Wednesday, October 7, 2015

Human Nature & Jewish Thought: Judaism's Case for Why Persons Matter / Alan J. Mittleman 215 pp.

A response to the rise of scientism, in which human cognition, behavior and value are explained along strictly scientific lines.  Mittleman argues that the inherent worth of human beings can't be understood merely along the lines of neuroscience, evolution, or genetics.  He explains Judaism's stance on personhood through a careful examination of Torah, Midrash, medieval scholarly writing, and contemporary thinkers.  The broad topics considered include free will, the nature of humans as created beings and their relationship to the creator, and their relations with one another.

I'm badly oversimplifying here; this was an excellent but not extremely accessible book.

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