Yeshiva University - Masmid Yearbook (New York, NY)

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M ASM ID a Hit;h Priest, taithful guardian and custodian of the Torah in its fulness and purity; as a disciple of the prophets, exalted exponent of Israel ' s fundamental affirmation of the absolute unit) ' , of God (from which follows the essential unity of man), of divine optimism and inherent good that underlies life and man, of the ethical vision of his people, and as the wise man and practical philosopher, the healer of the body as well as the soul, teaching physical and mental hygiene, the ways of life and illuminating the practical wisdom of his people. His niche in the sanctuary of hu- manity is just beginning to be revealed in the per- spective of time, for he truly was an exalted personality. Today, as in the days of Maimonides 800 years ago, Israel is beset by vilifying, unrelenting ene- mies from without; and spiritual aridity, deaden- ing indifference to, and arrogant ignorance of, its millennial heritage threaten its existence from within. The chasm between the truths of the Torah and the spirit of science seems to be widen- ing. Close contact with modern life and thought make it imperative to reformulate Israel ' s views on life and human destiny, on the vital problems of existence. ' We stand in need of a Maimonides to encourage and guide the preplexed and faint- hearted among us, who are losing the way, to heal the spiritual wounds of our people, and once again harmoniously to unite reason and life-giving faith. A man is needed that can call a halt to false prophets, who, claiming to seek the ad- vancement of Judaism, attempt to transfer the center of gravity of Jewish life from the Torah to a new paganism of folk-lore and folk-ways, substituting for the God of Israel a faith built out of folk psychology — a venture which every page of our millennial history warns us must end indisaster. As in the days of Maimonides, Israel is ever ready to meet the challenge of the times, though it does not embrace as the final truth every scienti- fic hypothesis, some of which are often inimical to its own fundamental affirmations. Theories come and go. They are beginning to come nearer to the fundamental affirmations of the Torah, and the word of our God shall remain forever. Perhaps never before has humanity been in greater need of a constructive philosophy, of a spiritual interpretation of life and human history. Toward this mankind is groping, impelled by the instinct of self-preservation. Thoughtful men are beginning to recognize that we are in the midst of the twilight of material domination of thought and of dogmatism in science, that marked and marred the passing era. Advancing scientific thought is freeing itself from the tyranny of a mechanistic interpretation of existence. ' We stand at a turning point in man ' s understanding of the universe and of himself. There is a growing awareness of a purposeful world and of man as a rational, responsible agent of the world, as Mai- monides conceived them. The more profound the insight of the scientist and scholar into the phenomena of nature, the more intensive and re- fined his scientific experience and intuition, the less conflicting seem such knowledge and faith. The might, mystery and majesty of the unmeasured cosmos, constantly unfolding before us, of the myriads of spheres, of life and of the life of the spirit, cause the true scientist to exclaim with the Psalmist in wonderment and awe: ' When I be- hold Thy heavens, the work of Thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which Thou hast established — what is the mortal, that Thou rememberest him? and the son of man, th.it Thou thinkest of him? Yet thou hast made him but a little less than angels. The growing recognition of the validity of genuine spiritual experience and the reawakening spiritual insight and longing are destined to give new directions to man ' s quest of ultimate reality and unity. No wonder that mankind, notwith- standing the resurging eternal hatred of the eter- nal people, is in its search for spiritual truth, coming again and increasingly to rely upon the fundamental concepts and thoughts of Jewish (Couliniied oil page 28)

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M A SM I D por.iry l.iws, m.iicr.il i. li(iri,iticins, ilci.iiK ol, .iiul reason for, ihc h.isic l.iws in(.-ntioni. ' J. Divrc Soplierim, ,is util ,is llic rabbinic laws, though of equal nonnativt value, arc not be be counted amon the 613 Precepts. The Revelation on Sinai was the most exalted event in human history, and the laws then iven to Moses must be set apart and distinguished from all oihcr bindini; laws. Upon this concept JLpciul .scvi.r.il le al views peculiar to Maimonides. It is probable that in the establishment of the criteria concerning the 613 Precepts Maimonides was influenced by the views of Abraham Ibn Ezra in his Ye.sod More. Maimonides states somewhere that the Code, Mishna Torah, was originally planned by him as a reference work for his own use, as a path in the labyrinth of talmudic and rabbinic literature for practical purposes. A study of the Code, the highest expression of the systematic genius of post- Talmudic literature, convinces one that, consciously or subconsciously, Maimonides planned the Mishne Torah to be the authoritative code of life for all Israel, including the laws that are not ap- plicable to Jcwisii life in the Diaspor.i, like the laws of the Sanctuary and Levitical purity. It is evident from the Epistle of Maimonides to the Jewish Community in Yemen that he con- sidered the misery and anguish of Israel under the Cross and under the Crescent as the agony of the days preceding the Advent of the Messiah. He felt keenly the universal distress of his people and believed that the advent of the Redeemer was imminent. For, according to Maimonides, the redeinption depends mainly upon Israel ' s repen- tance and return to God. He exhorted the people against indulging in computations and predic- tions, from possible indications in the Scriptures, of the time of the redemption, but he hoped that the day might be near when Israel and its great affirmation of faith— its social morality — would come into their own. when the world would be blessed with peace and plenty, and would follow the sublime religious .ind social teachings of the Torah. The binding power of the Tor.di to be nrilidrii.itive even in the days of (lit Messiah, he composed the first, systematic presentation of the entire body of the Jewish behef and law, based upon the entire traditional literature of Israel of all ages to be jde(|uaie not only for his generation and the generations to come in the I)i3.s|X)ra, but even for the Messianic days. The Code contains all the Halakah, the well-spring of Jewisli reason, and all (hat is essential in the Agadah, the source and the depository of Jewish vision and emotion. The Halakah and the Agadah of Millennia, from Moses to Alfasi, Maimonidc-s sifted, selected, ar- ranged, recapitulated, illuminated and established as the norm of Jewish belief and law. In the Code, rabbinic learning celebrates its greatest triumph. The significance and influence of this epoch-making creation of Jewish lore, fashioned by Israel ' s supreme systematic and syn- thetic mind in the middle ages, can hardly be comprehended by those who are not thoroughly familiar with Jewish law and lore. The Code gave new impetus to the study and elucidation of many phases of traditional law which had been neglected since the day of the Amoraim. The scope of the encyclopedic knowledge, of the sources drawn upon in the construction of the Code, is even now not fully appreciated. It is likely to remain a permanent source of study for the serious student of the Halakah, second only to the Talmud itself. The greatest work in the codification of any system of law is thus the product of a .son of the pieople who placed content and depth above form and method of presentation. Maimonides seldom introduces a personal opinion in the Code. But the interpretation of individual Sug ' yoth of the Talmud, as often gleaned from his decisions, constitutes a com- mentary on both Talmuds, and sheds light also on their correct text, for Maimonides was a pains- taking student of the text, searching and verifying old manuscripts, as he penetrated and absorbed their spirit. As we view Maimonides from the perspective of three-quarters of a millennium, we behold him Thirteen

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M A SM I D Ihe Importance of the tiasmonean Ixinifdoni by 1)a 11) W. I ' i ik.oksky Since the dawn of its history, Judaism has bttn subject to the attacks of foreign cultu res that liavc thrown themselves relentlessly at it. Always, alien tendencies have attempted to m.ike consider- able inroads into the heart of Jewish doctrine, to mold the contours of Jewish life and to color its modes of expression. Particularly during their early history, when the waves of Asiatic, Greek and Roman life surged mercilessly over Palestine, were the Jews forced to battle with every resource at their command to retain tiicir distinctiveness as a religious, as well as a national, entity. That these onslaughts from without have induced de- termined reaction from within is the secret of Judaism ' s survival. E.ich in asion of foreign cul- ture was met with active resistance on the part of the nation. These inner developrnents that fol- lowed every foreign sortie determined to a very considerable degree the specific aspects of Judaism, for they arose as expressions of the levvish mind itself. Such a period in Jewish life that marked no: only the encroachment of alien influences but the corresponding reaction within the Jewish people was that of the Hasmoneans. Few subsequent eras in Jewish history v -ere to witness su.h im- portant developments in Jewish life and in the Jewish religion as did the .ige of the Maccabeans and the Hasmoneans. It is to .i consideration of the importance of the Hasmonean kingdom in Jewish life that we shall direct our attention. Before doing so, however, we feel that a brief survey of the historical background of their epoch is essential for a proper appreciation of our problem. The history of the period from the revolt of the Maccabeans to the establishment of Roman suzerainty over Palestine falls naturally into three st.iges — the M.icc.ibe.m revolt and the battle for religious freedom, the .struggle for political autonomy, and the attempt o( the nation, rent by mternal strife, to maintain its newly-acijuired status of independence. We shall consider each of these ph.iMs briefly. The seeds of the Maccabean revolt were sowed in Judaea by the Hellenist party. Likt rats gnawing at a ship ' s timbers, they were slowly un- dermining the fabric of Judaism by the introduc- tion into Jerusalem of various aspects of Greek culture. This gradual Hellenizaticn, however, evoked no violent resistance until the Hellenist party enlisted the aid of Antiochus I-piphanes in their de-Judaizing campaign. The latter, forced by Rome to leave Egypt while invading that country, readily vented his anger on the Jews. The appeal to him of the High Priest Menelaus, to strip the lews of their distinctive religion and to superim- pose forcibly on them the culture cf the Hellenes struck in Antiochus a responsive chord. By de- cree, he sought to destroy with one stroke centuries of Jewish tradition. The climax of Antiochus ' ruthless drive came with the desecration of the Temple and the placing of the statue cf Jupiter on the Holy Altar (17 Tammuz. 168 B.C.E.). This attempt to deprive the Jews of their religious liberty fanned into flame the smoldering embers of their antagonism to Hellenism. Inspired by the courageous example of Mattathias and his sons they broke into open rebellion. Judas Maccabeas who succeeded to the leadership of the insurgents on his father ' s death in 167 proved himself a won- derful general. His successive victories over the Syrians resulted in the rededication of the Temple in 16?. From that date till the rise of the House of Antipater in 163 B.C.E., a descendent of Mat- tathi.is led the Jews, whether as captain of a band of guerilla warriors, .is High Priest of the Jewish people or as ethnarch or king of the nation. Anv Fffuem