[1] When our great theologians, Saadiah, Bachya, Maimonides, Albo, &c., considered it necessary to write long and abstruse metaphysical essays in order to firmly establish certain truths, it was done rather for the purpose of combating the views of opponent theologians than for the instruction of the multitude, and it may fairly be said that Maimonides has done far greater service to his brethren by the composition of a systematic code of laws than by his philosophical “Guide.” The former, the Mishneh-Torah, never fails to enlighten those who seek in it enlightenment with regard to some religious duty, whilst the “Guide” would scarcely relieve anyone of his perplexities in matters of religious belief. There is a saying in the Talmud Jerus. (Chagigah, ch. i.), “Would that they had forgotten me, and kept my commandments!” or, in other words, “Theologians would do better if they were less eager to investigate into the essence of God and His attributes, and were more anxious to study and to do God’s commandments.” Instead of devoting their chief attention to the knowledge and the practice of the Law, they waste their energy and their time in attempts to solve problems to which the human mind is unequal (S. Plessner, Religions-Unterricht, p. xxxviii.). [↑]
[2] Post-biblical authors frequently employ the term אמונה in the sense of religious belief, and תורה in the sense of religious duties; the equivalent for religion is דת. [↑]
I.
OUR CREED.
Introduction.
Faith is the implicit and absolute belief in the truth of the communication made to us and in the trustworthiness of him who makes it to us. The child has faith in its parents that their wishes or commands are for its good; the pupil in his teachers that they impart correct knowledge; we have faith in our friends that they have no intention to deceive us; in the men of science and learning that the results of their researches may be accepted as well established. In all these cases the faith is but imperfect and of a relative and temporary character. Time, investigation, and extended observation and knowledge may either confirm the contents of our faith or may convince us that we have been in error. This is not the case with religious faith. It keeps within the boundaries of its own domain and does not encroach on that of the senses and of reason. Whatever can be known by means of scientific research and thorough investigation we need not accept on faith. Religion—I have, of course, our own religion, the Jewish, in mind—does not only not forbid such examination, but even encourages it. Thus we read in the Book of Proverbs, “A fool believeth every word, [[6]]but the prudent man looketh well to his going” (xiv. 15). For this purpose God has given us intellectual faculties that we should employ them in our search for truth. At the same time, however, He has set limits to our faculties, and there are things which are beyond these limits, being nistaroth, “things hidden” from our senses, whose existence has been made known to us through the grace of God, by such means as His infinite wisdom determined. We search and investigate, examine and demonstrate, within the sphere of our senses; but all that is beyond their reach belongs to the nistaroth, the knowledge of which can only be imparted to us directly by the Almighty, or indirectly by those to whom they have been communicated by Him. Our belief with regard to these nistaroth may be supported or strengthened by philosophical or dialectical arguments, but can never be proved by mathematical or logical demonstration.
The sources from which we derive our knowledge of these nistaroth are Revelation and Tradition. God reveals things otherwise unknown to man to such persons or to such a generation as His wisdom chooses, and from those thus privileged the knowledge spreads to the rest of mankind by means of Tradition. In addition to these two sources there is a third one in ourselves: God implanted in our souls certain ideas common to all of us as essential elements of our inner life, and these ideas form to some extent the basis of our faith. Such is, e.g., the idea of an all-powerful Being, God, who is the source and origin of everything in existence.
There is no real conflict between faith and reason. It may sometimes seem as if there were such a conflict, [[7]]and we then naturally begin to doubt. In such cases the truth of our faith may be doubted, but the correctness of our reasoning is no less subject to doubt. We may have erroneously included in our faith beliefs which do not belong to it, and on becoming aware that they are contrary to reason, we cast them aside without the least injury to our faith. On the other hand, our reason is not perfect; we frequently discover mistakes in our arguments and conclusions, and reject opinions which we hitherto have considered as firmly established.