John West wrote:

I've seen this form of post before, so it does happen. Another option might be to sticky a post called "Beginner's Questions" at the top of the philosophy forum, so that people with questions can easily reference old answers.

I second this. If there's no objections I'll start and pin such a thread tomorrow (that's of course unless anyone cares to beat me to it).

Etzelnik wrote:

Although I will happily participate in the general philosophical discussions, I think I will primarily base my contributions in the religion section. I think it to be of vital importance that the religion forum develop it's own voice, which, while definitely consisting of serious theology/polemics, will still have somewhat of an independent existence, not under the ægis of the primarily Thomist philosophy section.

By all means do! I agree about it being important that the Religion section be free from any obligatory Thomist by-line and available for independent discussion.
 
That said we would definitely value further philosophical elaboration on the thinkers you mention in your other post (haven't quoted it for space reasons). I've always wanted to know more about the development of post-Christian Jewish philosophy - most mainstream histories tend only to mention Maimonides and if one's very lucky Saadia Gaon.

The beginners' question thread is a great idea.

I too would love to learn more about medieval and early modern Jewish thought. I have some works on Kabbalah, but have not read them.

And certainly the religious section is not meant to be only a Thomist or Catholic discussion forum. Personally I'm happy with wide discussion of just about any traditional religious tradition or thought, even those that aren't strictly theist, like Buddhism.

On the question of scientistic posters, I think John is right. Naturalistic posters should be welcome here. Should there be problems with New Atheist types posting their usual rhetoric in any widespread way we can deal with it. But I don't know there is any pressing need to draw up specific limitations on naturalists at the moment.

DanielCC wrote:

I've always wanted to know more about the development of post-Christian Jewish philosophy - most mainstream histories tend only to mention Maimonides and if one's very lucky Saadia Gaon.

I would most definitely love to ramble on and on about the topic. It's pretty much all I do with myself.

If anybody is interested, here is a partial list of the major Jewish philosophers from the Gaonic era till the late renaissance. As far as I know there are somewhat functional Wikipedia articles on them, and if we're to have a discussion it wouldn't hurt to brush up on their basic biographies and ideas.
Geonic Era: 550-1000CE
Primarily Sa'adia Gaon. Samuel Hanagid also features somewhat. This period is the dawn of Jewish philosophy formalized as such, and draws itself from both the ancient Jewish texts as well as the contemporary strains of philosophy. Also entering at this point are many anonymous kabbalistic texts, which introduce the ideas of hylemorphic emanation to the Jewish scholars. Given the Jews' success in the Abbasid Caliphate and Moorish Spain, the wide influence of the Qalam teachings on Jewish scholarship comes as no surprise.

This period is marked by the consolidation of Hebrew grammar by Menahem Ibn Saruq and Donash Ibn Labrat, as well as the vigorous fights against separatist sects, including Karaism and Ananism.

Platonist Era: 1000-1150 Beginning with Avicebron's Fons Vitae, the Platonic model becomes de rigeur in Jewish thought. Essentially this influence has never abated, although the past two centuries have seen an increasingly disturbing trend towards Kantianism. Ibn Ezra is the first to incorporate a Platonist outlook into a running commentary on the Bible.

Maimonides

Is a category unto himself. He is peerless as philosopher, theologian, and halakhist. He decisively sets the tone for the Platonic/Aristotelian model which subsequently dominates Jewish thought. He and Ibn Ezra introduce a certain degree of liberalization in the traditional meanings of texts. Maimonides is the super rationalist combined with Halakhist, and represents an ideal of reconciliation between thought and deed. Strongly influences Aquinas.

Backlash: 1200-1500

Both of Maimonides' major works, his Mishneh Torah as well as his Guide to the Perplexed, provoke fierce controversy in the Jewish world. Maimonides is in turn both deified as a saint and decried as a heretic. Many rabbis, most prominently Isaac bar Sheshet and Solomon ibn Aderet, support banning the study of philosophy altogether. Others, such as Nahmanides, criticize Maimonides' excessive Platonism, but instead of rejecting the philosophical way altogether, merely tweak it in certain regards, while maintaining the general standard. Gersonides appears in the 14th century.

The Kabbalistic era: 1500-1650

Following the incredibly traumatic Spanish Expulsion of 1492, a new school of thought gains tremendous popularity. Kabbalah, and in particular Isaac Luria's Kabbalah spreads rapidly. Of particular note is Luria's disciple, Hayyim Vital, who codifies Luria's teachings. This era crashes to a halt with the Shabbetai Zevi debacle.

I'm gonna stop here because I'm writing all this on my phone, and I gave anyone who wants plenty of material to research. And this is just barely explaining anything.

Edit: I just have to add this in. Cartesian influence enters Kabbalah and Jewish philosophy with Moses Hayyim Luzzatto. One of my favorites.

Last edited by Etzelnik (6/28/2015 5:31 pm)

It's a subject in which I'm personally interested, so I would be for that. My only question is why logic questions would be directed there? Could you clarify the connection?

 

Okay. Yeah. That makes sense. Thanks.