Tag Archives: Moses Mendelssohn

Gloomy Gus Mendelssohn

Posted on July 25, 2016 by N.S. Palmer

My latest blog post for The Jerusalem Post: Do we survive bodily death? There are reasons to think so, but nothing that qualifies as proof. Perhaps the most sensible attitude (because it’s mine) is that if we do survive death, … Continue reading →

Posted in Jewish Philosophy, Judaism, Philosophy, The Jerusalem Post | Tagged Death, Immortality, Kant, Lavater, Moses Mendelssohn, Soul | 2 Comments

Torah Parallels Are No Problem

Posted on May 17, 2016 by N.S. Palmer

My latest blog post for The Jerusalem Post: Were the Jews the first people to think of monotheism? And would it matter if we weren’t? Such questions tend to worry Biblical scholars when they start comparing our Torah with other … Continue reading →

Posted in Bible, Jewish Philosophy, Judaism, Modern Orthodoxy, The Jerusalem Post | Tagged Atrahasis, Biblical Parallels, Blanshard, Gilgamesh, Maimonides, Moses Mendelssohn, Prophecy, Revelation, Saadia, Saadya, Spinoza, Torah | 1 Comment

Knowing What Time It Is

Posted on February 21, 2016 by N.S. Palmer

My latest blog post for The Jerusalem Post: Do you know what time it is? If I asked you that question, there are two logical answers and many non-logical answers. If you know what time it is, then the logical … Continue reading →

Posted in Epistemology, Jewish Philosophy, Judaism, Philosophy, The Jerusalem Post | Tagged Belief, Enlightenment philosophy, Epistemology, Ethics of Belief, Halacha, Jewish Philosophy, Moses Mendelssohn, Sociology of Belief, speech acts, Theory of meaning, Theory of truth | Leave a comment

Will Judaism Disintegrate?

Posted on February 14, 2016 by N.S. Palmer

My new blog post for The Jerusalem Post: A popular California rabbi’s forecast seems gloomy until you think about it. Then you realize it’s absolutely catastrophic. He says that Judaism is: “… a platform [that] rests on a mountain of dynamite. … Continue reading →

Posted in Bible, Jewish Philosophy, Judaism, Modern Orthodoxy, The Jerusalem Post | Tagged Authority, Autonomy, Eliyahu Fink, Fink or Swim, Halacha, Hedonism, Jewish tradition, Maimonides, Millennials, Modern Orthodoxy, Moses Mendelssohn, Nihilism, Open Orthodoxy, Saadia Gaon, Spinoza, Zeitgeist | 22 Comments

Belief, Backward and Forward

Posted on January 2, 2016 by N.S. Palmer

My latest blog post for The Jerusalem Post: Judah Halevi was a poet. Saadia Gaon and Moses Maimonides were philosophers. On the surface, their approaches to religious belief seem almost completely different. But at a high level, they agreed almost completely … Continue reading →

Posted in Bible, Epistemology, Jewish Philosophy, Judaism, The Jerusalem Post | Tagged Ethics of Belief, Halevi, Kuzari, Maimonides, Moses Mendelssohn, Saadia | 2 Comments

Mendelssohn and Missionaries

Posted on July 15, 2015 by N.S. Palmer

By N.S. Palmer How should we as Jews respond to Christian missionaries? Many Jews see Christian evangelism as a threat. Even though staunch Christians are our strongest defenders, their motives are obvious. They believe that the return of Jews to … Continue reading →

Posted in Christianity, Jewish Philosophy, Judaism | Tagged Christianity, Dying God Myth, Essenes, Hercules Oetaeus, Jewish Faith, Jewish Philosophy, Marcion of Sinope, Missionaries, Moses Mendelssohn, Seneca the Younger | 3 Comments

Is the Messiah Coming?

Posted on July 13, 2015 by N.S. Palmer

By N.S. Palmer Is the Jewish Messiah coming? Yes. But it’s complicated. Belief in a Messiah is central to the Jewish tradition. Maimonides listed it as a key principle of Judaism: “I believe with perfect faith in the coming of … Continue reading →

Posted in Jewish Philosophy, Judaism, Modern Orthodoxy | Tagged Aryeh Kaplan, Jewish Faith, Jewish Philosophy, Joseph Telushkin, Judaism, Maimonides, Messiah, Messianic Age, Moses Mendelssohn, Moshiach, Spinoza | Leave a comment

Is Jewish Philosophy Bad for the Jews?

Posted on July 10, 2015 by N.S. Palmer

By N. S. Palmer Is Jewish philosophy bad for the Jews? I think it has to do with apple pie. Whatever it has to do with, it’s not an idle question. Moses Mendelssohn, the 18th-century philosopher who led the Jewish … Continue reading →