determination

Abstract

Maimonides was the greatest Jewish philosopher and legal scholar of the medieval period, a towering figure who has had a profound and lasting influence on Jewish law, philosophy, and religious consciousness. This book provides a comprehensive and accessible introduction to his life and work, revealing how his philosophical sensibility and outlook informed his interpretation of Jewish tradition. Moshe Halbertal vividly describes Maimonides's childhood in Muslim Spain, his family's flight to North Africa to escape persecution, and their eventual resettling in Egypt. He draws on Maimonides's l. Cover; Title; Copyright; Dedication; CONTENTS; Introduction; Chapter One: Moses the Man; "Moses of his Generation"; Andalusia: 1138-1159 ; The Maghrib and Persecution: 1159-{u00AD}1166; Fustat: 1166-{u00AD}1177; Yemen and Islam: 1172; In the Sultan's Palace: 1178-{u00AD}1204; The Man Moses; Chapter Two: The Commentary on the Mishnah, the Book of Commandments, and the Philosophy of halakhah; In the Laboratory of the Commentary on the Mishnah; The Purpose of the Commentary on the Mishnah; Controversy, Truth, and Interpretation; The Book of Commandments and the Structure of halakhah; On the Place of Revelation. Revelation and InterpretationInterpretation in halakhah: Between Explanatory Principles and Deductive Principles; Halakhah and Prophecy; Chapter Three: Ethics and Belief in the Commentary on the Mishnah; Principles of Faith; What Is Man: Immortality of the Soul, and the Afterlife; Resurrection of the Dead; The Ethics of Virtue and the Ethics of Obligation; The Sage and the Pietist; Nobility and Saintliness; Chapter Four: What Is Mishneh Torah?; The Aims and Qualities of the Compilation; Mishneh Torah and the History of halakhah; The Mishnah of Rabbi Judah the Prince and Mishneh Torah. The Authority of the Talmud and the Authority of the GeonimMishneh Torah: The Moderate and Radical Alternatives; Mishneh Torah and Jewish Curriculum; Ambiguity and Codification; Codification and Self{u00AD}Esteem; Chapter Five: Philosophy and halakhah in Mishneh Torah; Love and Awe: Philosophy and Religious Experience; The Concept of the Divine: Eternal Universe and Creation ex Nihilo; Prophecy, Faith, and the Election of Israel; Halakhah, Magic, and Idolatry; Messianism, halakhah, and Nature; Chapter Six: Mishneh Torah and the Conceptual Understanding of halakhah. Reorganizing the halakhah: Form and Content"Laws Concerning Mourning" and the Organization of Mishneh Torah; Forging Concepts, Distinctions, and Generalizations; Mishneh Torah and Talmudic Sources; Three Functions of Aggadah in Mishneh Torah; Chapter Seven: The Guide of the Perplexed and Its Critique of Religious Language; Concealed and Revealed in the Guide of the Perplexed; Idolatry and Religious Language; "For You, Silence Is Praise"; The Skeptical Reading and the Mystical Reading; Chapter Eight: The Guide of the Perplexed: Will or Wisdom? The Creation of the World: The Conservative Reading and the Philosophical ReadingThe Doctrine of Prophecy; The Problem of Evil and the Purpose of Existence; Providence; The Reasons for the Commandments; The Commandments and the Philosopher's Spiritual Exercise; Conclusion; Four Readings; Three Common Elements; Maimonides' Teachings in Historical Perspective; Maimonides' Writings; Bibliography; Index.