A Jewish Philosophy of Man
A Lecture Series by Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik
Lecture 1: Introduction to the Jewish Philosophy of Man
Delivered November 6, 1958
Summary by Mark Smilowitz: Judaism, and religion in general, is a cognitive venture, seeking to intellectually grasp the world, and is not merely an emotional or ethical gesture. Unlike the scientist, who, until recently, was mostly interested in knowing the outside world, and unlike other Western religions, which focused their attention on theology, Judaism is concerned mainly with Man. It stresses a religious anthropology, a religious doctrine of Man. Although Judaism is theocentric, it is “anthropo-oriented.” God remains a Deus-absconditus, hidden and unknowable. Our experience of God is antithetical, because we experience Him both as infinitely distant and intimately close. Christianity deals with this dichotomy by dividing between an unapproachable God-father and an accessible God-son. Judaism deals with the same dichotomy by dividing between our intellectual and emotional religious experiences of God. Judaism has no theology because intellectually God is an enigma, and all statements about God are understood not interpretively but normatively, as attributes for us to imitate. Therefore, Judaism’s primary question is about Man, not God. Judaism’s doctrine of man is guided by a series of questions, including, the problem of Man’s dichotomy as being both part of and above the animal world, the question of what trait is Man’s unique endowment, and, whether this unique characteristic is inborn or must be earned. Further questions include the relationship between solitary and communal existence, the problem of the dichotomy of mind and soul, and the question if Man is primarily a creature of intellect or of will. The lecture ends with responses to questions from the audience that include critiques of Buber, Kierkegaard, and Mordecai Kaplan’s Reconstructionist Judaism.
00:02:42 Not presenting a definitive philosophy of Judaism, but a subjective reflection
00:08:07 Religion as a cognitive gesture
00:21:30 Judaism’s unique focus on understanding Man
00:33:32 Christian vs. Jewish approaches to the dichotomy of the Man-God experience
00:54:06 A list of the questions about Man that concern Judaism
01:04:56 Questions from the audience and responses
For Further Study: The idea that religion is more a cognitive system than an ethical or emotional gesture appears in The Halakhic Mind (39–46) and in the comparison between halakhic man and cognitive man throughout Part I of Halakhic Man. The Rav’s claim that Judaism is primarily concerned with Man is reflected in a number of his essays that root themselves in the story in Genesis of Man’s creation, such as “The Lonely Man of Faith,” “Confrontation,” and “The Community” (available at TraditionOnline.org).