Known most widely for his role in the civil rights and peace movements of the 1960s, Abraham Joshua Heschel made major scholarly contributions to the fields of biblical studies, rabbinics, medieval Jewish philosophy, Hasidism, and mysticism. Yet, his most ambitious scholarly achievement, his three-volume study of Rabbinic Judaism, is only now appearing in English. Heschel's great insight is that the world of rabbinic thought can be divided into two types or schools, those of Rabbi Akiva and Rabbi Ishmael, and that the historic disputes between the two are based on fundamental differences over the nature of revelation and religion. Furthermore, this disagreement constitutes a basic and necessary ongoing polarity within Judaism between immanence and transcendence, mysticism and rationalism, neo-Platonism and Aristotelianism. Heschel then goes on to show how these two fundamental theologies of revelation may be used to interpret a great number of topics central to Judaism.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 5.0 / 5.0
Heavenly:
I stumbled across Heschel a few years ago, and I'm so glad that I did. As a Gentile, I cannot express enough the importance of Heschel for people of any faith. He shows the depth and beauty of Judaism and of the human spirit. Every book I have read by Heschel has moved me to tears, and this book is no exception. Heavenly Torah is very long, and at times repetitive, but it is packed with profound insights. Heschel compared two 2nd century schools of thought, the school of Rabbi Akiva and the school of... more info
it's heavenly!:
Excellent. Comprehensive. A wealth of information distilled through a knowledgeable perspective. Thoroughly documented for those of us who want citations.
An important Sefer:
This work is the translation of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel's classical work of Biblical exegesis. It is ably translated from the Hebrew by Gordon Tucker and Leonard Levin. Each section of the work contains a translator's introduction,and there is an overall introduction to the volume by Heschel's daughter Susannah Heschel.Among the subjects debated by Rabbi Akiva and Rabbi Ishmael in the work are miracles, beholding the face of God, the Torah that is Heaven, Moses Ascent to Heaven, The Descent of the... more info
One of the best books of Jewish theology:
I'm very suprised with the amazing knowledge of Joshua Heschel, and glad to had invested on a very responsible work on Jewish theology.
It's very very recommended.
