Book contents
- The Cambridge Companion to JEWISH THEOLOGY
- cambridge companions to religion
- the cambridge companion to JEWISH THEOLOGY
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Notes on Contributors
- Acknowledgements
- 1 Introduction
- 2 What is Jewish Theology?
- Part I Biblical-Rabbinic
- Part II Medieval
- Part III Modern
- Part IV Contemporary Issues
- Part V Analytic Philosophy and Theology
- 16 Can There Be a Positive Theology?
- 17 Theological Realism and its Alternatives in Contemporary Jewish Theology
- 18 A Defense of Verbal Revelation
- 19 A Constructive Jewish Theology of God and Perfect Goodness
- Index
- Other Titles in the Series (continued from page ii)
- References
16 - Can There Be a Positive Theology?
from Part V - Analytic Philosophy and Theology
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 03 December 2020
Edited by
Book contents
- The Cambridge Companion to JEWISH THEOLOGY
- cambridge companions to religion
- the cambridge companion to JEWISH THEOLOGY
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Notes on Contributors
- Acknowledgements
- 1 Introduction
- 2 What is Jewish Theology?
- Part I Biblical-Rabbinic
- Part II Medieval
- Part III Modern
- Part IV Contemporary Issues
- Part V Analytic Philosophy and Theology
- 16 Can There Be a Positive Theology?
- 17 Theological Realism and its Alternatives in Contemporary Jewish Theology
- 18 A Defense of Verbal Revelation
- 19 A Constructive Jewish Theology of God and Perfect Goodness
- Index
- Other Titles in the Series (continued from page ii)
- References
Summary
This paper considers the question of whether it is possible to say anything positive about God. The usual reason for answering yes is that God must be a person to be a perfect being. I investigate this claim by defining personhood in terms of knowledge and will. After looking at the theologies of Maimonides, Kant, and Cohen, I conclude that while we can say positive things about God, we must sacrifice a certain amount of conceptual rigor to do so.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Cambridge Companion to Jewish Theology , pp. 375 - 391Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2020
References
Selected Further Reading
Cohen, Hermann. Religion of Reason out of the Sources of Judaism. Translated by Simon Kapan. New York: Frederick Ungar, 1972.Google Scholar
Gershon, Levi. Wars of the Lord, Vol. 2, Book 3. Translated by Seymour Feldman. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 1987.Google Scholar
Kant, Immanuel. Lectures on Philosophical Theology. Translated by Allen W. Wood and Gertrude M. Clark. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1978.Google Scholar
Maimonides, Moses. The Guide of the Perplexed. Translated by Shlomo Pines. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1963.Google Scholar
Putnam, Hilary. “On Negative Theology.” Faith and Philosophy 14 (1997): 407–13.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Spinoza, Benedict. Ethics. Translated by Edwin Curley. London: Penguin Classics, 2005.Google Scholar
Wolfson, Harry A. “Crescas on Divine Attributes.” Jewish Quarterly Review 8 (1916): 12–13.Google Scholar