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Abstract

This is the final issue of Textual Reasoning for 1996. In it we introduce you to a recent restatement of the central doctrine of the Jewish rationalist tradition, the doctrine of ethical monotheism. Lenn Goodman’s book GOD OF ABRAHAM, erudite and elegantly written, is a philosophical book and a work whose philosophical statements are formulated out of an engaged reading of the classical Jewish sources. In this sense it is an instance of ‘textual reasoning.’ Furthermore, with its emphasis on the ongoing project of a mutual interpretation of the God of the Hebrew prophets and the Platonic idea of the Good, Goodman’s GOD OF ABRAHAM speaks to the central demand to future Jewish philosophy, as formulated by Robert Gibbs, namely that of radicalization of Jewish ethics. These comments may suffice as a justification for dedicating a whole issue of a journal associated with Jewish postmodernism to a philosophical essay that is decidedly modern.

We solicited a number of responses to the work that would represent a variety of perspectives. We are delighted that Allan Arkush, David Burrell, Menahem Kellner, and David Weininger responded to our invitation by contributing substantive statements to this discussion. riginally, we intended for Lenn Goodman to respond to all of his critics in this issueas well. This project was cut short by the passing away of Lenn’s wife, Madeleine, who died only a few months after having been diagnosed with a tumor in her brain. This volume is dedicated to her memory.

Goodman’s work has also been reviewed elsewhere. What distinguishes this group of reviews is, as we hope, a difference in style and intensity compared to the run of the mill academic review. Goodman’s book was chosen for review because it is a highly engaged and engaging argument for the ethical implications of the idea of monotheism in the Jewish tradition. The reviews, in no less of an engaged and engaging manner, point to both strengths and weaknesses in Goodman’s position. This collection, then, may serve as a model for what we regard as an intelligent way of reviewing of a contemporary book. But, if it is really successful, it may also serve as a point of departure for a more far-reaching discussion on the position of our members on the modernist paradigm of Judaism in light of postmodern criticism. Does Jewish postmodernism imply that we have relinquished monotheism as an ethical idea and, if so, what should take its place? Does Jewish postmodernism make an argument more convincing to the philosophical sceptic for both Judaism and morality? A strong modernist and ethical monotheistic position such as Goodman’s can reinvigorate and clarify the project of Jewish postmodernity and serve as a touchstone for its claims to validity.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.21220/s2-q7nq-vp98

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