God the Walker

Berel Dov Lerner

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Chapter 2 God the Walker

In: The Question of God's Perfection

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Berel Dov Lerner

Berel Dov Lerner
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Type:: Chapter

Pages:: 27–42

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004387980_004

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The Talmud’s (Berakhot 7a) story of R. Ishmael b. Elisha’s encounter with God suggests arguments against divine moral perfection. The notion of perfection is largely an artifact of human cognitive limitations. Moral perfection is rendered conceptually incoherent by the unlimited compass of moral ingenuity and the infinitely fine-grained nature of moral action (comparable to Nelson Goodman’s notion of “autographic” art). God’s moral character reflects the dynamic process of His freely choosing between opposing ethical values, as per Isaiah Berlin’s doctrine of value pluralism (“The Pursuit of the Ideal”). Divine moral development is comparable to human moral development; both are generated by interaction with others (as described in Rabbi Meir Simhah of Dvinsk). Harry Frankfurt’ “On God’s Creation” exemplifies the interactive and dynamic view of God’s development. The story of the Covenant of the Pieces (Genesis 15) and the Talmudic midrash of God’s phylacteries (Berakhot 6a) emphasize how God’s presence in the human world depends on His covenantal relationship with Israel and can be threatened by the abrogation of that covenant. However, all human understandings of God should be bracketed with the rabbinic notion of kivyakhol: “as if,” but not reflecting God’s ultimate nature.

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The Question of God's Perfection

Jewish and Christian Essays on the God of the Bible and Talmud

Series: Philosophy of Religion - World Religions, Volume: 8

E-Book ISBN:: 9789004387980

Publisher:: Brill

Print Publication Date:: 20 Nov 2018

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Chapter 2 God the Walker

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The Question of God's Perfection

Jewish and Christian Essays on the God of the Bible and Talmud

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