''God in Search of Man: A Philosophy of Judaism'' is a work on
Jewish philosophy by Rabbi Dr.
Abraham Joshua Heschel
Abraham Joshua Heschel (January 11, 1907 – December 23, 1972) was a Polish-born American rabbi and one of the leading Jewish theologians and Jewish philosophers of the 20th century. Heschel, a professor of Jewish mysticism at the Jewish T ...
. Heschel saw the work's title as a paradoxical formula, rooted in the rabbinic tradition, summarizing human history as seen in the Bible: God in search of man.
In ''God in Search of Man'' Heschel articulates a belief in a personal God who sees humankind as partners in creation, forging a world filled with justice and compassion.
''God in Search of Man: A Philosophy of Judaism'' is a companion volume to Heschel's earlier work ''
Man Is Not Alone: A Philosophy of Religion'' where he delineates experiential and philosophical interpretations of Jewish views of humanity and the world, while in ''God in Search of Man'' Heschel focuses particularly on Jewish revelation and orthopraxis.
Contents
In ''God in Search of Man'', Heschel discusses the nature of religious thought, how thought becomes faith, and how faith creates responses in the believer. He discusses ways that people can seek God's presence, and the "radical amazement" that we receive in return. He offers a criticism of nature worship; a study of humanity's metaphysical loneliness, and his view that we can consider God to be in search of humanity.
Heschel, like his teacher
Martin Buber
Martin Buber ( he, מרטין בובר; german: Martin Buber; yi, מארטין בובער; February 8, 1878 –
June 13, 1965) was an Austrian Jewish and Israeli philosopher best known for his philosophy of dialogue, a form of existentialism ...
, stresses the personal relationship between God and mankind, defined by Heschel as the Godly pathos and mankind's radical amazement.
[Wettstein, Howard]
Literary Theology.
''Sh'ma: A Journal of Jewish Ideas.'' Josh Rolnick, The Sh'ma Institute. April 2011: 14-15. Accessed May 26, 2014.
Main topics
The first section concludes with a study of
Jews as a chosen people
In Judaism, the concept of the Jews as the chosen people ( he, הָעָם הַנִבְחַר ''ha-ʿam ha-nivḥar , IPA: haʕam hanivħar'') is the belief that the Jews, via descent from the ancient Israelites, are the chosen people, i.e. select ...
. Section two deals with the idea of
revelation
In religion and theology, revelation is the revealing or disclosing of some form of truth or knowledge through communication with a deity or other supernatural entity or entities.
Background
Inspiration – such as that bestowed by God on the ...
, and what it means for one to be a prophet. This section gives us Heschel's idea of revelation as an event, as opposed to a process. This relates to Israel's commitment to God. Section three discusses his views of how a Jew should understand the nature of Judaism as a religion.
Faith and law
Heschel discusses and rejects the idea that mere faith (without law) alone is enough, but then cautions against rabbis he sees as adding too many restrictions to Jewish law. He discusses the need to correlate ritual observance with spirituality and love, the importance of
Kavanah
Kavanah, kavvanah or kavana (also pronounced /kaˈvonə/ by some Ashkenazi Jews) (כַּוָּנָה; in Biblical Hebrew kawwānā), plural kavanot or kavanos (Ashkenazim), literally means "intention" or "sincere feeling, direction of the heart". ...
(intention) when performing
mitzvot. He engages in a discussion of religious behaviorism—when people strive for external compliance with the law, yet disregard the importance of inner devotion.
See also
*
Abraham Joshua Heschel
Abraham Joshua Heschel (January 11, 1907 – December 23, 1972) was a Polish-born American rabbi and one of the leading Jewish theologians and Jewish philosophers of the 20th century. Heschel, a professor of Jewish mysticism at the Jewish T ...
*
Jewish philosophy
References
{{reflist
1955 non-fiction books
Jewish philosophical literature