Maimonides' Fiction of Resurrection
An abridged, annotated English translation of Maʾamar Teḥiyat Hametim (Treatise on the Resurrection of the Dead, 1191) by Maimonides (R. Moses ben Maimon, 1135—1204) with critical analysis. The translation is confined to Maimonides' direct rebuttal of criticisms concerning his opinion of resurr...
| Published in: | Hebrew Union College annual / Jewish Institute of Religion |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Print Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
College
1981
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| In: |
Hebrew Union College annual / Jewish Institute of Religion
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| RelBib Classification: | BH Judaism |
| Further subjects: | B
Resurrection
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| Parallel Edition: | Electronic
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| Summary: | An abridged, annotated English translation of Maʾamar Teḥiyat Hametim (Treatise on the Resurrection of the Dead, 1191) by Maimonides (R. Moses ben Maimon, 1135—1204) with critical analysis. The translation is confined to Maimonides' direct rebuttal of criticisms concerning his opinion of resurrection. A crucial issue in the Maimonidean controversy of the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries was whether or not Maimonides affirmed the rabbinic doctrine of corporeal resurrection. Suspicion was generated by his elliptical treatment of the subject in his previous works. Examination of these sources yields a legitimate basis for confusion. In Maʾamar Teḥiyat Hametim Maimonides advances four major explanations: weaker minds have misconstrued his meaning and methodology; resurrection is a temporary prelude to incorporeal existence in the world to come; resurrection is a miracle which is not susceptible of speculative proof; allusion is sufficient for the knowledgeable. Each of these explanations, upon analysis, is fraught with difficulties and equivocations. Certain passages from Maimonides' other works, especially Moreh Nevukhim (Guide of the Perplexed, 1190), suggest that the ambiguity of his treatise on resurrection is intentional and expedient. The paper proposes that in Maʾamar Teḥiyat Hametim Maimonides creates a kind of legal fiction by which he virtually eviscerates the doctrine he claims to profess. Thus he sustains the multitude's necessary belief in corporeal reward while signalling his true belief to the enlightened. |
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| ISSN: | 0360-9049 |
| Contains: | In: Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, Hebrew Union College annual / Jewish Institute of Religion
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