be taken? Some modern Bible scholars have regarded it, partly on account of its pessimism about human nature, as atypical of other Pentateuchal material and derived from a separate source which Otto Eissfeldt called L for 'Lay Source', Julian Morgenstern ‘K' for 'Kenite‘ and Robert H‘ Pfeiffer 'S' for 'South' or ‘Seir', meaning Edomite (Introduction to ' the Old Testament, pp‘ 161-65).
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Dogma, Heresy, and Classical Debates: Creating Jewish Unity in an Age of Confusion
    Dogma, Heresy, and Classical Debates: Creating Jewish Unity in an Age of Confusion Byline: Rabbi Hayyim Angel Judaism includes the basic tenets of belief in one God, divine revelation of the Torah including an Oral Law, divine providence, reward-punishment, and a messianic redemption. Although there have been debates over the precise definitions and boundaries of Jewish belief, these core beliefs have been universally accepted as part of our tradition.[1] The question for believing Jews today is, how should we relate to the overwhelming majority of contemporary Jews, who likely do not fully believe in classical Jewish beliefs? Two medieval models shed light on this question. Rambam: Dogmatic Approach Rambam insists that proper belief is essential. Whether one intentionally rejects Jewish beliefs, or is simply mistaken or uninformed, non-belief leads to one’s exclusion from the Jewish community and from the World to Come: When a person affirms all these Principles, and clarifies his faith in them, he becomes part of the Jewish People. It is a mitzvah to love him, have mercy on him, and show him all the love and brotherhood that God has instructed us to show our fellow Jews. Even if he has transgressed out of desire and the overpowering influence of his base nature, he will be punished accordingly but he will have a share in the World to Come. But one who denies any of these Principles has excluded himself from the Jewish People and denied the essence [of Judaism]. He is called a heretic, an epikoros, and “one who has cut off the seedlings.” It is a mitzvah to hate and destroy such a person, as it says (Psalms 139:21), “Those who hate You, God, I shall hate.” (Rambam, Introduction to Perek Helek) Scholars of Rambam generally explain that Rambam did not think of afterlife as a reward.
    [Show full text]
  • Final Draft Dissertation
    UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Los Angeles Arbiters of the Afterlife: Olam Haba, Torah and Rabbinic Authority A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Near Eastern Languages and Cultures by Candice Liliane Levy 2013 © Copyright by Candice Liliane Levy 2013 ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION Arbiters of the Afterlife: Olam Haba, Torah and Rabbinic Authority by Candice Liliane Levy Doctor of Philosophy in Near Eastern Languages and Cultures University of California, Los Angeles, 2013 Professor Carol Bakhos, Chair As the primary stratum of the rabbinic corpus, the Mishna establishes a dynamic between rabbinic authority and olam haba that sets the course for all subsequent rabbinic discussions of the idea. The Mishna Sanhedrin presents the rabbis as arbiters of the afterlife, who regulate its access by excluding a set of individuals whose beliefs or practices undermine the nature of rabbinic authority and their tradition. In doing so, the Mishna evinces the foundational tenets of rabbinic Judaism and delineates the boundaries of ‘Israel’ according to the rabbis. Consequently, as arbiters of the afterlife, the rabbis constitute Israel and establish normative thought and practice in this world by means of the world to come. ii There have been surprisingly few studies on the afterlife in rabbinic literature. Many of the scholars who have undertaken to explore the afterlife in Judaism have themselves remarked upon the dearth of attention this subject has received. For the most part, scholars have sought to identify what the rabbis believed with regard to the afterlife and how they envisioned its experience, rather than why they held such beliefs or how the afterlife functioned within the rabbinic tradition.
    [Show full text]
  • Jewish Thought Journal of the Goldstein-Goren International Center for Jewish Thought
    Jewish Thought Journal of the Goldstein-Goren International Center for Jewish Thought Editors Michal Bar-Asher Siegal Jonatan Meir Shalom Sadik Haim Kreisel (editor-in-chief) Editorial Secretary Asher Binyamin Volume 1 Faith and Heresy Beer-Sheva, 2019 Jewish Thought is published once a year by the Goldstein-Goren International Center for Jewish Thought. Each issue is devoted to a different topic. Topics of the following issues are as follows: 2020: Esotericism in Jewish Thought 2021: New Trends in the Research of Jewish Thought 2022: Asceticism in Judaism and the Abrahamic Religions Articles for the next issue should be submitted by September 30, 2019. Manuscripts for consideration should be sent, in Hebrew or English, as MS Word files, to: [email protected] The articles should be accompanied by an English abstract. The views and opinions expressed in the articles are those of the authors alone. The journal is open access: http://in.bgu.ac.il/en/humsos/goldstein-goren/Pages/Journal.aspx The Hebrew articles were edited by Dr. David Zori and Shifra Zori. The articles in English were edited by Dr. Julie Chajes. Address: The Goldstein-Goren International Center for Jewish Thought, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, PO Box 653, Beer-Sheva 8410501. © All Rights Reserved This issue is dedicated to Prof. Daniel J. Lasker for his 70Th birthday Table of Contents English Section Foreward 7 Michal Bar-Asher The Minim of the Babylonian Talmud 9 Siegal Menahem Kellner The Convert as the Most Jewish of Jews? 33 On the Centrality of Belief (the Opposite of Heresy) in Maimonidean Judaism Howard Kreisel Back to Maimonides’ Sources: 53 The Thirteen Principles Revisited George Y.
    [Show full text]
  • Twelfth Century Renaissance and the Religion of Intent: Interiority and the Emergence of Selfhood Across Religious Boundaries
    ABSTRACT ELLIOTT, SERENA NOELLE. The Twelfth Century Renaissance and the Religion of Intent: Interiority and the Emergence of Selfhood Across Religious Boundaries. (Under the direction of Dr. Julie Mell). This thesis explores the emergence of faith statements in both Jewish and Christian culture in the long twelfth century (c. 1050-1200). Such faith statements, found in both cultures in Late Antiquity, emerged during the high middle ages with a new emphasis on the definition of right belief, as opposed to right practice; stressing the relationship of the individual with God, as opposed to intercession. These statements of faith are expressed in three cultural forms: the defining of right belief through textualization, the intent to self-sacrifice, and the confessionalization of twelfth-century discourse. Examples of these three cultural forms in both Jewish and Christian culture will be analyzed in the three central chapters of the thesis. Chapter one will focus on the language of right belief expressed in both Christian scholasticism and Judaism. Following the revival of Aristotle, and the imperative of competing religions, this century saw a particular rise in the defining of orthodoxy, illustrated by Moses Maimonides, Christian scholastics and the canons of the Fourth Lateran Council. Chapter two will focus on the intent to self-sacrifice: martyrdom in the Kiddush HaShem of 1096, and the heresy of the Christians in Cologne in 1144. In the martyrdoms of both Jews and Christians is a language of intention out of which selfhood emerges. Chapter three will focus on this language of intent, through Caesarius of Heisterbach’s Dialogus Miraculorum, as well as the Jewish Sefer Hasidim.
    [Show full text]
  • ABSTRACT Asceticism, the Sage, and the Evil Inclination
    ABSTRACT Asceticism, the Sage, and the Evil Inclination: Points of Contact between Jews and Christians in Late Antiquity David W. Pendergrass, Ph.D. Mentor: Daniel H. Williams, Ph.D. In Jewish Christian comparative studies there exists a need to explore in more detail the ways in which Jews and Christians interacted religiously and socially in late antiquity. The thesis of this dissertation is that asceticism, the sociological and religious role of the sage, and the anthropological belief in the evil inclination are three aspects shared between predominate groups of Jews and Christians in late antiquity. So far no scholarship has joined these three, inter-dependent areas in Jewish-Christian comparative studies. Chapter Two examines the ways that Jews and Christians did not utterly “part ways” religiously or socially in late antiquity. Evidence of their interaction can be seen in adversus Iudaeos literature, catechetical material, liturgies, biblical exegetical practices, civic and ecclesial legislation, and various archaeological remains. Chapter Three examines the foundations of Christian asceticism and monasticism, especially in Egypt. This chapter critiques the traditional historical reconstructions of monastic origins, with special attention given to the theory that monasticism was an effort by ascetics to become living martyrs. Finally this chapter discusses how the Sayings are a product of the long tradition of ascetic wisdom made especially popular from the fourth through sixth centuries across the Roman Empire. Chapter Four examines the ways Jewish literature speaks to the practice of asceticism. The chapter is divided into three sections: pre-rabbinic Jewish ascetic practices, rabbinic ascetic practices, and the theological and sociological roles of the sage.
    [Show full text]
  • Mishnah Sanhedrin 10:1 All of the Jewish People, Even Sinners And
    Mishnah Sanhedrin 10:1 All of the Jewish people, even sinners and those who are liable to be executed with a court-imposed death penalty, have a share in the World-to-Come, as it is stated: “And your people also shall be all righteous, they shall inherit the land forever; the branch of My planting, the work of My hands, for My name to be glorified” (Isaiah 60:21). And these are the exceptions, the people who have no share in the World-to-Come, even when they fulfilled many mitzvot: One who says: There is no resurrection of the dead derived from the Torah, and one who says: The Torah did not originate from Heaven, and an epikoros [an Epicurean, one who denies Divine Providence and Prophecy], who treats Torah scholars and the Torah that they teach with contempt. Rabbi Akiva says: Also included in the exceptions are one who reads external literature, and one who whispers invocations over a wound and says as an invocation for healing: “Every illness that I placed upon Egypt I will not place upon you, for I am the Lord, your Healer” (Exodus 15:26). By doing so, he shows contempt for the sanctity of the name of God and therefore has no share in the World-to-Come. Abba Shaul says: Also included in the exceptions is one who pronounces the ineffable name of God as it is written, with its letters. Maimonides on Mishnah Sanhedrin 10:1 And from that which is necessary that we mention here - and [here] is the most fitting of all places - is that the fundamental beliefs and the foundational principles of our religion are thirteen principles: [1] The first principle: To believe in the existence of the Creator, may He be blessed, and that is that there is a Being complete in all the ways of existence.
    [Show full text]
  • Judaism of the Second Temple Period
    Color profile: Disabled Composite 140 lpi at 45 degrees JUDAISM OF THE SECOND TEMPLE PERIOD EERDMANS -- Judaism of the Second Temple Period (Flusser) final text Monday, September 24, 2007 5:25:17 PM 1 Color profile: Disabled Composite 140 lpi at 45 degrees EERDMANS -- Judaism of the Second Temple Period (Flusser) final text Monday, September 24, 2007 5:25:17 PM 2 Color profile: Disabled Composite 140 lpi at 45 degrees JUDAISM OF THE SECOND TEMPLE PERIOD volume 1 Qumran and Apocalypticism David Flusser Translated by Azzan Yadin William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company Grand Rapids, Michigan / Cambridge, U.K. The Hebrew University Magnes Press • Jerusalem, Israel Jerusalem Perspective • Jerusalem, Israel EERDMANS -- Judaism of the Second Temple Period (Flusser) final text Monday, September 24, 2007 5:25:17 PM 3 Color profile: Disabled Composite 140 lpi at 45 degrees Originally published in Hebrew under the title Yahadut Bayit Sheni: Qumran ve Apocalyptica (Jerusalem: Hebrew University Magnes Press and Yad Izhak Ben-Zvi Press, 2002). This English edition © 2007 William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., The Hebrew University Magnes Press, Jerusalem Perspective All rights reserved Published 2007 by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. 2140 Oak Industrial Drive N.E., Grand Rapids, Michigan 49505 / P.O. Box 163, Cambridge CB3 9PU U.K. The Hebrew University Magnes Press, P.O. Box 39099, Jerusalem, Israel Jerusalem Perspective, Jerusalem, Israel http://www.jerusalemperspective.com Printed in the United States of America 121110090807 7654321 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Flusser, David, 1917–2000 [Yahadut Bayit sheni. English] Judaism of the Second Temple period / David Flusser; translated by Azzan Yadin.
    [Show full text]
  • PRINCIPLES of JEWISH FAITH Rabbi Hayyim Angel National Scholar, Institute for Jewish Ideas and Ideals [email protected] Jewishideas.Org
    1 PRINCIPLES OF JEWISH FAITH Rabbi Hayyim Angel National Scholar, Institute for Jewish Ideas and Ideals [email protected] jewishideas.org Rambam’s Thirteen Principles of Faith: Introduction to Mishnah 1. God exists 2. God is one 3. God is incorporeal 4. God is eternal 5. God alone is to be worshipped 6. Prophecy 7. Moses is the greatest prophet 8. God revealed the Torah (including Oral Law) to Moses 9. The Torah is unchanging 10. God knows the deeds of people 11. God rewards and punishes human actions 12. The Messiah is coming 13. There will be a resurrection of the dead (Rambam’s conclusion) When a person affirms all these Principles, and clarifies his faith in them, he becomes part of the Jewish People. It is a mitzvah to love him, have mercy on him, and show him all the love and brotherhood that God has instructed us to show our fellow Jews. Even if he has transgressed out of desire and the overpowering influence of his base nature, he will be punished accordingly but he will have a share in the World to Come. But one who denies any of these Principles has excluded himself from the Jewish People and denied the essence [of Judaism]. He is called a heretic, an epikoros, and “one who has cut off the seedlings.” It is a mitzvah to hate such a person, as it says (Psalm 139:21), “Those who hate You, God, I shall hate.” 2 Mishnah Sanhedrin 90a Mishnah: All Israel have a portion in the World to Come, for it is written, “Your people are all righteous; they shall inherit the land forever, the branch of My planting, the work of My hands, that I be glorified.” But the following have no portion therein: He who maintains that resurrection is not a biblical doctrine, the Torah was not divinely revealed, and an epikoros… Rambam, Laws of Repentance 3:7 Five categories of heretics are called minim: (1) One who says that there is no God nor is there a spiritual ruler of the creation.
    [Show full text]
  • Alfred Dreyfus: Man, Milieu, Mentality and Midrash
    ———————————————————— Prologue ———————————————————— Alfred Dreyfus: Man, Milieu, Mentality and Midrash Norman Simms — 1 — ———————————————————— Prologue ———————————————————— Reference Library of Jewish Intellectual History — 2 — ———————————————————— Prologue ———————————————————— ALFRED DREYFUS: MAN, MILIEU, MENTALITY AND MIDRASH Norman SIMMS Boston 2012 — 3 — ———————————————————— Prologue ———————————————————— Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data: A catalog record for this title is available from the Library of Congress. Copyright © 2012 Academic Studies Press All rights reserved ISBN 978-1-936235-39-1 Book design by Adell Medovoy On the cover: Woodcut by Martha Simms based on Alfred Dreyfus' drawings in his prison cahiers from Devil's Island. Published by Academic Studies Press in 2012 28 Montfern Avenue Brighton, MA 02135, USA [email protected] www.academicstudiespress.com An electronic version of this book is freely available, thanks to the support of libraries working with Knowledge Unlatched. KU is a collaborative initiative designed to make high quality books Open Access for the public good. The Open Access ISBN for this book is 978-1-644-69325-4. More information about the initiative and links to the Open Access version can be found at www.knowledgeunlatched.org. Effective March 20, 2020, this book is subject to a CC-BY-NC license. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/. Other than as provided by these licenses, no part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted, or displayed by any electronic or mechanical means without permission from the publisher or as permitted by law. — 4 — ———————————————————— Prologue ———————————————————— Special thanks for their advice and support to Ira Bing, Maru Bing, Athena Chambers, Phyllis Chesler Norbert Col, José Faur, Nancy Kobrin, Robert Liris and, as always and, especially, Martha Simms.
    [Show full text]
  • Jewish Religion
    THE JEWISH RELIGION . For rny grandson . Abraham Peter Jacobs The Jewish Religion A COMPANION Louis Jacobs OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 1995 Oxford University Press, Wlliton Street, Oxford OX2 6DP Oxford Ne111 York Athens Auekland Bangkok Bombay Cakutta Cape To11111 Dar es Salaam Delhi Florenre Hong Kong Istan/nJ Karaehi Kullia Lumpur Madras Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Nairobi Paris Singapore Taipei Tokyo Toronto and associated companies in Berlin Ibadan Oxford is a trade mark of Oxford University Press Published in the United States by Oxford University Press Inc., Ne111 York 4::> Louis Jaeobs 1995 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, Jllithout the prior permission in 111riling of Oxford University Press. Within the UK, exreptions are allo111ed in respect ofany fair dealing for the purpose ofresearch 'fJr private study, or criticism or revit111, as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 11}88, or in the ease of reprographie reproduction in accordance 111ith the terms ofthe licences issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside these terms and in other countries should be sent to the Rights Department, Oxford University Press, at the address above This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by 111ay oftrade or otherJIIise, be lent, re-sold, hired out or other111ise circulated 111ithout the publisher~ prior consent in any form ofbinding or cover other than that in 111hieh it is published and Jllithout a similar condition imlutling this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Data available Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data The Je111ith religion : a companion I Louis Jaeobs.
    [Show full text]
  • Maimonides' Thirteen Principles: the Last Word in Jewish Theology?
    Maimonides' Thirteen Principles: The Last Word in Jewish Theology? Marc B. Shapiro In the inaugural issue of the Torah u-Madda Journal, R. Yehuda Parnes argued that heresy is forbidden to be studied. This led him to condemn study in "areas that spark and arouse ideas which are antithetical to the tenets of our faith." Further developing his point, he left no doubt as to what he meant by "the tenets of our faith." "Torah u-Madda can only be viable if it imposes strict limits on freedom of inquiry in areas that may undermine the yod gimel 'ikkarei emunah." In other words, in his view, it is the "Thirteen Principles of Faith" of Maimonides that are determinative with regard to what constitutes heresy.1 At first glance this may not appear to be at all controversial. After all, who better than Maimonides would be qualified to set forth the dogmas of Judaism? The immediate reaction of many Orthodox Jews would probably be the same as R. Parnes' in identifying heresy with anything that opposed any of the well known Maimonidean principles. Indeed, a recent author has written: "It should be stressed that all Torah scholars agree on the validity and significance of the Principles."2 Similarly, another one has written: "The fact is that Maimonides' Thirteen Principles are all derived from the Talmud and the classic Jewish tradition, and were never in dispute.3 With reference to these statements, a comment by Gershom Scholem, made in a entirely different context, is relevant: "This seems to me an extraordinary example of how a judgment proclaimed with conviction as certainly true may nevertheless be entirely wrong in every detail."4 This is so, for even a cursory examination of Jewish literature shows that Maimonides' principles were never regarded as the last word in Jewish theology.5 This despite the fact that Maimonides contended that anyone who even had a doubt about one his principles was a heretic worthy of death!6 Before even beginning to examine this matter, it is worthwhile to make a few comments on the place of dogma in Jewish thought in general.
    [Show full text]
  • Box Folder 43 16 Hartman, David
    MS-831: Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation Records, 1980–2008. Series C: Council for Initiatives in Jewish Education (CIJE). 1988–2003. Subseries 5: Communication, Publications, and Research Papers, 1991–2003. Box Folder 43 16 Hartman, David. "Introduction" and "Road to Sinai in the Temple." (includes 3.5" floppy disk), 1996-1997. For more information on this collection, please see the finding aid on the American Jewish Archives website. 3101 Clifton Ave, Cincinnati, Ohio 45220 513.487.3000 AmericanJewishArchives.org .. - . .,.:· Introduction by David Hartman Draft: May 9, 1996 Jews, Judaism and·the Modern World: The Breakdown of Consensus One of the salient features of the modern Jewish condition is the lack of consensus within the community as to what constitutes essential conditions for membership. Membership and identification with community no longer entail commitment to a shared way of life. There are many segments of the Jewish community where memhership is not based upon objective conditions and expectations but instead subjective feeling is sufficient. Also, the modern experience of Jewish identity is not informed by a clearly defined framework (such as a legal system) nor by a distinctive way of life. It draws upon many factors ranging from a person's background, family, community framework to a person's exposure to the collective fate of the Jewish people. There are no institutional or shared ideological assumptions which constitute the accepted boundaries of Jewish life or set limits to the ever expanding circle of Jewish values, experiences and life-styles. The impact of modern history on Jewish life has led to the gradual disintegration of the organizing normative frameworks which had defined the Jewish community both internally, in terms of its standards of membership and externally, in terms of its relationship with the outside world.
    [Show full text]