Description
Book SynopsisThis book explores the emergence of the fundamental political concepts of medieval Jewish thought, arguing that alongside the well known theocratic elements of the Bible there exists a vital tradition that conceives of politics as a necessary and legitimate domain of worldly activity that preceded religious law in the ordering of society.
Since the Enlightenment, the separation of religion and state has been a central theme in Western political history and thought, a separation that upholds the freedom of conscience of the individual. In medieval political thought, however, the doctrine of the separation of religion and state played a much different role. On the one hand, it served to maintain the integrity of religious law versus the monarch, whether canon law, Islamic law, or Jewish law. On the other hand, it upheld the autonomy of the monarch and the autonomy of human political agency against theocratic claims of divine sovereignty and clerical authority.
Postulating
Trade Review
"Lorberbaum's intellectual, erudite, and scholarly work is insightful, carefully thought out, substantial, well researched, and complex. . . . Lorberbaum makes a good contribution to the fields of medieval Jewish philosophy, political philosophy, and rabbinics." -- Association of Jewish Libraries
" . . . Lorberbaum has provided an excellent study about timely issues in medieval Jewish thought." -- Speculum
