Franz Rosenzweig S Philosophy Of Existence

The Star of Redemption, * which presents Franz Rosenzweig's system of philosophy, begins with the sentence "from death, (vom Tode) , from the fear of death, originates all cognition of the All" and concludes with the words "into life. " This beginning and this conclusion of the book signify more than the first and last words of philosophical books usually do. Taken together - "from death into life" - they comprise the entire meaning of Rosenzweig's philosophy. The leitmotif of this philosophy is the life and death of the human being and not the I of philosophical idealism, where man ultimately signifies "for ethics" no more than" . . . a point to which it (ethics) relates its problems, as for science also he (man) is only a particular case of its general laws. "l Rosenzweig deals with the individual's actual existence, that which is termi nated by death; he speaks of the individual's hic et nunc, of his actions and decisions in the realm of concrete reality. This philosophy is not an exposition of theoretical principles. It is not concerned with man in general in abstract time, but rather with the individual human being, designated by a proper name, living in his particular time. ** Human existence in its finiteness and temporalness forms the focus in which Rosenzweig's motif can be gathered together.

Franz Rosenzweig was a prominent figure in the development of Jewish existentialism and a major influence on the work Emil Fackenheim amongst others. This work offers an array of significant texts and presents Rosenzweig's life in an informative way.

Translated here for the first time by Barbara E. Galli, these five lectures and writings of Franz Rosenzweig will be welcomed by both the novice and the veteran student of the great philosopher. Based on his lectures at the Jildisches Freies Lehrhaus, the famous Jewish Institute of Adult Education, the essays include notes for a group of lectures of 1920, "Faith and Knowledge," followed by a three-part lecture series of 1922: "The Science of God," "The Science of Man," and the "Science of World." The pieces form a powerful whole. Not only does this book further our understanding of Rosenzweig's daunting work, The Star of Redemption—a seemingly inexhaustible text—but of Rosenzweig's primary principles, that of the irreducibility of God, human being, and world, and of the needfulness of relation and of time for the nourishment of truth and cognition. He expounds on his premise that faith and knowledge are interdependent, and that knowledge is derivative of faith.

Here, for the first time, faithfully translated in their entirety, are the principal texts for which Franz Rosenzweig initiated the project that would become The Star of Redemption. Included in the volume are Rosenzweig's essay, "The New Thinking;" four important reviews of The Star of Redemption, and his 1917 letter to Rudolf Ehrenberg, the "germcell" of The Star. Barbara E. Galli 's own essay touches on the basic concepts of Rosenzweig's work, while pointing to and going beyond his scholarship. Alan Udoff's provocative closing essay situates Rosenzweig's thought in the context of modem and postmodern philosophical concerns and suggests a new direction in assessing the philosopher's theological accomplishment. This volume is a perfect guide for students of the great philosopher and for a broader general audience seeking an introduction to Rosenzwieg's ideas.

The Star of Redemption is widely recognized as a key document of modern existential thought and a significant contribution to Jewish theology in the twentieth century. An affirmation of what Rosenzweig called “the new thinking,” the work ensconces common sense in the place of abstract, conceptual philosophizing and posits the validity of the concrete, individual human being over that of “humanity” in general. Fusing philosophy and theology, it assigns both Judaism and Christianity distinct but equally important roles in the spiritual structure of the world, and finds in both biblical religions approaches toward a comprehension of reality.

Distinguished philosopher Hilary Putnam, who is also a practicing Jew, questions the thought of three major Jewish philosophers of the 20th century—Franz Rosenzweig, Martin Buber, and Emmanuel Levinas—to help him reconcile the philosophical and religious sides of his life. An additional presence in the book is Ludwig Wittgenstein, who, although not a practicing Jew, thought about religion in ways that Putnam juxtaposes to the views of Rosenzweig, Buber, and Levinas. Putnam explains the leading ideas of each of these great thinkers, bringing out what, in his opinion, constitutes the decisive intellectual and spiritual contributions of each of them. Although the religion discussed is Judaism, the depth and originality of these philosophers, as incisively interpreted by Putnam, make their thought nothing less than a guide to life.

The volume collects a series of groundbreaking new studies which delve into the work of Franz Rosenzweig and assess its enduring yet still unacknowledged value for Epistemology, Aesthetics, Moral and Political Philosophy, going far beyond Theology and Philosophy of Religion.