Human Nature & Jewish Thought: Judaism's Case for Why Persons Matter

Description

This book explores one of the great questions of our time: How can we preserve our sense of what it means to be a person while at the same time accepting what science tells us to be true--namely, that human nature is continuous with the rest of nature? What, in other words, does it mean to be a person in a world of things? Alan Mittleman shows how

Alan L. Mittleman is professor of modern Jewish thought at the Jewish Theological Seminary. His books include A Short History of Jewish Ethics and Hope in a Democratic Age.

"This concise and accessible exploration of personhood and its moral and spiritual implications will appeal to religious and secular thinkers, Jewish or otherwise."--Publisher's Weekly "Though this content is dense, Mittleman conveys it with astonishing vivacity and nearly no philosophical jargon, producing a compelling, cogent rejoinder to the New Atheists that saves the baby--science--while dumping the bathwater--scientism--of antimetaphysical debates."--Booklist "Every so often ... a book comes along which deals with an important philosophical concept and is written in a style that is at once academically rigorous and accessible to the non-philosophers among us. Human Nature & Jewish Thought is such a volume, thanks to Alan L. Mittleman's lucid writing and clear articulation of his positions."--Jewish Book Council "[P]rovocative and compelling... This deeply insightful and readable volume exemplifies how, even in a scientific age, religious writings--in this case, the sources of Judaism--have much to add to contemporary philosophical and scientific debate."--Choice "Mittleman presents an erudite and elegant brief for human dignity... This passionate and evocative book illustrates some of the challenges confronting projects to introduce Jewish texts into Western philosophical discourse."--Julie E. Cooper, Review of Politics "[An] excellent new book."--Dr. Erica Brown, Jewish World Review