The Cambridge Companion to Maimonides (Cambridge Companions to Philosophy)

Moses ben Maimon, known to English speaking audiences as Maimonides (1138-1204), represents the high point of Jewish rationalism in the middle ages and played a pivotal role in the transition of philosophical interest from the Islamic East to the Christian West. His greatest philosophical work, The Guide of the Perplexed had a decisive impact on all subsequent Jewish thought and is still the subject of intense scholarly debate. The twelve essays in this volume by recognized scholars offer a comprehensive interpretation of his life and thought. "Moses ben Maimon, known to English-speaking audiences as Maimonides (1138-1204), represents the high point of Jewish rationalism in the Middle Ages and played a pivotal role in the transition of philosophy from the Islamic East to the Christian West. His greatest philosophical work, the Guide of the Perplexed, had a decisive impact on all subsequent Jewish thought and is still the subject of intense scholarly debate. An enigmatic figure in his own time, Maimonides continues to defy simple attempts at classification. The twelve essays in this volume, all by leaders in their respective fields, offer a lucid and comprehensive treatment of his life and thought. They cover the sources on which Maimonides drew, his contributions to philosophy, theology, jurisprudence, and Bible commentary, as well as his esoteric writing style and influence on later thinkers."--Jacket Introduction / Kenneth Seeskin -- Moses Maimonides : An Intellectual Portrait / Joel L. Kraemer -- The Guide And Maimonides' Philosophical Sources / Alfred L. Ivry -- Metaphysics And Its Transcendence / Kenneth Seeskin -- Maimonides' Epistemology / Josef Stern -- Maimonides' Philosophy Of Science / Gad Freudenthal -- Maimonides' Moral Theory / David Shatz -- Maimonides' Political Philosophy / Haim Kreisel -- Jurisprudence / David Novak -- Bible Commentary / Sara Klein-braslavy -- Spiritual Life / Menachem Kellner -- Maimonides : Esotericism And Educational Philosophy / Aviezer Ravitzky -- Maimonides : A Guide For Posterity / Seymour Feldman. Edited By Kenneth Seeskin. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 361-389) And Index. Moses Maimonides : an intellectual portrait / Joel L. Kraemer The guide and Maimonides' philosophical sources / Alfred L. Ivry Metaphysics and its transcendence / Kenneth Seeskin Maimonides' epistemology / Josef Stern Maimonides' philosophy of sciences / Gad Freudenthal Maimonides' moral theory / David Shatz Maimonides' political philosophy / Haim Kreisel Jurisprudence / David Novak Bible commentary / Sara Klein-Braslavy Spiritual life / Menachem Kellner Maimonides : esotericism and educational philosophy / Aviezer Ravitzky Maimonides : a guide for posterity / Seymour Feldman. The 12 essays in this text, all be leaders in their respective fields, offer a lucid and comprehensive treatment of the life and thought of Moses ben Maimon, known to English speaking audiences as Maimonides (1138-1204)