1. Medieval Jewish Thought
RELIG 210-Introduction to Judaism Lecture 10
Medieval Jewish Thought

2. Medieval Jewish context
Time of Great Scholarship, Creativity, Writing
Two contexts
Central European Christianity
Encounter with Islam
New Approaches: Biblical Interpreation and philosophy

3. Reason then and now Are reason and religion compatible?
No concept of “secular”

4. From Rabbinic Drash to Pshat
New Approach to scripture
Contextual, “literal” reading of text
Focus on historical perspective, rationalism, linguistic analysis and literary genre
Great sophistication

5. Why the shift? Disputations with Islam and Christianity
Direct study of the Bible
Prove validity of the text
Scripture as shared document
Philosophic Rationalism in Islam
New discoveries in philology, linguistic
Intra-Jewish polemics

6. Karaites (8-10th century)
Challenge Rabbininc reading as normative
Use reason and science to understand scripture without rabbinic mediation
Has a tremendous impact on Jewish exegesis

7. Can reason validate scripture?
Saadia Gaon
Decode text to prove compatible with reason
Allegorical reading “Head” when applied to God = “excellence and elevation.” (Study Bible, 1953)

8. Rashi (Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki)
/French
Running Commentary to the Talmud
Translates technical terms (old french)
Line drawings
Torah commentary

9. Rashi’s Approach
“There are many agaddic interpretations, and our sages have already arranged them in their proper place in Genesis Rabbah and other midrashic collections. I come only to present what the text says directly and such aggadah that sets the wording of the text on its proper bearings.”

10. Philosophy Are Reason and Revelation Compatible?
Eternal Universe versus creation ex nihilo
Watchmaker God vs. God who stops the son
How can both be right?

11. Reason and Revelation? Eternal Universe versus creation ex nihilo
Watchmaker God vs. God who stops the son
How can both be right?

12. Moses Ben Mamon (Rambam/maimonides)
(Spain, Morocco, Egypt)

13. Rambam Proof of God’s existence Explanation of prophecy Mishneh Torah
Prophets are great philosphers
Translate insights into figurative speech
Mishneh Torah
Guide to the Perplexed

14. Kabbalah Rabbinic movement (12th Cent onward)
Hidden tradition of scriptural interpretation

15. Kabbalah and Scripture
Scripture is like a Walnut
Literal Content is Outer Shell
Secret truth hidden within
Goal: Go through layers of meaning to find kernal
Example: Divine Emanations
Dangerous Work (Four who enter Garden)

16. Kabbalah and Symbolic Vocabulary
God- Transcendent and Immanent
En Sof, “The Infinite”
Only know aspects of divine being (Sefirot)
Sefirot as DNA of natural and supernatural reality
Sefirot in Chaos-Need Restoration