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'Joseph Albo': A sweeping map of Jewish belief - review

From Jerusalem Post · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

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  • A review examines "Joseph Albo: Collected Writings," featuring the work of a 15th-century rabbi who systemized Jewish belief.
  • Albo reduced the core principles of faith to three: God's existence, revelation, and reward and punishment, emphasizing faith over philosophical speculation.
  • His work, particularly "Sefer Ha’ikkarim," offered a path to salvation through devotion and commandments, providing solace to a community facing pressure to convert.

Raffi Crousse reviews "Joseph Albo: Collected Writings," a volume that brings the work of a significant medieval Jewish thinker to English readers. Joseph Albo, a rabbi from Daroca, Spain, developed a comprehensive system of Jewish belief, notably reducing its core principles to three: the existence of God, revelation, and reward and punishment. This framework, presented in his major work "Sefer Ha’ikkarim" (Book of Principles), prioritized faith and the performance of commandments over philosophical speculation as the path to salvation.

If it was proven to me that the Messiah had already come, I would not consider the Jew is worse off.

— Joseph AlboHis reaction during the Tortosa Disputation in 1413 when presented with a claim about the Messiah's arrival.

The review highlights a pivotal moment in 1413 during the Tortosa Disputation, where a converted Jew presented a Talmudic passage to Antipope Benedict XIII, claiming it proved the Messiah had already come. Albo's reaction, though described as somewhat violent, was that this proof would not make a Jew worse off. This stance suggests his focus was not on winning arguments but on defining the essence of divine law and guiding individuals toward true happiness.

Albo's emphasis on faith over intellect marked a departure from thinkers like Maimonides, who placed the perfected intellect at the center of religious life. Albo argued that "miracles are performed for men of faith, and not for men of speculative knowledge," making eternal life accessible to the ordinary believer. This perspective offered a crucial opening for a community facing external pressures and internal uncertainty about their beliefs, providing a foundation of faith and practice.

Faith stands higher than speculation

— Joseph AlboArticulating his core belief about the primacy of faith in religious life.

The "Sefer Ha’ikkarim" also addresses the difficult question of why the faithful suffer, a central concern for believers. Albo's work, built upon Isaac Husik's translation and enhanced with a new introduction, offers a profound exploration of Jewish theology and its enduring relevance.

miracles are performed for men of faith, and not for men of speculative knowledge

— Joseph AlboExplaining his view on who benefits from divine intervention.
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Originally published by Jerusalem Post. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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