• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content

Books of Louis Jacobs

Registered UK Charity No 1139099

t. +44 (0)7714 894 781
e. Click here to email us directly

  • Home
  • Louis Jacobs
    • Annual Memorial Lectures
    • Bibliography
  • Catalogue
    • Autobiography
    • Chain of Tradition – Anthologies
    • Hasidism and Mysticism
    • Judaism
    • Prayer
    • Reference
    • Selections/Bibliography Related & Translated Books
    • Talmud
    • Theology
  • Writings
    • Articles
    • Academic Reviews
    • Reviews written by Louis Jacobs
    • Encyclopedia entries
    • ‘Ask the Rabbi’
    • Sermons / Divrei Torah
  • Media
    • Audio Tapes
    • Continuing the Quest
    • Teachings
  • Membership Levels
  • Contact
  • Member Login
  • Your Membership Account
You are here: Home / Books / Jewish ethics, philosophy and mysticism

Jewish ethics, philosophy and mysticism

Click here to see Contents

Introduction

JEWISH ETHICS

  1. On gratitude (Bal;iya ibn Pakuda)
    Must one be grateful if a benefactor acts out of self-interest?
  2. On right and wrong (Maimonides)
    Which is better: never to want to do wrong or to exercise self-control?
  3. How the good Jew should behave (Maimonides)
    How may one develop a well-balanced character?
  4. On humility (Nal;imanides)
    What is the root of all the other virtues?
  5. On charity (Judah He-ljasid)
    What are some of the limits to giving charity?
  6. On speaking evil (Jonah Gerondi)
    How may we know when our talk about others is sinful?
  7. On truth and falsehood (Menorat Ha-Maor)
    What is the boundary between white lies and ordinary lies?
  8. On hatred, revenge and pride (Mesi/lat Yesharim)
    What is proper and improper love of self?
  9. On saintliness (Mesi/lat Yesharim)
    What should we do if we want to be more than simply good?
  10. A letter on ethical conduct (Jjokhmah U-Musar)
    When do ethical ideas become truly effective?JEWISH PHILOSOPHY
  11. On doubt and certainty (5aadiah Gaon)
    What causes men to hold false beliefs?
  12. On creation (Bal;iya ibn Pakuda)
    How can we prove that the world was created?
  13. On suffering in the world (Kuzari)
    Why does God allow suffering in His creation?
  14. The world to come (Maimonides)
    How may we describe the life of the world to come?
  15. On praising God (Maimonides)
    What are the limits of what we may meaningfully say about God?
  16. Is man free? (Part I) – (Maimonides)
    Does God wish man to have free will?
  17. Is man free? (Part 11) – (Gerson ides)
    What possibilities of freedom are open to man?
  18. Is man free? (Part Ill) – (Crescas)
    What are the differences between the will to believe and the compulsion to believe?
  19. Belief in the impossible (Joseph Alba)
    Can one believe the impossible?JEWISH MYSTICISM
  20. Elijah’s mystical prayer (Tikkune Zahar)
    How does the infinite God re/ate to the finite world?
  21. The soul of the Torah (Zahar) 121
    What is the Torah truly trying to teach?
  22. God is unchanging (Moses Cordovero)
    If God is perfect why should He act?
  23. God’s withdrawal (/-jayyim Vital)
    How did God create the universe?
  24. God’s glory in the synagogue (Elijah de Vidas)
    What gives the synagogue its special sanctity?
  25. On good deeds (Eliezer Azikri)
    What must one do to carry out a mitzvah properly?
  26. The highest form of worship (Isaiah Horowitz)
    How should a man serve God?
  27. Dialogue on the Kabbalah (Shomer Emunim)
    ls the tradition of Jewish mysticism authentic?
  28. The meaning of the Shema (Alexander Susskind)
    What should man be thinking while reciting the Shema?
  29. On prayer (Sefer Baal Shem Tov)
    What is important in prayer?
  30. On evolution (Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook)
    What is the relation of evolution in nature to the orders of the world of spirit?

Glossary, 170

chain of tradition series ii

In this series

The Chain of Tradition Series Volume I: Jewish Law
A Teacher’s Book for Jewish Law

The Chain of Tradition Series Volume II: Jewish ethics, philosophy and mysticism
A Teacher’s Book for Jewish ethics, philosophy and mysticism

The Chain of Tradition Series Volume III: Jewish Thought Today

The Chain of Tradition Series Volume IV: Jewish Biblical Exegesis

The Chain of Tradition Series Volume V: Hasidic Thought

 

First published 1969

THIS BOOK is divided into three parts: 1) Jewish Ethics, 2) Jewish Philosophy, 3) Jewish Mysticism.
Most of the thinkers represented here belong to the Middle Ages, which in Jewish history must be considered as going to the nineteenth century. Even those who lived at a later period in Jewish history be­long in thought to the Middle Ages. The views of modern thinkers are nol recorded in these pages, not because they are unimportant but because the book is chiefly concerned with presenling a picture of the older tradition. However, where views are expressed which have parallels in more modern writings the latter are generally re­ferred to in the Comments.

The section on Jewish Ethics, dealing as it does with the patterns of human conduct, is not at all hard to follow. Jewish law sought to create a pattern of living for the Jew. The detailed rules and regula­tions found in the sources of Jewish law provide a kind of minimum standard for Jewish conduct. But each Jew is expected to rise above the bare minimum and this is where ethics comes in.

The differences between law and ethics in this connection can be briefly stated: 1) Law, as we have just noted, is concerned with mini­mum standards. Ethics demands something more. For instance, the law forbids the destruction of another’s property. Ethics demands that in one’s conduct nothing is done which, even indirectly and even in cases not covered by the law, can cause unhappiness and distress to others; 2) Law provides rules for all Jews. Ethics is more individual­istic, encouraging each person to realize the best of which he is capable. For instance, the law demands that every Jew must give char­ity but leaves the amount given to the individual. Ethics demands that each individual should be as generous as his circumstances allow; 3) In law the emphasis is on action. Certain deeds are good, others bad. Ethics, though also concerned with action, tends to place the emphasis on the formation of character. For instance, the law com­mands men to be generous to one another and not to steal from one another. Ethics seeks to promote the kind of character which has no desire to steal and which automatically responds to cries of help without being ordered so to do; 4) Jewish law is deeply rooted in Jewish history and experience and is addressed primarily, though not exclusively, to Jews. Ethics is more universal. It speaks to the human being with human needs, hopes and strivings so that its appeal is to all men. For instance, one can find laws which have reference only to Jewish life e.g. Sabbath observance (which has little meaning for non-Jews except insofar as it reminds humanity of the need for periodic rest and relaxation). But ethical demands such as that men should love truth and pursue justice, awaken an echo in the soul of every man and are, indeed, for the guidance of all men.

The sections on Jewish Philosophy and Mysticism are more difficult both because of the more abstract nature of the subjects discussed and because of the technical language used. An effort has been made to avoid the use of too many technical terms in the translation and where these were unavoidable they have been explained fully in the comments.

Both Jewish law and ethics require a ground or foundation upon which to build. They need a driving force, to vary the metaphor. In order for law to promote the good deed and ethics the good charac­ter they must be inspired by a sound philosophy of life. Show me a man’s philosophy, said Chesterton, and I’ll show you the man. Hence the significance of Jewish philosophy as providing the inspiration for the good life by considering such ultimate questions as: what is life’s purpose? why should man be good? what should be man’s relation­ship to God and to his fellow-men? Jewish mysticism is, from this point of view, a branch of Jewish philosophy but with a greater em­phasis on individual experience and a more direct awareness of the divine. The mystic seeks to experience in his personal life those ideas about which the philosopher speaks.

Hard copies of this book can be obtained from Behrman House.

 


Preview Book
Membership Options
Become a member and get free access to all the content on this website. Find out more and sign up >

Submit your review
1
2
3
4
5
Submit
     
Cancel

Create your own review

A Teacher's Book for Jewish ethics, philosophy and mysticism
Average rating:  
 0 reviews
©2023 Books of Louis Jacobs
Privacy Policy & Cookies