Maimonides on the Origin of the World [Hardcover]

Looks closely at the debates surrounding Maimonides' discussion of creation.Although Maimonides' discussion of creation is one of his greatest philosophic contributions - he himself claims that belief in creation is second in importance only to belief in God - there is still considerable debate on what the contribution was. Kenneth Seeskin takes a close look at the problems Maimonides faced.Although Maimonides' discussion of creation is one of his greatest philosophic contributions - he himself claims that belief in creation is second in importance only to belief in God - there is still considerable debate on what the contribution was. Kenneth Seeskin takes a close look at the problems Maimonides faced.Although Maimonides' discussion of creation is one of his greatest contributions - he himself claims that belief in creation is second in importance only to belief in God - there is still considerable debate on what that contribution was. Kenneth Seeskin takes a close look at the problems Maimonides faced and the sources from which he drew. He argues that Maimonides meant exactly what he said: the world was created by a free act of God so that the existence of everything other than God is contingent. In religious terms, existence is a gift. In order to reach this conclusion, Seeskin examines Maimonides' view of God, miracles, the limits of human knowledge, and the claims of astronomy to be a science. Clearly written and closely argued, Maimonides on the Origin of the World takes up questions of perennial interest.1. God and the problem of origin; 2. Creation in the Timaeus; 3. Aristotle and the arguments for eternity; 4. Plotinus and the metaphysical causation; 5. Particularity; 6. Nature, miracles and the end of the world; 7. Aftermath and conclusion. This is an excellent piece of work, easily up to the usual high standard of the author's output. The topic is a very controversial one in Jewish philosophy...so it is a major point of interest in the area. What Seeskin lƒ#