Medieval Jewish Philosophy as Philosophy, as Exegesis, and as Polemic

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
ARTHUR HYMAN
Keyword(s):  
Jewish Philosophy ◽  
Medieval Jewish Philosophy

What Is Jewish Philosophy?

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. M. Rudavsky
Keyword(s):  
Moral Theory ◽  
Western Thought ◽  
Christian Philosophy ◽  
Faith And Reason ◽  
The World ◽  
Jewish Philosophy ◽  
Medieval Jewish Philosophy ◽  
The Relationship

Medieval Jewish philosophy, like Islamic and Christian philosophy, is fundamentally focused on the relationship between “faith and reason.” Arising as an effort toward harmonizing the tenets of Judaism with current philosophic teachings, medieval Jewish philosophy deals with problems in which there appears to be a conflict between philosophical speculation and acceptance of dogmas of the Judaic faith. This chapter reviews the nature of Jewish philosophy as well as the tension between Judaism and Science. It positions Jewish philosophy within the broader context of Western thought, and distinguishes philosophy from the world of the Rabbis. It then provides an overview of the major themes of the work, which include issues of omniscience, providence, reason, and moral theory.

The Study of Philosophy as a Religious Obligation

2011 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Herbert A. Davidson
Keyword(s):  
Perceived Threat ◽  
Existence Of God ◽  
Composite Image ◽  
Integral Component ◽  
Love Of God ◽  
Jewish Philosophy ◽  
Medieval Jewish Philosophy ◽  
Religious Obligation

This chapter describes the origins of medieval Jewish philosophy as a response to a threat. Philosophy was undoubtedly regarded as a threat by many medieval thinkers, Jewish as well as Muslim. In the Jewish milieu, the perceived threat was reinforced by a deep-seated antipathy towards all alien literature that is evidenced in classic rabbinic writings. There was, nonetheless, a minority of medieval Jewish thinkers who did not regard philosophy as a menace. This chapter thus weaves a composite figure out of a number of writers who dipped their toes in philosophy or plunged in head first. It focuses on the rationalist approach to the existence of God, the love of God, and the obligation to study the Torah. The writers from whom the composite image is drawn are not all cut from the same cloth and would not all agree with everything to be said here. There would be demurrals, especially regarding the proposition that philosophy formed an integral component of the rabbinic curriculum. The composite portrait nevertheless captures the overall attitude of the segment of the medieval Jewish spectrum that qualifies as rationalist.

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