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 20th Century
Jewish
Religious
THought
Original essays on critical concepts,
movements, and beliefs
 20th Century
Jewish
Religious
THought
Original essays on critical concepts,
movements, and beliefs

Edited by

Authur A. Cohen
and
Paul Mendes-Flohr

~» ••
';.
v%~. JPS~ i\,~
~hlng Mind and S~
2009 • 5769
Philadelphia
JPS is a nonprofit educational association and the oldest and foremost publisher
of Judaica in English in North America. The mission of JPS is to enhance Jewish
culture by promoting the dissemination of religious and secular works, in the
United States and abroad, to all individuals and institutions interested in past and
contemporary Jewish life.

Formerly titled: Contemporary Jewish Religious Thought

Copyright © 1987 by Charles Scribner’s Sons

First JPS edition, 2009. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means,
electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage or
retrieval system, except for brief passages in connection with a critical review, without
permission in writing from the publisher:

The Jewish Publication Society

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ISBN: 978-0-8276-0892-4

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Contemporary Jewish religious thought.
20th century Jewish religious thought : original essays on critical concepts, movements,
and beliefs / edited by Authur A. Cohen and Paul Mendes—Flohr. —1st JPS ed.
p. cm.
Originally published: Contemporary Jewish religious thought. New York : Scribner,
1987.
ISBN 978-0-8276-0892-4 (alk. paper)
1. Judaism—Dictionaries. I. Cohen, Arthur Allen, 1928—II. Mendes—Flohr, Paul R. III.
Title. IV. Title: Twentieth century Jewish religious thought.
BM50.C64 2009
296.03—dc22
2008043405

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and fundraising purchases. Custom editions, including personalized covers, can be created
in larger quantities for special needs. For more information, please contact us at
[email protected] or at this address: 2100 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103.
Contents

Preface to the Paperback Edition xi

Introduction xiii

AESTHETICS Steven S. Schwarzschild 1

AGGADAH David Stern 7
ANTI-JUDAISM AND ANTI-SEMITISM Hyam Maccoby 13
APOCALYPSE Nahum N. Glatzer 19
ATHEISM Gershon Weiler 23
AUTHORITY Stephen Wald 29
BIBLE CRITICISM Moshe Weinfeld 35
CATASTROPHE Alan Mintz 41
CHARITY David Hartman and Tzvi Marx 47
CHOSEN PEOPLE Henri Atlan 55
CHRISTIANITY David Flusser 61
COMMANDMENTS Yeshayahu Leibowitz 67
COMMUNITY Everett Gendler 81
CONSCIENCE Steven S. Schwarzschild 87
CONSERVATIVE JUDAISM Gerson D. Cohen 91
vi CONTENTS

CONVERT AND CONVERSION Johanan Wijnhoven 101

COVENANT Arnold Eisen 107
CREATION Alon Goshen-Gottstein 113
CULTURE Paul Mendes-Flohr 119
DEATH Henry Abramovitch 131
DESTINY AND FATE Albert Friedlander 137
DOGMA Menachem Kellner 141
ECUMENISM Geoffrey Wigoder 147
EDUCATION Janet Aviad 155
EMANCIPATION Paula E. Hyman 165
ENLIGHTENMENT Robert Seltzer 171
EROS: SEX AND BODY David Biale 177
ESCHATOLOGY Arthur A. Cohen 183
ETERNITY AND TIME David Ellenson 189
ETHICS Shalom Rosenberg 195
EVIL Richard L. Rubenstein. 203
EXEGESIS Moshe Greenberg 211
EXILE Arnold Eisen 219
EXISTENCE Richard L. Rubenstein 227
FAITH Louis Jacobs 233
FAMILY David Biale 239
FEAR OF GOD Byron L. Sherwin 245
FEMINISM Susannah Heschel 255
FREEDOM Eugene Borowitz 261
FREE WILL David Winston 269
GESTURE AND SYMBOL Josef Stern 275
GNOSIS Gedaliahu Guy Stroumsa 285
GOD Louis Jacobs 291
GRACE OR LOVING-KINDNESS Ze'ev Harvey 299
GUILT Jacob Arlow 305
HALAKHAH David Hartman 309
I:iASIDISM Arthur Green 317
HEBREW Lewis Glinert 325
HELLENISM David Satran 331
HERESY Ze'ev Gries 339
HERMENEUTICS Michael Fishbane 353
HEROISM Yeshayahu Leibowitz 363
HISTORY Paul Mendes-Flohr 371
HOLINESS Allen Grossman 389
HOLOCAUST Emil Fackenheim 399
 CONTENTS vii

HOLY SPIRIT Aaron Singer 409

HOPE Charles Vernoff 417
HUMANISM Ernst Ahiva Simon 423
HUMILITY Bernard Steinberg 429
I AND THOU Maurice Friedman 435
IDOLATRY Yeshayahu Leibowitz 445
IMAGINATION Geoffrey Hartman 451
IMAGO DEI Joseph Dan 473
IMMORTALITY Alan Arkush 479
INDIVIDUALITY Peter Ochs 483
ISLAM Nissim Rejwan 487
JERUSALEM Shemaryahu Talmon 495
JUDAISM Gershom Scholem 505
JURISPRUDENCE Ze'ev W. Falh 509
JUSTICE Haim Cohen 515
KINGDOM OF GOD Warren Zev Harvey 521
KINGDOM OF PRIESTS Daniel Schwartz 527
LAND OF ISRAEL EHezer Schweid 535
LANGUAGE Josef Stern 543
LITURGY Eric Friedland 553
LOVE Steven Harvey 557
MEANING Jack Spiro 565
MEDIEVAL JEWISH PHILOSOPHY Jacob Agus 573
MEMORY David Roshies 581
MENTSCH Moshe Waldohs 587
MERCY David Blumenthal 589
MESSIANISM R. J. Zwi Werblowsky 597
METAPHYSICS Alan Udoff 603
MIDRASH David Stern 613
MIRACLE Alan Arkush 621
MIZVEH Moshe Waldohs 627
MODERN JEWISH PHILOSOPHY Steven S. Schwarzschild 629
MUSIC Moshe [del 635
MYSTICISM Moshe [del 643
MYTH Galit Hasan-Rokem 657
NATURAL LAW Jeffrey Macy 663
ORAL LAW Jacob Neusner 673
ORTHODOX JUDAISM Emmanuel Rackman 679
PEACE Aviezer Ravitzky 685
PEOPLE OF ISRAEL Alon Goshen-Gottstein 703
viii CONTENTS

POLITICAL THEORY Ella Belfer and Ilan Greilsammer 715

PRAYER Michael Fishbane 723
PROPHECY Peter Zaas 731
PROVIDENCE Hillel Levine 735
RABBI AND TEACHER David Ruderman 741
REASON Eugene Borowitz 749
RECONSTRUCTIONISM Harold Schulweis 755
REDEMPTION Arthur A. Cohen 761
REFORM JUDAISM Michael A. Meyer 767
RELIGION AND STATE Aharon Lichtenstein 773
REMNANT OF ISRAEL Nahum N. Glatzer 779
REPENTANCE Ehud Luz 785
REST Arthur Waskow 795
RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD Arthur A. Cohen 807
REVELATION Shalom Rosenberg 815
REWARD AND PUNISHMENT Ephraim Rottenberg 827
RIGHTEOUSNESS Joshua o. Haberman 833
SACRED TEXT AND CANON David Stern 841
SANCTIFICATION OF THE NAME Hyam Maccoby 849
SCIENCE Hillel Levine 855
SECULARISM Ben Halpern 863
SERMON Marc Saperstein 867
SILENCE Andre Neher 873
SIN Adin Steinsalz 881
SOUL Rachel Elior 887
SOUL SEARCHING Adin Steinsaltz· 897
SPIRITUALITY Arthur Green 903
STATE OF ISRAEL Michael Rosenak 909
STRANGER Joseph Levi 917
STUDY Aharon Lichtenstein 931
SUFFERING David Hartman 939
SURVIVAL Yossi Klein Halevi 947
TALMUD Adin Steinsalz 953
THEODICY Byron L. Sherwin 959
THEOLOGY Arthur A. Cohen 971
TIME William E. Kaufman 981
TOLERANCE Alan Udoff 987
TORAH James Kugel 995
TRADITION Natan Rotenstreich 1007
TRUTH Peter Ochs 1017
 CONTENTS ix

UNITY Charles Vernoff 1025

UTOPIA Lionel Kochan 1033
WOMAN Blu Greenberg 1039
WORK Abraham Shapira 1055
ZIONISM Ben Halpern 1069

Glossary 1077
List of Abbreviations 1097
List of Contributors 1101
Index 1117
Preface to the
Paperback Edition

Arthur A. Cohen died on the 31st of October 1986. Although severely

enfeebled by disease for nine months-a period coinciding with the last
stage of this volume's preparation-he diligendy saw the manuscript to press.
A former publisher and a master editor, he attended to every detail with
consummate care. A bound copy of the volume reached Arthur less than a
week before his death.
Graced with a prodigious capacity for friendship, Arthur regarded this
volume as principally an act of sharing-a sharing with the panicipants of
the volume (whom he deemed to be his colleagues in the deepest sense) and
in a special way, with me, his co-editor. With a gende enthusiasm he
introduced me to the joy and fantasy of publishing, of conceiving and
creating a volume of such enormous dimensions. The actual process, of
course, was often beset with tedious, vexing chores. Arthur taught me how to
acknowledge frustration, and to bound back with renewed commitment.
Through transcontinental post and occasional meetings-in New York City,
Jerusalem and at "Los Tres Almendro5," Arthur's summer retreat in Mallorca-
he shared with me his seasoned strategies of editing, illuminating the an of
xii PREFACE TO THE PAPERBACK EDITION

reading critically and helping an author recast his or her thoughts to achieve
conceptual precision without a sacrifice of elegance. Arthur was a sympathetic
editor who appreciated exuberance and rhetorical flourish, but he insisted ill
maintaining a rigorous distinction between homily and intellectual passion,
between sermon and theological reflection. He also insisted that we vigilantly
guard against the confusion-which he held to be the bane of contemporary
religiOUS discourse-of theological apologetics masquerading as theological
argument. A fastidious man of the most refined intellectual and artistic taste,
Arthur did not suffer fools lightly. But he was no intellectual snob; as in his
friendships, he did not relate to individuals and their work through the
prism of their credentials. He listened to each sympathetically, prepared to
delight in the discovery of new inSight and understanding. This volume
would thus be open to all who, regardless of rank and stature, had
"something to say." As an editor-and as a human being-I grew under
Arthur's affable tutelage.
Arthur also saw this book as sponsoring the type of intellectual sharing
that quickens genuine spiritual fellowship between thinking individuals. It
was Arthur's hope that by bringing Jews of diverse theological opinion
together in a forum of shared reflection, the volume would highlight that the
bonds that ultimately bind the Jews are drawn not only by the imperatives of
communal solidarity, but also a universe of discourse grounded in a shared
spiritual heritage and concern.
I thus regard this volume as Arthur's gift to me personally, and to all who
wish to affirm Judaism as a spiritually and intellectually engaging discourse.
May this volume serve to honor Anhur's blessed memory.

Erev .Rosh Ha-Shanah 5748

Jerusalem
Paul Mendes-Bohr
Introduction

Contemporary Jewish Religious Thought was conceived during the summer of

1982 while the editors, in defiance of the thunders of the north, strolled
through the charmed gardens of the American Colony Hotel in East Jeru-
salem. Our convivial but random conversation eventually focused upon the
subject of the alleged Jewish disinclination to engage in theology. We
quickly dismissed as both simplistic and rhetorical the frequently rehearsed
explanation that Jewish theological reticence is due to Christianity's histor-
ical preemption of "God talk". Nor did we regard as adequate the fre-
quently advanced explanation that Judaism is a religion preeminently
grounded in concrete religiOUS acts and thus has no need for the ostensibly
disembodied speculations associated with theological indulgence. What was
clear to both of us was that theology is the discipline Jews eschew while
nonetheless pursuing it with covert avidity. Virtually every concept that has
occupied a position of significance within the discourse of world religions
has its cognate or analogue in Jewish religious thought. Theologumena have,
however, preoccupied Jews. Not as extraneous intrusions, but as an indig-
enous endeavor to illuminate their own experience. Indeed, insofar as the
xiv INTRODUCTION

Jewish people was convoked by the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai, its
life thereafter was devoted with considerable passion and intelligence to the
issues raised by that holy convocation: Who is this God that calls us forth
to be his own and what is the character of life under his dominion?
In the process of assessing the implications of an evident situation of par-
adox-that Jews elaborate and refine religiOUS conceptions while disdaining
to call their enterprise theology-we determined to undertake an invita-
tional volume in which contemporary Jewish thinkers would be matched to
terms and ideas that have otherwise engaged their reflections. The result, it
was hoped, would fill a lacuna in the contemporary literature. Clearly,
although Judaism may not acknowledge a formal theological tradition, it
nonetheless possesses a rich and nuanced theological history. The model
that we set ourselves was that of the Stichworterbuch, or technical dictionary
based on a thematic scheme. As a more specific exemplum for the enter-
prise we examined A Handbook of Christian Theology, co-edited by Arthur
A. Cohen and Marvin Halverson in 1958, which brought together major
figures in Protestant theology and historical research (with the exception of
Cohen himself, who contributed the essays on Atheism and Judaism) to
consider the state of reflection on the principal conceptions in Protestant
theological discussion during the 1950s. Having determined that the design
of Contemporary Jewish Religious Thought would be that of the definition-
essay, we then identified the salient themes, concepts, and movements that
animate Jewish religious thought.
As we began to draw up the list of possible candidates to write the various
definition-essays, we were struck by the considerable number of individu-
als-rabbis, academics, and laypersons-currently engaged in a creative
and genuinely reflective manner in the enterprise of Jewish religious
thought, itself another indication that the time was ripe for the volume we
had in mind. It was hoped that not only an illuminating portrait of Jewish
religious thinking would emerge but that the project as well would stimulate
its further development.
In assigning the essays-guided solely by the criteria of proven compe-
tence and thoughtfulness with regard to the respective topic-we became
aware that contemporary interest in Jewish religiOUS thought embraces vir-
tually the full ideological spectrum of Jewish life: Orthodox, Conservative,
Reform, Reconstructionist; Zionist, non-Zionist; secular Jews as well as
Jews of religious senSibility who find it difficult to declare their denomina-
tional affiliation.
Contemporary Jewish ReligiOUS Thought does not reflect any ideological
bias or preference. Rather it represents the plurality of Jewish life and pro-
 INTRODUCTION xv

jects the healthy and balanced self-assurance that presently characterizes

Jewish thought. While none of the essays suffers from a self-enclosed
parochiality, they all avoid the propensity of classical as well as nineteenth-
and early-twentieth-century Jewish thought to assume an apologetic mode
of discourse that had the deleterious effect of encouraging non-Jews
(whether hostile or affectionate) to set the parameters, the terms of argu-
ment, and even the tone of Judaism's theological self-articulation.
As editors of this volume we have undertaken to facilitate the nonapolo-
getic character of its inquiry by deliberately excluding from the list of topics
such antinomic themes from the lexicon of Jewish apologetics as "law and
grace," "particularity and universalism," "justice and love." Such dialecti-
cal antinomies are precisely that, dialectical foils for the elaboration of
abstract stances and postures that neither illuminate the religiOUS thinking
of the Jews nor constitute an appropriate forum for ecumenical discourse.
They are the vocabulary of triunlphalist theologies-whether Jewish or non-
Jewish-the triumphalism of whatever order speaks out of an old tradition
of odium theologicum in which Jews have no share.
We are particularly delighted by the generous enthusiasm of the contrib-
utors whom we have invited to join with us. Very few invitees declined to
participate, and from those who pleaded the immensity of prior obligations
we received much encouragement in the pursuit of the enterprise. In assign-
ing the essays our instructions were minimal. We indicated the desired
word length and proposed the essay to be written neither as an ency-
clopedic discussion of the issue nor simply a rehearsal of the historical lit-
erature. What we sought rather was a historically-grounded reflection that
would offer a new crystallization of the issue, an adumbration of fresh spec-
ulative possibilities, a proposal of nuance and direction for future discus-
sion. The tone and emphasis were left to the judgment of the particular
author. Hence, the essays tend to vary in their attention to historical and
textual detail and in speculative thrust.
Nonetheless, despite the absence of methodological (and, as noted, ide-
ological) uniformity, a pattern of four distinctive vectors is shared by vir-
tually all the essays. With respect to those essays which consider the sem-
inal ideas of classical Judaism, each regards the Hebrew Bible as the
foundation of Jewish religious existence; each affirms talmudic-rabbinic
teachings as decisive in the shaping of the Jews' understanding of God's
word; each has recourse to the insights developed by the medieval philo-
sophic and mystical tradition, with the enduring significance of Maimon-
ides's magisterial contribution being particularly discernible; and finally,
most of the essays indicate a refined awareness of the collapse of the ide-
xvi INTRODUCTION

ational and institutional consensus that has marked the passage of Judaism
into modernity.
In recognition of this indisputably troubling situation, many of the
authors note that the consequent weakening, even abandonment, of clas-
sical Jewish religious norms and expressions can be reversed only if a new
hermeneutic and interpretative language is developed in order to accom-
modate both the historical sensibilities and epistemological criteria of con-
temporary Jews. Moreover, many of the essays conclude with a peroration
in reference to the devastating impact of the Holocaust on the structure and
meaning of Jewish religiOUS life. Many of these perorations stand as given
since their interpretations are both original and evocative of the contribu-
tors' viewpoints; however, a number of others were excised by the editors
since they were little more than a coda of personal despair and confusion.
Such references were more an index of psychological desperation-an
assertion that something had been wrought of such monumentality that it
must have devastating impact upon Jewish religious life; but, at the same
time, a confession that the writer had not yet mastered a method of assim-
ilating or interpreting that impact.
It is no less clear to the editors that the emergence of a new hermeneutic
and interpretative language is implicit in the essays of this volume. Such a
hermeneutic, as the essays abundantly testify, has but one common lan-
guage, namely Hebrew, and the shared literary sources of Jewish religious
memory and community. In the absence of such a language, the essays
implicitly propose, Jewish theology is vacuous, fruitless, and bound to
wither. A shared language and literature has both a diachronic and syn-
chronic dimension: diachroriically it provides continuity with the past and
synchronically it binds the disparate constituencies of Jewish life-both
geographiC and ideological-into a community of discourse out of which, if
not a new consensus of practice will emerge, at least surely a consensus of
focus and concern will become manifest. This commonality of enterprise is
surely underscored by the fact that contributors to this volume are drawn
from North America, Europe, and the State of Israel and that it has been
necessary to translate many of the essays from Hebrew, French, and Ger-
man into this prinCipal language of the diaspora, English.
It is surely not appropriate for us as editors to interpret the implications
of this volume, to provide an exegesis of its points of convergence and dis-
agreement. There are striking observations that emerge, surprising intellec-
tual immensities whose constant quotation and interpretation leave us with
a gratifying sense that even if no theological tradition has defined the Jewish
historical discourse, there are nonetheless Jewish thinkers whom every
 INTRODUCTION xvii

other contemporary researcher is obliged to consult. We have noted the

continuing power of Maimonides as the indisputable center of medieval
Jewish interpretation; to Maimonides may be added such twentieth-century
luminaries as Franz Rosenzweig and Rav Joseph D. Soloveitchik, to whom
many of the contributors refer as warrants of their own discussion.
It would appear then that a theological community is gathering, a dis-
course is underway, a conceptual reconstruction collectively engaged in by
all the ideological tendencies of Jewry is being pursued. Such a benefice to
Jewish life is palpable insofar as the editors share the profound conviction
that in the face of the freezing of ideological and political commitments on
the part of many Jews, the only meaningful option in the face of the immut-
able nature of halakhic orthodoxy and the dissent of other sectors of reli-
gious Jewry is that theological discourse and interpretation takes place in a
pluralistic, open society where ideas, values, imagination, and experience
are immensely fluid and protean. Contemporary Jewish Religious Thought is
not a group of separate and disconnected essays, but in itself constitutes a
theological document of major importance. We have in this volume nothing
less than an accurate record of Jewish theological reasoning in the latter
decades of the twentieth century, post Auschwitz mortuum, post Israel natus.

Editors' Notes: There are a number of specific observations on the appa-

ratus and machinery of this volume to which attention must be drawn.

Theological Gender Language

Many of our most attentive readers will undoubtedly be women intent upon
elaborating their own religious consciousnes? and sensibility. And yet in the
main, with few exceptions, the contributors to this volume have been-if
not consciously indifferent-for the most part unaware of the issue raised
by women's groups regarding the ongoing masculinization of Jewish theo-
logical language. We have made no particular effort to eliminate this usage,
accepting it rather as the stage of development to which we have come. We
are aware, as the essays of David Biale, David Ruderman, and Susannah
Heschel have shown, that there is a problem in Jewish tradition, but at the
same time unable to edit out the masculine identification of God and to
substitute for it some neutral or bisexual concoction. Neologism of such
order neither advances nor compliments feminine sensibility. It serves to
obscure the issue, which does not reside in the formal structure of language
but rather in its substance. We will always have to refer to God as being a
"something of sex," since English has no neuter form and is not quite cer-
xviii INTRODUCTION

tain what advantage would be wrought by making God sexless. Nor is it

easy to replace in every context "human" and "humankind" for "man"
and "mankind". Where possible-when the term "man" was overused-
editorial good sense has driven us toward moderation but not to elimina-
tion. All that we can assure our readers of is the good sense and conviction
of the editors that God is above and beyond sexual differentiation but that
the conventions of language are not.

Bibliography

The bibliography that follows each essay is intended to point the reader
toward the appropriate literature for further inquiry. It is in no way imag-
ined that the three to five bibliographic citations usually given can possibly
exhaust the literature. We nonetheless regarded these bibliographies-cho-
sen with great care by the authors of the respective essays-however brief,
to be both apposite and helpful.

Glossary and Abbreviations

The schedule of abbreviations has been adapted from that provided by The
Encyclopaedia]udaica and our acknowledgment and thanks are extended to
its publishers, Keter Publishing Company of Jerusalem. Moreover, we have
adapted the system of general transliteration of Hebrew endorsed by The
Encyclopaedia ]udaica. In developing our glossary, we have been guided by
the wish to supply basic information to the reader with respect to terms,
authors, historical movements and events which appear at least twice in the
essays that make up the volume. Where it is sufficient to identify a person
or book by a relevant date, we have done so parenthetically, but in many
cases rather than break the flow of the essay we have relegated the required
information to a glossary. The glossary has been prepared by Edward Han-
ker, and the editors are deeply grateful for his enterprise and care.

Acknowledgments

The editors wish to thank Professor David Stern for his avid brainstorming
in connection with the development of the thematics and prospective con-
tributors to the volume. We also wish to express special gratitude to Dr.
 INTRODUCTION xix

Ze' ev Gries for his patient and unfailing assistance in matters of arcane and
scholarly detail. Mr. Hayim Goldgraber has also been of inestimable help,
and of great moral support. It is amazing how the mind passes over the
obvious but is scrupulous about detail. It wasn't until the volume was nearly
complete that the editors realized that they had omitted the idea of Rest
(Shabbat) from consideration. Our gaffes would have been even more disas-
trous had not we had the patient cooperation of David Stern and many oth-
ers who offered their proposals and reflections as the volume was
developing.
We wish to acknowledge with gratitude the follo·wing translators who
have rendered various essays into English: Carol Bosworth-Kutscher, Jeffrey
M. Green, Deborah Grenimann, David Maisel, Arnold Schwartz, Jonathan
Shipman, and Michael Swirsky.
We are also grateful to Mrs. Fania Scholem for allOWing us to publish an
edited text of the late Professor Gershom Scholem's discussion of Judaism
which is culled from the transcript of his remarks at the Center for the Study
of Democratic Institutions (Santa Barbara) in 1974. Our acknowledgment
and thanks to the Center without whose permission the text could not
appear.
Dr. Michael Rosenak wishes to express his thanks to the Oxford Centre
for Post-Graduate Hebrew Studies for the hospitality and library services
extended him during August, 1983, which enabled him to write his paper
for this volume.
We also wish to express our thanks to Elizabeth Elston, Stephen Wein-
stein, and Laura Gross for their enthusiastic work on Contemporary Jewish
Religious Thought.
One is always grateful to one's family for tolerating the excesses that arise
with the making of books. To our various families and friends, to Rita
Mendes-Flohr as well as Inbal and Itamar, to Elaine Lustig Cohen and to
Tamar Judith, who stood to one side while the preoccupying detail of this
volume was pursued, we are thankful.

ARTHUR A. COHEN and PAUL MENDES-FLOHR

Aesthetics

Steven S. Schwarzschild

A
t first consideration the notion of Jewish aesthetics seems
ludicrous. If something is beautiful, what does its putative
Jewishness have to do with its beauty? Furthermore, what
would make an art object Jewish: its so-called subject matter? But, if that is
the case, what about a menorah made by a gentile craftsman? Or the reli-
gion of the artist? If so, what about a crucifixion scene painted by a Jew?
Finally, it has been noted that, however creative Jews have been in such
fields as religion, law, literature, science, and economics, until recent
times-that is, until large numbers of Jews, and with them their artistic
traditions, were assimilated into non-Jewish cultures-no Jewish art was
produced, nor were there Jewish artists of any great significance. There can
thus be no surprise that there has never been any body of Jewish literature
on art or aesthetics. How then Jewish aesthetics-that is, a Jewish theory
of art?
Nevertheless, the public and private collection of Jewish art began in the
second half of the last century and has been rapidly increasing since then.
A body of literature, though limited and almost invariably of a historical
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