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25 - Gentiles in rabbinic thought

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 March 2008

David Novak
Affiliation:
Department of Philosophy, Centre for the Study of Religion, University of Toronto
Steven T. Katz
Affiliation:
Boston University
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Summary

GENTILES IN THE BIBLE

Since the Rabbis saw themselves as continuing and developing biblical religion, one cannot simply introduce their thought on any topic without seeing how it continued and developed biblical notions pertaining to that topic. This is especially so when looking at rabbinic thought concerning Gentiles. With the probable exception of some of the so-called “Wisdom Literature” (most notably Proverbs, Job, and Ecclesiastes), the Bible can be seen as one long discussion of what differentiates Israel from all the other peoples of the world. That difference is based on the unique covenant into which Israel has been elected by the Lord God, creator of the universe, something no other people can claim for itself.

Were this the whole biblical view of Israel and the peoples of the world, then one would find a totally monolithic biblical conception of the Gentiles: Israel has a perpetual (even if always problematic) relationship with the one true God; the Gentiles have none at all. Although one could draw this conclusion from certain biblical texts, it is not the total biblical view, however. From the position of those biblical scholars who argue that the idea of the universal God is present in biblical religion from beginning to end, it would seem to follow that what confirms the universality of the God of Israel is that all peoples, indeed all human beings, are related to this God in one way or another. Israel’s relationship with this God is privileged, being more direct and more comprehensive.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2006

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  • Gentiles in rabbinic thought
    • By David Novak, Department of Philosophy, Centre for the Study of Religion, University of Toronto
  • Edited by Steven T. Katz, Boston University
  • Book: The Cambridge History of Judaism
  • Online publication: 28 March 2008
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CHOL9780521772488.027
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  • Gentiles in rabbinic thought
    • By David Novak, Department of Philosophy, Centre for the Study of Religion, University of Toronto
  • Edited by Steven T. Katz, Boston University
  • Book: The Cambridge History of Judaism
  • Online publication: 28 March 2008
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CHOL9780521772488.027
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Gentiles in rabbinic thought
    • By David Novak, Department of Philosophy, Centre for the Study of Religion, University of Toronto
  • Edited by Steven T. Katz, Boston University
  • Book: The Cambridge History of Judaism
  • Online publication: 28 March 2008
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CHOL9780521772488.027
Available formats
×