Download The Philosophy of Maimonides

CHAPTER 32
The Philosophy of Maimonides
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
THINGS TO DO
Moses Maimonides was the greatest philosopher of
the Middle Ages. In his Guide for the Perplexed, he
presented a defence of Judaism based on Aristotelian
principles. A central issue discussed in the Guide is the
question whether the anthropomorphic descriptions of
God in Scripture should be understood literally.
According to Maimonides, this would be an error. In
his view, such depictions are meant to be understood
figuratively. Otherwise, one would incorrectly conclude that God is a corporeal being. Was Maimonides
correct? Does Scripture teach that God is incorporeal?
In this connection, Maimonides – like Abraham ibn
Daud – stressed that no positive attributes can be
predicated of God since the Divine is an absolute unity.
Do you agree? Or do you think there no contradiction
in believing that God is one and that he has a number
of positive attributes? Was Maimonides right in
believing that negative attributes are permissible?
As we have seen, Maimonides maintained that the
prophets of Israel were philosophers. This applies to
Moses as well as the pre-exilic and post-exilic prophets.
Is such a view plausible? Or, was Maimonides reading
into the text a conception of prophecy which is foreign
to the Bible? Is the notion of the Active Intellect
superimposed on the text? Turning to the problem of
evil, are you persuaded that evil should be perceived as
privation of good. Or, is evil a reality which calls into
question God’s goodness? Regarding the concept of
divine providence, what do you make of Maimonides’
argument that God is more concerned with those of a
high intellect than He is with ordinary human beings?
Finally, what do you make of Maimonides’ list of the
central principles of Judaism in his commentary on
the Mishnah. Not all medieval Jewish philosophers
agreed with Maimonides. Instead, they formulated
their own list. What do you think?
• Go to Google. Type in Maimonides. You will find
a great deal of information, and you will have to
isolate what is useful, such as <www.newadvent.
org/cathern/0954obhtm>.
• Stay in Google. Click on images. Have a look at
illustrations of Moses Maimonides.
• Go to Amazon.com. Search for books dealing with
Maimonides.
• Write a short outline of Maimonides’ life,
indicating his major works and the issues discussed.
TIPS FOR TEACHERS
• Stage a debate between Maimonideans and antiMaimonideans. The defenders of Maimonides
should attempt to illustrate the validity of his
arguments; the other side should refute his claims.
• Make a powerpoint presentation based on
Maimonides’ life and works. Go to Google for
information.
• Divide the class into small groups. Read passages
from the Book of Amos about the life and teaching
of the prophet. Ask the class to assess Maimonides’
claim that the prophets were philosophers.
• Outline Maimonides’ principles of the Jewish faith.
Ask the students to list the ways in which these
principles differ from beliefs in Christianity and
Islam.