Rabbis, Rebels and Reformers: Readings in Jewish Philosophy

(4 Credits)

What has Athens to do with Jerusalem? How has Jewish tradition been enriched and transformed by its creative engagement with philosophy? This course is an intensive introduction to the classics of Jewish philosophy from its origins in the Bible and Greek antiquity through its creative integration of medieval Arab philosophy, culminating with the Jewish philosophers of modernity, from Europe to the United States. We grapple with how these thinkers forged a synthesis between reason and religion and creatively integrated Jewish and non-Jewish sources of wisdom. We will pay close attention to how Jewish thinkers continually reimagine their ancestral tradition in light of the burning questions and ideas of each generation.