Every Person's Guide to Jewish Philosophy and Philosophers

Download or read book Every Person's Guide to Jewish Philosophy and Philosophers written by Ronald H. Isaacs and published by Jason Aronson. This book was released on 1999 with total page 310 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: REL This new volume in Rabbi Ronald H. Isaacs's 'Every Person's Guide to...' series is precisely what the title claims it to be. It describes not philosophy in its narrow meaning but the general principles of Jewish religion as well as some philosophical issues expressed in the religious writings or derived from the theological doctrines. Notable for its inclusiveness, this work starts from biblical philosophical or para-philosophical ideas and continues in chronological order to explicate the main views of Jewish theologian-philosophers through the ages, right up to Emil Fackenheim. At the end, the basic premises of different branches of Judaism are described, with the notable absence of secular Judaism, political philosophy, and the different factions of Zionism. Several philosophers have been excluded, e.g., Emanuel Levinas and Yehuda Alkalai, though some of the omitted philosophers are included in the 'Glossary of Philosophic Terms.' The book lacks scholarly apparatus, but it can serve as a guide for beginners studying Jewish philosophy and for undergraduates both as an introductory and reference work. Hayim Y. Sheynin, Gratz Coll. Lib., Melrose Park, PA-