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This Element explores the potential in Judaism to incite Jews to
engage in violence against non-Jews. The analysis proceeds in
historical fashion, with sections devoted to the Hebrew Bible,
rabbinic Judaism, medieval and early modern Judaism, and modern
Zionism. The last topic is given special attention because of its
relevance to the current Middle East conflict. This Element also
draws on insights from social psychology to explain Jewish violence
- particularly Social Identity Theory.
In Jews, Judaism, and Success, Robert Eisen attempts to solve a
long-standing mystery that has fascinated many: How did Jews become
such a remarkably successful minority in the modern western world?
Eisen argues that Jews achieved such success because they were
unusually well-prepared for it by their religion - in particular,
Rabbinic Judaism, or the Judaism of the rabbis. Rooted in the
Talmud, this form of Judaism instilled in Jews key values that
paved the way for success in modern western society: autonomy,
freedom of thought, worldliness, and education. The book carefully
analyses the evolution of these four values over the past two
thousand years in order to demonstrate that they had a longer and
richer history in Jewish culture than in western culture. The book
thus disputes the common assumption that Rabbinic Judaism was
always an obstacle to Jews becoming modern. It demonstrates that
while modern Jews rejected aspects of Rabbinic Judaism, they also
retained some of its values, and these values in particular led to
Jewish success. Written for a broad range of readers, Jews,
Judaism, and Success provides unique insights on the meaning of
success and how it is achieved in the modern world.
Religious violence has become one of the most pressing issues of
our time. Robert Eisen provides the first comprehensive analysis of
Jewish views on peace and violence by examining texts in five major
areas of Judaism - the Bible, rabbinic Judaism, medieval Jewish
philosophy, Kabbalah, and modern Zionism. He demonstrates that
throughout its history, Judaism has consistently exhibited
ambiguity regarding peace and violence.
To make his case, Eisen presents two distinct analyses of the texts
in each of the areas under consideration: one which argues that the
texts in question promote violence toward non-Jews, and another
which argues that the texts promote peace. His aim is to show that
both readings are valid and authentic interpretations of Judaism.
Eisen also explores why Judaism can be read both ways by examining
the interpretive techniques that support each reading.
The Peace and Violence of Judaism will be an essential resource not
only for students of Judaism, but for students of other religions.
Many religions exhibit ambiguity regarding peace and violence. This
study provides a model for analyzing this important
phenomenon.
Medieval Jewish philosophers have been studied extensively by
modern scholars, but even though their philosophical thinking was
often shaped by their interpretation of the Bible, relatively
little attention has been paid to them as biblical interpreters. In
this study, Robert Eisen breaks new ground by analyzing how six
medieval Jewish philosophers approached the Book of Job. These
thinkers covered are Saadiah Gaon, Moses Maimonides, Samuel ibn
Tibbon, Zerahiah Hen, Gersonides, and Simon ben Zemah Duran. Eisen
explores each philosopher's reading of Job on three levels: its
relationship to interpretations of Job by previous Jewish
philosophers, the way in which it grapples with the major
difficulties in the text, and its interaction with the author's
systematic philosophical thought. Eisen also examines the resonance
between the readings of Job of medieval Jewish philosophers and
those of modern biblical scholars. What emerges is a portrait of a
school of Joban interpretation that was creative, original, and at
times surprisingly radical. Eisen thus demonstrates that medieval
Jewish philosophers were serious exegetes whom scholars cannot
afford to ignore. By bringing a previously-overlooked aspect of
these thinkers' work to light, Eisen adds new depth to our
knowledge of both Jewish philosophy and biblical interpretation.
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