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Transcript
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.