Week 6 lecture notes - Judaism
Week 6: Judaism
Assignments
Read Lecture Notes for Week 6 on Judaism
Read Primary Text Selections for Week 6 on Judaism
Read Smith, pages 271-293
View "The Bible Unearthed"
Complete Mid-Term Exam by Sunday, Feb. 16, at 11:59pm
Lesson Outcomes
Articulate key philosophical arguments in the field of philosophy of religion.
Identify the influence of culturally based perspectives, values, and beliefs to examine how diverse philosophical perspectives affect the human experience.
Construct arguments on issues dealing with the philosophy of religion using critical reasoning to identify and investigate philosophical theses and evaluate information.
Transition to Western Religious Philosophies
This week marks a transition to major religious philosophies of the Western tradition: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
There are major differences and similarities between Eastern and Western religious traditions.
Focus on hermeneutics: the study of how to interpret sacred texts.
Key Topics for This Week
The documentary hypothesis of the Old Testament
The historical-critical method as applied to biblical exegesis
The hermeneutics of Philo of Alexandria, Augustine of Hippo, Moses Maimonides, and Benedictus Spinoza
Understanding Hebrew History
Gain understanding of the history of the Hebrew people and their relationship with God in history.
That relationship between a people and their God is of deep philosophical interest.
Learn the concept of a God of history.
Critical Thinking About Sacred Texts
Think critically about how sacred texts can be interpreted.
Participate in a guided discussion based on course materials.
Identify the controversy and the issue.
Respond to the issue by constructing arguments using course concepts.
Judaism - Part I
The Documentary Hypothesis of the Old Testament
The Christian version of ancient literature is commonly known as "The Bible."
It is composed of the "Old" and "New" Testaments.
For Christians, this division marks the difference between the relationship that God had with the Jews before and after the life of Jesus Christ.
Christians believe that Jesus was "the Son of God."
His life and death meant that God was establishing a new relationship with all of mankind rather than just with the Jewish nation.
Jewish Perspective
Jews do not agree with the Christian version of history.
Jews do not accept the special status that Christians assign to Jesus.
Therefore, Jews do not accept the New Testament as authoritative scripture.
They do accept the “Old Testament" as authoritative.
However the term "Old Testament" is a somewhat derogatory Christian term, representing Christian doctrine.
What Christians call the "Old Testament" is known in Judaism as the "Tanakh."
The Tanakh and the Torah
The first five books of the “Tanakh” - Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy - are called the Torah.
The Torah is also called the Pentateuch because of the five books (the Greek “penta” means five, teûchos means tool or vessel).
Jewish tradition holds that Moses composed the Torah at God's command over the course of 40 years from the Exodus from Egypt until his death.
Modern Literary Analysis
Modern literary analysis has revealed that there were at least four different editorial traditions, stretching over a few hundred years, that contributed to the composition of the Torah.
Based on that analysis, the documentary hypothesis proposes that the Pentateuch was not written by a single author but rather is a compilation of texts composed by multiple authors or editors over a long period of time.
According to this theory, the Pentateuch is composed of four main sources or documents, each with its own distinct style, vocabulary, and theological perspective.
These four sources are traditionally identified by the letters J, E, P, and D:
The Jahwist (J) source:
Thought to be the oldest source, dating to around the 10th century BCE.
It uses the divine name Yahweh (YHWH, represented as "J" for the German spelling) and is characterized by a vivid, narrative style.
The Elohist (E) source:
Also an early source, dating to around the 9th century BCE.
It uses the generic term Elohim ("God") instead of the personal name Yahweh and has a somewhat different style and perspective from the J source.
The Priestly (P) source:
A later source, dating to around the 6th century BCE, during or after the Babylonian Exile.
It is concerned with priestly matters, ritual laws, and genealogies, and has a more formal, legalistic style.
The Deuteronomic (D) source:
Largely comprising the book of Deuteronomy and is characterized by a strong emphasis on the centralization of worship in Jerusalem and the covenant between God and Israel.
It was composed during the religious reforms of King Josiah in the late 7th century BCE, after the discovery of a "book of the law" in the temple (2 Kings 22).
Redactors and the Septuagint
The documentary hypothesis proposes that each of these different editorial traditions wrote their own version of events and added other stories.
These different versions were eventually pieced together by ‘redactors’ or editors, in some kind of coherent form that had not necessarily been intended originally.
Around 250 BCE, the Torah was translated into Greek.
The Greek translation is known as the “Septuagint,” which means “the seventy.”
The legend is that 70 scholars were brought together in the city of Alexandria (now in Egypt) to translate the Torah into Greek.
It is said that even though the 70 scholars were completely isolated from each other, each working on his own, they miraculously all came up with exactly the same translation.
The Septuagint and the Masoretic Text
The Septuagint was already widely used when Jesus lived because by then, most people spoke Greek.
However, the original version of the Torah that had been used for the translation eventually disappeared at the hands of the Romans.
For centuries, the Greek translation (the Septuagint) was the only version of the Torah available.
Archeologists have found fragments of the Hebrew Torah dating back to about 600 BCE.
Beyond that most of the older Hebrew fragments are from the Dead Sea Scrolls, which date back to 250 BCE.
The Hebrew translation of the Torah that Jews use today is based on the Masoretic Text.
The Masoretic Text was put together by a group of scholarly Jews, known as the Masoretes, between 850 CE and 1100 CE.
The Masoretes used fragments of original texts, along with the Septuagint to compile what is now understood to be the authoritative version of the Torah.
A God of History
The Concept of the "Other"
Huston Smith tells us that the concept of the “Other” is common to all religious experience.
The sense of otherness refers to the presence of something that is in this world but not of this world.
It is that sense of otherness that we try to name when we use terms like God, Brahman, Allah, the Force, or whatever.
Smith also tells us the Jews personalized the concept of otherness and recognized in it a willing consciousness.
A Personalized God
This was indeed a god that possessed a will and who exercised his will, by being involved in human affairs.
This is a god who punishes bad deeds and rewards good deeds.
It is a god that takes sides in battles and who helps his “chosen people” to be victorious in their battles against overwhelming enemies.
This is a god who gives and who takes away.
Not only was this a personalized concept of god, this was a god that took things personally.
If you disobeyed his will, you could be severely punished, or you could even lose your life.
This is also a jealous and vindictive god, who doesn’t like his “children” to worship any other gods, for if they do they will be severely punished.
“You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me.” Exodus 20:5
A Loving God
At the same time, the God of the Jews was a loving God who cared for them as a mother or father would care for their children.
But in order to know this God, we must understand how he has revealed himself in history and we must see that history through the eyes of the Jews themselves.
Putting all those characterizations together, we can call this concept a “God of history.”
Biblical History
The Early History of Judaism
Familiarity with the general outline of history is essential for understanding philosophy.
All of the great philosophers were also historians.
What follows is a very brief account of the history of the Jewish people as it is told in the Bible itself.
Those already familiar with this history can skip this section. Those not familiar with the story should read this section and you might also find this timeline helpful.
However, as if to confuse you even more, we also will see how the Biblical account of these events can be doubted.
The Story of Abraham
Abraham is considered to be the patriarch of the Western religious tradition.
Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all trace their roots back to Abraham as the first monotheist.
Abraham was married to Sarah but she had not been able to give Abraham any children and the family legacy was at stake.
God had promised that Abraham and Sarah would finally have a child, but Sarah was already in her 70s or 80s, while Abraham was in his 90s.
Anxious to preserve the family lineage, Sarah offered her maid-servant, a young girl named Hagar, as a surrogate “wife” for Abraham.
Hagar soon became pregnant.
As one might expect, conflict developed between Sarah and Hagar. Sarah thought Hagar was being impudent and Hagar thought that Sarah was treating her unfairly. Hagar even tried to run away.
But God told her to go back and God blessed her (Gen. 16:6-12).
Hagar then gave birth to a boy who they named Ishmael.
But the feud between the two women continued to fester.
Then, Sarah miraculously became pregnant and gave birth to a boy who they named Isaac. It is not clear when that happened but when Sarah did give birth to a son for Abraham, she could no longer tolerate the presence of Hagar and Ishmael.
So, Hagar and Ishmael were forced to leave the tribe of Abraham but only after God promised that he would “make a nation of him also” (Genesis 21:13).
Hagar and Ishmael
After wandering in the desert for days, Hagar ran out of water and Ishmael was crying for water.
There was nothing Hagar could do to help him, so she hid him under the shade of a bush and went a short distance away so that she couldn’t hear him crying.
But God heard her cries for help and caused water to spring from the ground at the child’s feet and they were saved.
And “God was with the boy, and he grew up; he lived in the wilderness, and became an expert with the bow. He lived in the wilderness of Paran; and his mother got a wife for him from the land of Egypt.” (Gen. 21:20)
Abraham's Death and Ishmael's Descendants
When Abraham finally died at the age of 175, Isaac and Ishmael came together to bury their father.
Ishmael lived to be 137 years old and had many descendants.
The “Ishmaelites” settled in the area of modern day Saudi Arabia.
Many centuries later, the Prophet Muhammad will claim that Ishmael was the forefather of the Arab people. Muhammad himself belonged to the Quraysh tribe, which claims direct descendancy from Ishmael.
The Exodus
The Story of Moses
The rest of the book of Genesis focuses on Isaac and his descendants, who become the people of Israel, the Israelites. We fast forward now from the story of Abraham in the book of Genesis, to the book of Exodus and story of another key figure in Jewish history, Moses.
Moses was born in Egypt to an Israelite woman, at a time when the people of Israel were enslaved in Egypt.
In order to protect her baby from the Pharaoh’s edict that all Israelite male babies should be killed, she arranged to have him found and adopted by the daughter of the Pharaoh. So Moses grew up among Egyptian royalty, but he still identified with the enslaved Israelites.
God spoke with Moses, telling him to lead the people to freedom. When the Pharaoh refused to liberate the Jews, God brought ten plagues on Egypt.
The last of these plagues was the death of every first born male child in every family. But through Moses, God told the people of Israel to smear the blood of a lamb on their doors. If they did that, the angel of death would pass over those families and their children would be spared. This event is celebrated by all Jews every year and is called the “Passover.”
Moses eventually did lead the people of Israel in a perilous escape as the Egyptian army followed in hot pursuit, only to be drowned in the Red Sea. Moses then led the people as they wandered for forty years in the Sinai desert, before they attacked the kingdom of Canaan and defeated the Canaanites. The Jews then established a kingdom of their own.
Kings of Israel
The first king of the Israelite nation was Saul, who had led them in battle against the Canaanites.
After King Saul, came King David, who was the greatest king in Jewish history.
Then after King David, his son Solomon reigned from roughly 970 to 931 BCE.
It was during this period of time that the first Jewish temple was built in Jerusalem.
The temple in Jerusalem became the center of Jewish life and culture. It was literally the house of the God who protected the people. During these years the people and lands of Israel prospered.
After Solomon however, the kingdom of Israel divided into Israel in the north and Judah in the south. That division made both states more vulnerable to attack.
The northern kingdom of Israel was Captured by the Assyrians in 722 B.C. But the southern kingdom of Judah remained independent. But in 586 BCE. The Babylonian armies captured Judah, and destroyed the temple in Jerusalem. Not only was the temple destroyed, but the Jewish population was dispersed to different parts of the empire. Many of the Jews were taken to Babylonia to serve the people there.
Hermeneutics
Interpreting Texts
The documentary hypothesis tells us that the Old Testament was written by different people at different times.
That process of editing lasted over 400 years and represents an evolving interpretation of the events and meaning of the stories themselves.
The study of how texts are interpreted is called “hermeneutics.”
Hermeneutics is the theory, methodology, and practice of interpretation, especially the interpretation of biblical texts, wisdom literature, and philosophical texts.
As such, it is concerned with the study of how meaning is constructed and conveyed through language.
Hermeneutics plays a role in a number of disciplines where the subject matter concerns human intentions, human experience, historical testimony, and other artifacts. Those disciplines include theology (especially Biblical studies), the law, and medicine.
Philo of Alexandria (20 BC - 50 CE)
Philo of Alexandria gives us a good example of what hermeneutics is.
Philo was a contemporary of both Jesus and the Apostle Paul.
He would have been a teenager when Jesus was born and roughly 49 when Jesus died. However, Philo was a Jew living in Alexandria, Egypt and he knew nothing of the existence of Jesus.
Philo was a scholar of the Jewish scriptures, interpreting them in a way that later would profoundly affect the development of Christianity.
The city of Alexandria was founded in 331 BCE by Alexander the Great. It became an important center of Hellenistic civilization and remained the capital of Egypt for almost 1000 years.
As a Jew living in such a center of Greek culture, it is not surprising that Philo was interested in making connections between Greek and Jewish cultures. He did this by means of a detailed analysis of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Bible) in terms of Greek philosophical concepts.
Allegory
The use of allegory as a rhetorical device was one of those concepts taken from Greek philosophy that Philo used to great advantage.
The Cambridge Dictionary defines allegory as: “a story, play, poem, picture, or other work in which the characters and events represent particular moral, religious, or political qualities or ideas.”
Plato’s allegory of the Cave (Week 2 Lecture and Philosophical Selections) is a good example of how allegory is used to make a point in an argument, or simply to illustrate an idea.
Please note that an allegory is not a metaphor. A metaphor is a single expression that describes a person or object by referring to something that possesses similar characteristics.
Philo reads the stories of the Bible as allegories revealing deeper, more spiritual concepts that cannot be adequately explained using ordinary logic.
Philo's Interpretation of Genesis
Our first selection this week (see Selections) is taken from Philo’s essay on the meaning of the creation story. I have focused on Philo’s interpretation of the fall of mankind because it is a good example of how he uses allegory and also because it raises the whole issue of good and evil.
Philo also represents a particular school of thought within Judaism, that was comfortable with Greek philosophical concepts. As you read through the selection dealing with the Fall of Mankind, It is obvious that Philo rejects any literal interpretation of the story. He starts right off by telling us that the garden of paradise was not like any garden we can imagine. There was no tree of the knowledge of good and evil, no serpent, and even no Adam or Eve. He explicitly says that “these statements appear to me to be dictated by a philosophy which is symbolical rather than strictly accurate,” and that “Moses was speaking in an allegorical spirit, intending by his paradise to intimate the dominant character of the soul.”
As we read on, it becomes apparent how Philo sees the Genesis story as an allegory for human nature. Adam typifies the rational element of human nature. While Eve represents the sensuous element. The serpent is the symbol of carnal lust and pleasure, which are also part of human nature. The relationship between these different elements of our own nature plays out like the story of Adam, Eve, and the Serpent. To the extent that we indulge our instinctual desire for pleasure, we may succumb to the forbidden temptations of the body, just as Eve was tempted by the serpent. Reason itself becomes seduced by sensual pleasures. In that manner, the story of the fall of mankind is really a description of human nature and more specifically, the human soul.
Plato's Influence
We can see Plato’s influence on Philo not only in the use of allegory as a rhetorical device, but also the clearly dualistic nature of the message itself. We can see the same moral distinctions being made between the physical world and the world of pure ideas. Our natural human instincts must be resisted because they are part of this world, the world of material goods. Instead, we should cultivate our higher faculties of the mind; those faculties capable of understanding abstract ideas, as required by the use of allegory.
What that means, is that the scriptures are not transparent. We cannot just read scripture and immediately understand. Scripture is opaque. We have to search for the meaning that is hidden within the stories. The stories themselves are not as important as the truths they are trying to convey.
I cannot help but think, at this point, that Philo would agree with Black Elk’s words: “This they tell, and whether it actually happened so or not I do not know; but if you think about it, you can see that it is true.”
The Original Sin
Saint Augustine (354-430)
Our second primary text selection this week is by Augustine. Augustine was the bishop of Hippo, modern-day Annaba, Algeria.
He was the most influential Christian theologian until Saint Thomas Aquinas in the 13th century and had much to do with the formation of the doctrine of the Trinity.
In his autobiography entitled, Confessions, he tells us of his first taste of sin:
"Late one night--having prolonged our games in the streets until then, as our bad habit was--a group of young scoundrels, and I among them, went to shake and rob this tree. We carried off a huge load of pears, not to eat ourselves, but to dump out to the hogs, after barely tasting some of them ourselves. Doing this pleased us all the more because it was forbidden. Such was my heart, O God, such was my heart."
Augustine's Beliefs
For Augustine, this was not just an innocent prank. He later came to believe that his very nature was flawed. "It was foul, and I loved it. I loved my own error— not that for which I erred, but the error itself." From this incident, and based on his own experience, he concluded that all humans are naturally inclined to sin.
But that lesson took Augustine years to learn because, at the age of 17, he moved to Carthage to continue his education in rhetoric, and for more than ten years, he spent a lot of time drinking and carousing with his friends.
He became particularly close to one of the town prostitutes, who became pregnant and gave birth to his son, Adeodatus. During those years in Carthage, Augustine also became a Manichaean. Manichaeism was a radically dualistic religious cult that was popular at that time particularly among the ranks of the Roman army.
At 30 years old, Augustine was appointed professor of rhetoric and moved to Milan. His mistress (whose name is not known) and his son came with him, However, Augustine never married his mistress. Instead, he became engaged to an 11-year-old girl. But then he had to wait two years to legally marry her. In the meantime, he took up with another woman, while still caring for his mistress, which he admitted had more to do with his sexual lust for her. He writes in his Confessions:
"I had entreated chastity of thee and had prayed, “Grant me chastity and continence, but not yet. ” For I was afraid lest thou shouldst hear me too soon, and too soon cure me of my disease of lust which I desired to have satisfied rather than extinguished."
Augustine eventually become friends with Bishop Ambrose of Milan, and at the age of 31, he converted to Christianity. He was baptized by Ambrose, along with his son, Adeodatus. Augustine's mistress returned to Carthage and joined a nunnery to deal with the sorrow of her unrequited love. But Augustine adored his son and took him into his care until the boy died. In 391 Augustine was ordained as a priest. Having been trained in rhetoric, he gained a wide reputation as a powerful preacher and In 395, he became the bishop of Hippo and made it his task to interpret the Bible.
Augustine and Adam's Sin
The title of our selection, taken from the 13th chapter of the City of God, gives us a good example of how Augustine understood scripture- "In This Book, It Is Taught That Death Is Penal, and Had Its Origin In Adam's sin."
Thus, for Augustine, death is punishment for Adam's sin. Now, since we all die sometime, we are all being punished for Adam's sin. Adam is the first man. So Adam's sin is the "original sin."
According to Augustine, Adam's original sin is passed down through many, many generations, literally through the act of intercourse. And of course, the first woman, Eve, was responsible for Adam's fall into sin. The woman was seduced by the serpent's wiles and then she seduced Adam and together they "ate of the forbidden fruit."
We all know what that "forbidden fruit" was. It is hard to avoid thinking that Augustine's own sexual guilt is responsible for his interpretation of the Genesis story.
And yet, the theory of the original sin became a major doctrine of Christianity. We are born into sin and it is by the grace of God that we are saved.
A Guide for the Perplexed - Moses Maimonides (1138–1204)
Maimonides' Life
Moses Maimonides is said to be the greatest Jewish philosopher of the medieval period.
He was born in Cordova, Spain. Spain had been under Muslim control since 788 and would last until almost the 16th century. However, the Almohads, a Moroccan Berber Muslim movement, invaded Cordova in 1148 and gave all non-Muslims the choice of converting to Islam, exile, or death, and Maimonides’ family eventually had to leave Cordova.
The family moved to Fez, Morocco, where they stayed for five years until the fear of being discovered caused the family to flee to Cairo, Egypt, which was more tolerant of Jews. Having been educated by his father, who was a learned man, Maimonides eventually learned medicine and became a physician to Sultan Saladin, the famous Islamic military general who conquered Jerusalem.
Interpreting Scriptures
In our selection, Maimonides is literally trying to show his readers how to read the scriptures.
And like Philo, Maimonides believed that scripture must not be read literally.
It is typical for Maimonides to begin his essays with an analysis of the Hebrew terms.
In this selection, he analyzes the term “Elohim." Elohim is most often used in the Old Testament as another name for God. But Maimonides tells us that the word could also refer to "angels, judges, and the rulers of countries.” The significance of that information resides in how the word is used in context. For instance, Gen. 3:5, reads "and ye shall be like Elohim.” Should that be understood as “you shall be like God” or "you shall be like princes”? It makes a difference.
The point is that the Bible must be read very carefully.
Adam and Eve
Having made that clarification, Maimonides replies to a question concerning whether or not Adam was born with intelligence superior to animals. He responds that Adam was born with a capacity to reason, but was innocent of the distinction between good and evil.
Adam’s fall from innocence began when he first gave way to his passions and desires. By giving in to his sensual nature, he lost touch with his rational faculties. That is what is meant by the phrase: "God opened her eyes" (Gen. 21:19). For Maimonides, it meant that they now understood something they had not been aware of before. They now understood the difference between good and evil.
Physical Desire
Giving in to his physical desires, Adam desired more of what had been forbidden. But his unlimited desires could not be satisfied. By giving in to our physical desires we bring ourselves down to the level of animals. We scrounge around like animals to satisfy our animal desires.
That is what the story of Adam and Eve really means for Maimonides. It is not a literal reading of the story and it is not an easy reading of the story. It involves a careful analysis of terminology.
Benedictus Spinoza (1632-1677)
Treatise on Theology and Politics
We have just seen how Philo of Alexandria (1st cent) and Maimonides (12th cent) interpreted the Bible. Neither of them believed that the Bible should be read literally, but rather should be read as referencing or symbolizing deeper truths by means of allegory, analogy, or metaphor. Now we have Benedictus Spinoza in the 17th cent. adding his voice to the same notion.
Spinoza was born to Marrano parents. The "Marranos" were a group of Jews living in Spain and Portugal who were forced to convert to Christianity during the Inquisition. But secretly they continued to follow Jewish laws and customs. Eventually, Spinoza's family moved to Amsterdam, where there was a well- established Jewish community. Spinoza’s father, Michael, was a merchant and became a respected member of the community. His mother, died when Benedictus was five.
He received a typically Jewish education at the Talmud Torah school. But he left to run the family business. Through his business contacts, Spinoza made friends with free-thinking Protestants and Catholics, attending regular meetings with them to discuss philosophy and theology. It was in this rich caldron of ideas that Spinoza developed his philosophy; a philosophy that eventually led to his being ex-communicated from the Jewish community.
Our selection for this week is taken from the “Treatise on Theology and Politics,” chapter VII, “On the Interpretation of Scripture.” Right away, Spinoza tells us that judging from how people behave, most people don’t understand scripture. Or those that do think they understand scripture, interpret it to serve their own selfish interests. He agrees that most people think with their passions and emotions, rather than with reason. But he insists that reading scripture is a rational, not an emotional process.
Spinoza's Method of Reading Scripture
We must carefully analyze biblical stories, with an eye to
the language that is used.
analyzing the contents of each book of the Bible and categorizing the different subjects that are treated.
Finally, we should attempt to know as much as possible about the history of the story, its context, the reason for its inclusion in the Bible, and something about the author of the book. This implies that God is not the direct author of the Bible and that humans had a hand in crafting it as well.
Spinoza illustrates these points by discussing two descriptions of God found in the words of Moses: “God is a fire,” (Deuteronomy 4:24) and “God is jealous” (Exodus 20:5, Deuteronomy 6:15)
God is called all sorts of things in the Bible, “midwife,” “shepherd,” “lover,” “quickening Spirit,” “bread of Life,” etc. Spinoza tells us that these descriptions of God should not be taken literally. God is not literally a fire because other Biblical passages tell us that “God has no likeness to any visible thing, whether in heaven or in the earth” (Exodus 20:4).
That would also apply to the idea that “God is jealous.” However, we need to be more careful, because Moses doesn’t tell us that God is without emotions. God is, after all, loving and caring. But a jealous God? Jealousy implies rivalry. But there is nothing that can rival God. So it doesn’t stand to reason that God could be jealous because there is nothing or no one to be envious or jealous of. This is according to Spinoza.
A God of Nature
Stoicism, Taoism, and Spinoza
We have already seen the similarities between stoic philosophy and Taoism. Both distinguish between what we can and cannot control. Finding that balance requires that we follow the way of nature. Both Stoicism and Taoism tell us that we must accept the ebb and flow of the forces in nature. Following nature’s way is the path to happiness. Both see God in nature.
Writing in the 17th century, Spinoza’s concept of God is very similar to the Stoic and Taoist views. God is everywhere and in everything. God is in nature and is inseparable from nature.
Writing in the 17th century, Spinoza was also seduced by science and mathematics. So he established his concept of God using geometry as a model, using a purely deductive format, in which all claims follow necessarily from a set of definitions and axioms.
Here is his thought process in establishing his proof of God:
Definitions:D3: By substance I understand what is in itself and is conceived through itself, that is, that whose concept does not require the concept of another thing, from which it must be formed.
D4: By attribute I understand what the intellect perceives of a substance, as constituting its essence.
D6: By God I understand a being absolutely infinite, that is, a substance consisting of an infinity of attributes, of which each one expresses an eternal and infinite essence.
So for Spinoza, God is an infinite substance that manifests itself in an infinite number of ways, all of which share in God’s essence.
Propositions:
P5: In Nature, there cannot be two or more substances of the same nature or attribute.
P11: God, or a substance consisting of infinite attributes, each of which expresses eternal and infinite essence, necessarily exists.
P14: Except God, no substance can be or be conceived.
Understanding Spinoza's God
In other words, there is only one substance and that substance is God. Spinoza’s concept of God is strictly monistic because God is in everything and everything is God.
Thus, everything that happens, happens necessarily. This is not a willing God that operates according to a cosmic plan. God has no being apart from nature.
God is the natural world. Certainly, from a conservative Jewish or Christian perspective, Spinoza’s God is no God and Spinoza is an atheist. For that reason, Spinoza was shunned or excommunicated from the Jewish community.
The Sacrifice of Isaac - Sören Kierkegaard: Fear and Trembling
The Story
One of the greatest stories in the Old Testament is about the sacrifice of Isaac. In the Islamic tradition, the story is told not of Isaac but of Ishmael. But we will get to that later. For now, I will focus on the Jewish version of the story as told in the book of Genesis 22:1-19. In order to understand the full story, you should also read about the birth of Isaac in Genesis 21.
It is written that God told Abraham that he must sacrifice his legitimate son, Isaac. Remember that Isaac was a “miracle” child and precious to Abraham. Abraham struggled with this order from God, but eventually, he took Isaac to the top of a mountain and prepared to kill him as a sacrifice.
But as his knife was raised to kill Isaac, an angel of the Lord stopped him and provided a lamb for sacrifice instead.
Questions Raised
The story of the sacrifice of Isaac ends well, but raises many questions about the character of Abraham, but especially of God.
Why would a loving benevolent God put a faithful servant like Abraham to such a test? Why would God ask Abraham to sacrifice the son that was a miracle of God in the first place? The killing of an innocent human being runs counter to every moral principle. Why would God even pretend to do something so immoral? For what purpose was the sacrifice required? Why would Abraham carry through on such a project knowing it was immoral?
Those questions troubled a Danish philosopher by the name of Søren Kirkegaard (1813-
Week 6: Judaism
Assignments
Read Lecture Notes for Week 6 on Judaism
Read Primary Text Selections for Week 6 on Judaism
Read Smith, pages 271-293
View "The Bible Unearthed"
Complete Mid-Term Exam by Sunday, Feb. 16, at 11:59pm
Lesson Outcomes
Articulate key philosophical arguments in the field of philosophy of religion.
Identify the influence of culturally based perspectives, values, and beliefs to examine how diverse philosophical perspectives affect the human experience.
Construct arguments on issues dealing with the philosophy of religion using critical reasoning to identify and investigate philosophical theses and evaluate information.
Transition to Western Religious Philosophies
This week marks a transition to major religious philosophies of the Western tradition: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
There are major differences and similarities between Eastern and Western religious traditions.
Focus on hermeneutics: the study of how to interpret sacred texts.
Key Topics for This Week
The documentary hypothesis of the Old Testament
The historical-critical method as applied to biblical exegesis
The hermeneutics of Philo of Alexandria, Augustine of Hippo, Moses Maimonides, and Benedictus Spinoza
Understanding Hebrew History
Gain understanding of the history of the Hebrew people and their relationship with God in history.
That relationship between a people and their God is of deep philosophical interest.
Learn the concept of a God of history.
Critical Thinking About Sacred Texts
Think critically about how sacred texts can be interpreted.
Participate in a guided discussion based on course materials.
Identify the controversy and the issue.
Respond to the issue by constructing arguments using course concepts.
Judaism - Part I
The Documentary Hypothesis of the Old Testament
The Christian version of ancient literature is commonly known as "The Bible."
It is composed of the "Old" and "New" Testaments.
For Christians, this division marks the difference between the relationship that God had with the Jews before and after the life of Jesus Christ.
Christians believe that Jesus was "the Son of God" and the Messiah prophesized in the Old Testament.
His life, teachings, death, and resurrection meant that God was establishing a new covenant with all of mankind, not just with the Jewish nation. This is a core tenet differentiating Christianity from Judaism.
Jewish Perspective
Jews do not agree with the Christian interpretation of history and theological claims regarding Jesus.
Jews do not accept the special status that Christians assign to Jesus, particularly the belief that he is the Messiah or the Son of God.
Therefore, Jews do not accept the New Testament as authoritative scripture. The New Testament is seen as a separate religious text specific to Christianity.
They do accept the “Old Testament" as authoritative. However the term "Old Testament" is a somewhat derogatory Christian term, representing Christian doctrine.
What Christians call the "Old Testament" is known in Judaism as the "Tanakh."
The Tanakh and the Torah
The Tanakh consists of three main parts: the Torah (Law), the Nevi'im (Prophets), and the Ketuvim (Writings).
These divisions reflect different stages in the canonization of the Hebrew Bible and contain a wide range of literary genres and theological perspectives.
The first five books of the “Tanakh” - Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy - are called the Torah.
These books contain the foundational laws and teachings of Judaism, as well as narratives about the origins of the world and the early history of the Israelites.
The Torah is also called the Pentateuch because of the five books (the Greek “penta” means five, teûchos means tool or vessel).
Jewish tradition holds that Moses composed the Torah at God's command over the course of 40 years from the Exodus from Egypt until his death.
This belief is based on biblical passages that attribute the writing of the Torah to Moses, as well as rabbinic interpretations and traditions.
Modern Literary Analysis
Modern literary analysis, incorporating historical and archaeological evidence, suggests a more complex process of composition for the Torah.
Based on that analysis, the documentary hypothesis proposes that the Pentateuch was not written by a single author but rather is a compilation of texts composed by multiple authors or editors over a long period of time.
This hypothesis seeks to explain the repetitions, contradictions, and stylistic differences found within the Torah.
According to this theory, the Pentateuch is composed of four main sources or documents, each with its own distinct style, vocabulary, and theological perspective.
These four sources are traditionally identified by the letters J, E, P, and D:
The Jahwist (J) source:
Thought to be the oldest source, dating to around the 10th century BCE. It is characterized by its vivid narrative style and anthropomorphic descriptions of God.
It uses the divine name Yahweh (YHWH, represented as "J" for the German spelling) and is characterized by a vivid, narrative style. This source often portrays God with human-like qualities and emotions.
The Elohist (E) source:
Also an early source, dating to around the 9th century BCE. It is characterized by a more restrained and abstract portrayal of God.
It uses the generic term Elohim ("God") instead of the personal name Yahweh and has a somewhat different style and perspective from the J source. This source often emphasizes the importance of obedience to God's commands.
The Priestly (P) source:
A later source, dating to around the 6th century BCE, during or after the Babylonian Exile. It is concerned with priestly matters, ritual laws, and genealogies, and has a more formal, legalistic style.
It is concerned with priestly matters, ritual laws, and genealogies, and has a more formal, legalistic style. This source emphasizes the importance of ritual purity and proper worship practices.
The Deuteronomic (D) source:
Largely comprising the book of Deuteronomy and is characterized by a strong emphasis on the centralization of worship in Jerusalem and the covenant between God and Israel.
It was composed during the religious reforms of King Josiah in the late 7th century BCE, after the discovery of a "book of the law" in the temple (2 Kings 22). This source emphasizes the importance of loyalty to God and adherence to his laws.
Redactors and the Septuagint
The documentary hypothesis proposes that each of these different editorial traditions wrote their own version of events and added other stories.
These different versions were eventually pieced together by ‘redactors’ or editors, in some kind of coherent form that had not necessarily been intended originally.
Around 250 BCE, the Torah was translated into Greek.
The Greek translation is known as the “Septuagint,” which means “the seventy.”
The legend is that 70 scholars were brought together in the city of Alexandria (now in Egypt) to translate the Torah into Greek.
It is said that even though the 70 scholars were completely isolated from each other, each working on his own, they miraculously all came up with exactly the same translation.
The Septuagint and the Masoretic Text
The Septuagint was already widely used when Jesus lived because by then, most people spoke Greek.
However, the original version of the Torah that had been used for the translation eventually disappeared at the hands of the Romans.
For centuries, the Greek translation (the Septuagint) was the only version of the Torah available.
Archeologists have found fragments of the Hebrew Torah dating back to about 600 BCE.
Beyond that most of the older Hebrew fragments are from the Dead Sea Scrolls, which date back to 250 BCE.
The Hebrew translation of the Torah that Jews use today is based on the Masoretic Text.
The Masoretic Text was put together by a group of scholarly Jews, known as the Masoretes, between 850 CE and 1100 CE.
The Masoretes used fragments of original texts, along with the Septuagint to compile what is now understood to be the authoritative version of the Torah. The Masoretic Text includes vowel markings and cantillation notes to aid in pronunciation and chanting of the Hebrew text.
A God of History
The Concept of the "Other"
Huston Smith tells us that the concept of the “Other” is common to all religious experience.
The sense of otherness refers to the presence of something that is in this world but not of this world.
It is that sense of otherness that we try to name when we use terms like God, Brahman, Allah, the Force, or whatever.
Smith also tells us the Jews personalized the concept of otherness and recognized in it a willing consciousness.
A Personalized God
This was indeed a god that possessed a will and who exercised his will, by being involved in human affairs.
This is a god who punishes bad deeds and rewards good deeds.
It is a god that takes sides in battles and who helps his “chosen people” to be victorious in their battles against overwhelming enemies.
This is a god who gives and who takes away.
Not only was this a personalized concept of god, this was a god that took things personally.
If you disobeyed his will, you could be severely punished, or you could even lose your life.
This is also a jealous and vindictive god, who doesn’t like his “children” to worship any other gods, for if they do they will be severely punished.
“You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me.” Exodus 20:5
A Loving God
At the same time, the God of the Jews was a loving God who cared for them as a mother or father would care for their children.
But in order to know this God, we must understand how he has revealed himself in history and we must see that history through the eyes of the Jews themselves.
Putting all those characterizations together, we can call this concept a “God of history.”
Biblical History
The Early History of Judaism
Familiarity with the general outline of history is essential for understanding philosophy. Understanding the historical context in which philosophical ideas develop provides valuable insights into their meaning and significance.
All of the great philosophers were also historians. Many philosophers, such as Plato, Aristotle, and Augustine, wrote extensively about history and saw it as integral to their philosophical inquiries.
What follows is a very brief account of the history of the Jewish people as it is told in the Bible itself. This account provides the traditional religious narrative。
Those already familiar with this history can skip this section. Those not familiar with the story should read this section and you might also find this timeline helpful.
However, as if to confuse you even more, we also will see how the Biblical account of these events can be doubted. Archaeological findings and historical research often offer alternative perspectives on these events.
The Story of Abraham
Abraham is considered to be the patriarch of the Western religious tradition. He is a central figure in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all trace their roots back to Abraham as the first monotheist. Each religion has its own interpretations and traditions regarding Abraham's life and teachings.
Abraham was married to Sarah but she had not been able to give Abraham any children and the family legacy was at stake. Family lineage and inheritance were critically important in ancient societies.
God had promised that Abraham and Sarah would finally have a child, but Sarah was already in her 70s or 80s, while Abraham was in his 90s. This promise highlights the theme of divine intervention and the fulfillment of God's promises.
Anxious to preserve the family lineage, Sarah offered her maid-servant, a young girl named Hagar, as a surrogate “wife” for Abraham. This practice was not uncommon in ancient cultures when the primary wife was unable to conceive.
Hagar soon became pregnant.
As one might expect, conflict developed between Sarah and Hagar. Sarah thought Hagar was being impudent and Hagar thought that Sarah was treating her unfairly. Hagar even tried to run away.
But God told her to go back and God blessed her (Gen. 16:6-12).
Hagar then gave birth to a boy who they named Ishmael.
But the feud between the two women continued to fester.
Then, Sarah miraculously became pregnant and gave birth to a boy who they named Isaac. It is not clear when that happened but when Sarah did give birth to a son for Abraham, she could no longer tolerate the presence of Hagar and Ishmael.
So, Hagar and Ishmael were forced to leave the tribe of Abraham but only after God promised that he would “make a nation of him also” (Genesis 21:13).
Hagar and Ishmael
After wandering in the desert for days, Hagar ran out of water and Ishmael was crying for water. The story emphasizes the harsh conditions of desert life and the desperation of Hagar and Ishmael.
There was nothing Hagar could do to help him, so she hid him under the shade of a bush and went a short distance away so that she couldn’t hear him crying.
But God heard her cries for help and caused water to spring from the ground at the child’s feet and they were saved. Divine intervention is a recurring theme in the Hebrew Bible, highlighting God's care for those in distress.
And “God was with the boy, and he grew up; he lived in the wilderness, and became an expert with the bow. He lived in the wilderness of Paran; and his mother got a wife for him from the land of Egypt.” (Gen. 21:20)
Abraham's Death and Ishmael's Descendants
When Abraham finally died at the age of 175, Isaac and Ishmael came together to bury their father. This moment symbolizes reconciliation and the shared connection between the two half-brothers.
Ishmael lived to be 137 years old and had many descendants.
The “Ishmaelites” settled in the area of modern day Saudi Arabia. This geographical placement has historical and cultural significance in relation to later developments in the region.
Many centuries later, the Prophet Muhammad will claim that Ishmael was the forefather of the Arab people. Muhammad himself belonged to the Quraysh tribe, which claims direct descendancy from Ishmael. This connection is a key element in Islamic tradition.
The Exodus
The Story of Moses
The rest of the book of Genesis focuses on Isaac and his descendants, who become the people of Israel, the Israelites. We fast forward now from the story of Abraham in the book of Genesis, to the book of Exodus and story of another key figure in Jewish history, Moses.
Moses was born in Egypt to an Israelite woman, at a time when the people of Israel were enslaved in Egypt. The historical context of the Israelite slavery in Egypt is a subject of ongoing debate and research.
In order to protect her baby from the Pharaoh’s edict that all Israelite male babies should be killed, she arranged to have him found and adopted by the daughter of the Pharaoh. So Moses grew up among Egyptian royalty, but he still identified with the enslaved Israelites.
God spoke with Moses, telling him to lead the people to freedom. When the Pharaoh refused to liberate the Jews, God brought ten plagues on Egypt. The ten plagues are a central event in the Exodus narrative, demonstrating God's power and his commitment to liberating the Israelites.
The last of these plagues was the death of every first born male child in every family. But through Moses, God told the people of Israel to smear the blood of a lamb on their doors. If they did that, the angel of death would pass over those families and their children would be spared. This event is celebrated by all Jews every year and is called the “Passover.”
Moses eventually did lead the people of Israel in a perilous escape as the Egyptian army followed in hot pursuit, only to be drowned in the Red Sea. Moses then led the people as they wandered for forty years in the Sinai desert, before they attacked the kingdom of Canaan and defeated the Canaanites. The Jews then established a kingdom of their own.
Kings of Israel
The first king of the Israelite nation was Saul, who had led them in battle against the Canaanites.
After King Saul, came King David, who was the greatest king in Jewish history. King David is revered as a righteous and courageous leader who established Jerusalem as the political and religious center of Israel.
Then after King David, his son Solomon reigned from roughly 970 to 931 BCE.
It was during this period of time that the first Jewish temple was built in Jerusalem. The construction of the First Temple was a monumental achievement, symbolizing the establishment of a permanent dwelling place for God in Jerusalem.
The temple in Jerusalem became the center of Jewish life and culture. It was literally the house of the God who protected the people. During these years the people and lands of Israel prospered.
After Solomon however, the kingdom of Israel divided into Israel in the north and Judah in the south. That division made both states more vulnerable to attack. Political instability and internal conflict weakened the Israelite kingdoms, making them susceptible to external threats.
The northern kingdom of Israel was Captured by the Assyrians in 722 B.C. But the southern kingdom of Judah remained independent. But in 586 BCE. The Babylonian armies captured Judah, and destroyed the temple in Jerusalem. Not only was the temple destroyed, but the Jewish population was dispersed to different parts of the empire. Many of the Jews were taken to Babylonia to serve the people there.
Hermeneutics
Interpreting Texts
The documentary hypothesis tells us that the Old Testament was written by different people at different times.
That process of editing lasted over 400 years and represents an evolving interpretation of the events and meaning of the stories themselves.
The study of how texts are interpreted is called “hermeneutics.”
Hermeneutics is the theory, methodology, and practice of interpretation, especially the interpretation of biblical texts, wisdom literature, and philosophical texts.
Hermeneutics encompasses a wide range of approaches and perspectives, from traditional methods of biblical exegesis to contemporary theories of interpretation.
As such, it is concerned with the study of how meaning is constructed and conveyed through language.
Hermeneutics plays a role in a number of disciplines where the subject matter concerns human intentions, human experience, historical testimony, and other artifacts. Those disciplines include theology (especially Biblical studies), the law, and medicine.
Philo of Alexandria (20 BC - 50 CE)
Philo of Alexandria gives us a good example of what hermeneutics is.
Philo was a contemporary of both Jesus and the Apostle Paul.
He would have been a teenager when Jesus was born and roughly 49 when Jesus died. However, Philo was a Jew living in Alexandria, Egypt and he knew nothing of the existence of Jesus.
Philo was a scholar of the Jewish scriptures, interpreting them in a way that later would profoundly affect the development of Christianity. His allegorical interpretations of the Hebrew Bible influenced early Christian theologians.
The city of Alexandria was founded in 331 BCE by Alexander the Great. It became an important center of Hellenistic civilization and remained the capital of Egypt for almost 1000 years.
As a Jew living in such a center of Greek culture, it is not surprising that Philo was interested in making connections between Greek and Jewish cultures. He did this by means of a detailed analysis of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Bible) in terms of Greek philosophical concepts. Philo sought to harmonize Jewish scripture with Greek philosophy, demonstrating the compatibility of faith and reason.
Allegory
The use of allegory as a rhetorical device was one of those concepts taken from Greek philosophy that Philo used to great advantage.
The Cambridge Dictionary defines allegory as: “a story, play, poem, picture, or other work in which the characters and events represent particular moral, religious, or political qualities or ideas.”
Plato’s allegory of the Cave (Week 2 Lecture and Philosophical Selections) is a good example of how allegory is used to make a point in an argument, or simply to illustrate an idea.
Please note that an allegory is not a metaphor. A metaphor is a single expression that describes a person or object by referring to something that possesses similar characteristics.
Philo reads the stories of the Bible as allegories revealing deeper, more spiritual concepts that cannot be adequately explained using ordinary logic. He believed that the literal meaning of scripture was less important than its symbolic or spiritual significance.
Philo's Interpretation of Genesis
Our first selection this week (see Selections) is taken from Philo’s essay on the meaning of the creation story. I have focused on Philo’s interpretation of the fall of mankind because it is a good example of how he uses allegory and also because it raises the whole issue of good and evil.
Philo also represents a particular school of thought within Judaism, that was comfortable with Greek philosophical concepts. As you read through the selection dealing with the Fall of Mankind, It is obvious that Philo rejects any literal interpretation of the story. He starts right off by telling us that the garden of paradise was not like any garden we can imagine. There was no tree of the knowledge of good and evil, no serpent, and even no Adam or Eve. He explicitly says that “these statements appear to me to be dictated by a philosophy which is symbolical rather than strictly accurate,” and that “Moses was speaking in an allegorical spirit, intending by his paradise to intimate the dominant character of the soul.”
As we read on, it becomes apparent how Philo sees the Genesis story as an allegory for human nature. Adam typifies the rational element of human nature. While Eve represents the sensuous element. The serpent is the symbol of carnal lust and pleasure, which are also part of human nature. The relationship between these different elements of our own nature plays out like the story of Adam, Eve, and the Serpent. To the extent that we indulge our instinctual desire for pleasure, we may succumb to the forbidden temptations of the body, just as Eve was tempted by the serpent. Reason itself becomes seduced by sensual pleasures. In that manner, the story of the fall of mankind is really a description of human nature and more specifically, the human soul.
Plato's Influence
We can see Plato’s influence on Philo not only in the use of allegory as a rhetorical device, but also the clearly dualistic nature of the message itself. We can see the same moral distinctions being made between the physical world and the world of pure ideas. Our natural human instincts must be resisted because they are part of this world, the world of material goods. Instead, we should cultivate our higher faculties of the mind; those faculties capable of understanding abstract ideas, as required by the use of allegory.
What that means, is that the scriptures are not transparent. We cannot just read scripture and immediately understand. Scripture is opaque. We have to search for the meaning that is hidden within the stories. The stories themselves are not as important as the truths they are trying to convey.
I cannot help but think, at this point, that Philo would agree with Black Elk’s words: “This they tell, and whether it actually happened so or not I do not know; but if you think about it, you can see that it is true.”
The Original Sin
Saint Augustine (354-430)
Our second primary text selection this week is by Augustine. Augustine was the bishop of Hippo, modern-day Annaba, Algeria.
He was the most influential Christian theologian until Saint Thomas Aquinas in the 13th century and had much to do with the formation of the doctrine of the Trinity. Augustine's theological contributions shaped the development of Western Christianity.
In his autobiography entitled, Confessions, he tells us of his first taste of sin:-
"Late one night--having prolonged our games in the streets until then, as our bad habit was--a group of young scoundrels, and I among them, went to shake and rob this tree. We carried off a huge load of pears, not to eat ourselves, but to dump out to the hogs, after barely tasting some of them ourselves. Doing this pleased us all the more because it was forbidden. Such was my heart, O God, such was my heart."
Augustine's Beliefs
For Augustine, this was not just an innocent prank. He later came to believe that his very nature was flawed. "It was foul, and I loved it. I loved my own error— not that for which I erred, but the error itself." From this incident, and based on his own experience, he concluded that all humans are naturally inclined to sin.
But that lesson took Augustine years to learn because, at the age of 17, he moved to Carthage to continue his education in rhetoric, and for more than ten years, he spent a lot of time drinking and carousing with his friends.
He became particularly close to one of the town prostitutes, who became pregnant and gave birth to his son, Adeodatus. During those years in Carthage, Augustine also became a Manichaean. Manichaeism was a radically dualistic religious cult that was popular at that time particularly among the ranks of the Roman army.
At 30 years old, Augustine was appointed professor of rhetoric and moved to Milan. His mistress (whose name is not known) and his son came with him, However, Augustine never married his mistress. Instead, he became engaged to an 11-year-old girl. But then he had to wait two years to legally marry her. In the meantime, he took up with another woman, while still caring for his mistress, which he admitted had more to do with his sexual lust for her. He writes in his Confessions:-
"I had entreated chastity of thee and had prayed, “Grant me chastity and continence, but not yet. ” For I was afraid lest thou shouldst hear me too soon, and too soon cure me of my disease of lust which I desired to have satisfied rather than extinguished."
Augustine eventually become friends with Bishop Ambrose of Milan, and at the age of 31, he converted to Christianity. He was baptized by Ambrose, along with his son, Adeodatus. Augustine's mistress returned to Carthage and joined a nunnery to deal with the sorrow of her unrequited love. But Augustine adored his son and took him into his care until the boy died. In 391 Augustine was ordained as a priest. Having been trained in rhetoric, he gained a wide reputation as a powerful preacher and In 395, he became the bishop of Hippo and made it his task to interpret the Bible.
Augustine and Adam's Sin
The title of our selection, taken from the 13th chapter of the City of God, gives us a good example of how Augustine understood scripture- "In This Book, It Is Taught That Death Is Penal, and Had Its Origin In Adam's sin."
Thus, for Augustine, death is punishment for Adam's sin. Now, since we all die sometime, we are all being punished for Adam's sin. Adam is the first man. So Adam's sin is the "original sin."
According to Augustine, Adam's original sin is passed down through many, many generations, literally through the act of intercourse. And of course, the first woman, Eve, was responsible for Adam's fall into sin. The woman was seduced by the serpent's wiles and then she seduced Adam and together they "ate of the forbidden fruit."
We all know what that "forbidden fruit" was. It is hard to avoid thinking that Augustine's own sexual guilt is responsible for his interpretation of the Genesis story.
And yet, the theory of the original sin became a major doctrine of Christianity. We are born into sin and it is by the grace of God that we are saved. The concept of original sin has been influential in shaping Christian views on human nature, salvation, and the role of the Church.
A Guide for the Perplexed - Moses Maimonides (1138–1204)
Maimonides' Life
Moses Maimonides is said to be the greatest Jewish philosopher of the medieval period.
He was born in Cordova, Spain. Spain had been under Muslim control since 788 and would last until almost the 16th century. However, the Almohads, a Moroccan Berber Muslim movement, invaded Cordova in 1148 and gave all non-Muslims the choice of converting to Islam, exile, or death, and Maimonides’ family eventually had to leave Cordova.
The family moved to Fez, Morocco, where they stayed for five years until the fear of being discovered caused the family to flee to Cairo, Egypt, which was more tolerant of Jews. Having been educated by his father, who was a learned man, Maimonides eventually learned medicine and became a physician to Sultan Saladin, the famous Islamic military general who conquered Jerusalem. Maimonides' expertise in medicine was highly sought after, and he became a respected figure in the medical field.
Interpreting Scriptures
In our selection, Maimonides is literally trying to show his readers how to read the scriptures.
And like Philo, Maimonides believed that scripture must not be read literally. He advocated for interpreting scripture in a way that is consistent with reason and philosophical principles.
It is typical for Maimonides to begin his essays with an analysis of the Hebrew terms.
In this selection, he analyzes the term “Elohim." Elohim is most often used in the Old Testament as another name for God. But Maimonides tells us that the word could also refer to "angels, judges, and the rulers of countries.” The significance of that information resides in how the word is used in context. For instance, Gen. 3:5, reads "and ye shall be like Elohim.” Should that be understood as “you shall be like God” or "you shall be like princes”? It makes a difference.
The point is that the Bible must be read very carefully.
Adam and Eve
Having made that clarification, Maimonides replies to a question concerning whether or not Adam was born with intelligence superior to animals. He responds that Adam was born with a capacity to reason, but was innocent of the distinction between good and evil.
Adam’s fall from innocence began when he first gave way to his passions and desires. By giving in to his sensual nature, he lost touch with his rational faculties. That is what is meant by the phrase: "God opened her eyes" (Gen. 21:19). For Maimonides, it meant that they now understood something they had not been aware of before. They now understood the difference between good and evil.
Physical Desire
Giving in to his physical desires, Adam desired more of what had been forbidden. But his unlimited desires could not be satisfied. By giving in to our physical desires we bring ourselves down to the level of animals. We scrounge around like animals to satisfy our animal desires.
That is what the story of Adam and Eve really means for Maimonides. It is not a literal reading of the story and it is not an easy reading of the story. It involves a careful analysis of terminology.
Benedictus Spinoza (1632-1677)
Treatise on Theology and Politics
We have just seen how Philo of Alexandria (1st cent) and Maimonides (12th cent) interpreted the Bible. Neither of them believed that the Bible should be read literally, but rather should be read as referencing or symbolizing deeper truths by means of allegory, analogy, or metaphor. Now we have Benedictus Spinoza in the 17th cent. adding his voice to the same notion.
Spinoza was born to Marrano parents. The "Marranos" were a group of Jews living in Spain and Portugal who were forced to convert to Christianity during the Inquisition. But secretly they continued to follow Jewish laws and customs. Eventually, Spinoza's family moved to Amsterdam, where there was a well- established Jewish community. Spinoza’s father, Michael, was a merchant and became a respected member of the community. His mother, died when Benedictus was five.
He received a typically Jewish education at the Talmud Torah school. But he left to run the family business. Through his business contacts, Spinoza made friends with free-thinking Protestants and Catholics, attending regular meetings with them to discuss philosophy and theology. It was in this rich caldron of ideas that Spinoza developed his philosophy; a philosophy that eventually led to his being ex-communicated from the Jewish community. Spinoza's philosophical ideas challenged traditional religious beliefs, leading to his ostracization from the Jewish community.
Our selection for this week is taken from the “Treatise on Theology and Politics,” chapter VII, “On the Interpretation of Scripture.” Right away, Spinoza tells us that judging from how people behave, most people don’t understand scripture. Or those that do think they understand scripture, interpret it to serve their own selfish interests. He agrees that most people think with their passions and emotions, rather than with reason. But he insists that reading scripture is a rational, not an emotional process.
Spinoza's Method of Reading Scripture
We must carefully analyze biblical stories, with an eye to-
the language that is used.
analyzing the contents of each book of the Bible and categorizing the different subjects that are treated.
Finally, we should attempt to know as much as possible about the history of the story, its context, the reason for its inclusion in the Bible, and something about the author of the book. This implies that God is not the direct author of the Bible and that humans had a hand in crafting it as well.
Spinoza illustrates these points by discussing two descriptions of God found in the words of Moses: “God is a fire,” (Deuteronomy 4:24) and “God is jealous” (Exodus 20:5, Deuteronomy 6:15)
God is called all sorts of things in the Bible, “midwife,” “shepherd,” “lover,” “quickening Spirit,” “bread of Life,” etc. Spinoza tells us that these descriptions of God should not be taken literally. God is not literally a fire because other Biblical passages tell us that “God has no likeness to any visible thing, whether in heaven or in the earth” (Exodus 20:4).
That would also apply to the idea that “God is jealous.” However, we need to be more careful, because Moses doesn’t tell us that God is without emotions. God is, after all, loving and caring. But a jealous God? Jealousy implies rivalry. But there is nothing that can rival God. So it doesn’t stand to reason that God could be jealous because there is nothing or no one to be envious or jealous of. This is according to Spinoza.
A God of Nature
Stoicism, Taoism, and Spinoza
We have already seen the similarities between stoic philosophy and Taoism. Both distinguish between what we can and cannot control. Finding that balance requires that we follow the way of nature. Both Stoicism and Taoism tell us that we must accept the ebb and flow of the forces in nature. Following nature’s way is the path to happiness. Both see God in nature.
Writing in the 17th century, Spinoza’s concept of God is very similar to the Stoic and Taoist views. God is everywhere and in everything. God is in nature and is inseparable from nature.
Writing in the 17th century, Spinoza was also seduced by science and mathematics. So he established his concept of God using geometry as a model, using a purely deductive format, in which all claims follow necessarily from a set of definitions and axioms.
Here is his thought process in establishing his proof of God: