Contemporary Jewish Philosophy: An Introduction [Routledge Jewish Studies Series]

This text introduces the most important Jewish philosophers of contemporary times from the point of view of their original approach to both Judaism and philosophy and include: Hermann Cohen, Franz Rosenweig, Martin Buber, Leo Strauss, Emmanuel Levinas.

It shows how for them the dialogue between Judaism and philosophy is necessary in order to avoid on one side, an attachment to Jewish tradition which is only nationalistic or non-rational; and on the other, an idea of philosophy which first of all focuses the problems of nature, human existence in the world, or God as the origin of being.

In reconstructing the intellectual evolution of each of these twentieth-century philosophers with a view to their meaning today, this book is unique and goes beyond the standard historical account provided by other books. Contemporary Jewish Philosophy is essential reading for researchers and students of philosophy, Judaism and the history of religions.

Irene Kajon is Professor of Moral Philosophy at the University of Rome “La Sapienza.” A leading interpreter of Jewish philosophy, she is the author of Ebraismo e sistema di filosofia in Hermann Cohen (Padova, 1989) and Fede ebraica e ateismo dopo Auschwitz (Perugia, 1993).