Juliet Tresgallo
Unit 10: The Condition of Exile
In the past few weeks, we have discussed why Maimonides wrote Guide of the Perplexed for those who possess a high level of intellect and have deeply studied science, philosophy, and Torah. This week, our readings are mainly revolved around Maimonides’ Epistle to Yemen, which Maimonides intended to be read by both scholars and those of average intelligence. “The Guide might be said to be a guide for the qualified perplexed; the Epistle to Yemen, in contrast, is a guide for the unqualified perplexed” (Lerner 14). Although it was specifically addressed to Jacob ben Nathanael ibn al-Fayyumi, head of the Jewish community in Yemen, Maimonides asked for it to be copied and distributed to the rest of the community (Lerner 132).
In the Epistle to Yemen, Maimonides addressed the concerns of Jacob with regards to a man in Yemen who claimed to be Messiah. Jacob wrote that the man was modest in that he admitted to his limited knowledge, but Maimonides responded that a true Messiah would not have limited knowledge, since he would be the greatest prophet after Moses (Lerner 126). To emphasize how dangerous it is to believe in false prophets, Maimonides described four stories about Jews believing in false Messiahs, and how each situation ended with the Jews experiencing increased suffering (Lerner 128-131). Maimonides was shocked that someone as scholarly as Jacob would be swayed by a false prophet when there were no rational proofs to support his belief, and he claimed that it indicated a deeper problem in the Jewish community (Lerner 125).
Yemen, which Maimonides described to have once been a land of peace, Torah study, and abundance, had become a place of persecution and forced apostasy (Lerner 15). During their Exile, Jews were likely to lose faith in God, since their oppression and misfortunes seemed to indicate that God abandoned the Jews (Lerner 123). Because of their doubts, Jews were inclined to turn to astrology and divination to explain their suffering. Maimonides explained that the Yemenite Jews needed to look to the natural world around them instead of the stars (Lerner 22). Only then would they realize that their suffering has natural causes that are direct consequences of their actions and are not merely due to unique formations in the sky. Relying on astronomy allowed Jews to shamelessly pursue their desires without fear of divine punishment.
Surprisingly, Maimonides wrote that the Jews should celebrate their calamities. He believed that hardships were “a source of glory and a great achievement for them before God” (Lerner 110). Maimonides explained that misfortune is a way to test and purify the Jews’ piety. Perhaps misfortunes happen to us in order strengthen our faith in God, as well as a punishment for our sins. Despite tendencies of idolatry, Maimonides wrote in his letter to Obadiah the Proselyte that even our ancestors were idolaters before they left Egypt, but that “whoever adopts Judaism and confesses the unity of the Divine Name, as it is prescribed in the Torah, is counted among the disciples of Abraham our Father, peace be with him” (Twersky 475). It is easy to believe in God if everything in one’s life goes according to their wishes, but it becomes much more difficult if one’s life is full of suffering. When facing obstacles, will we hold onto our faith in God and His promise to redeem us, or will we turn away from God in search of more immediate answers?
What can be done to prevent Jews from believing is false prophets? According to Maimonides, it is very important for Jews to strengthen each other’s faith in God and the Torah. The elders should teach the youth, and those of high intellect should teach the commoners (Lerner 23). Jews in Exile are more prone to be swayed by false prophets and by other religions, so it is vital that they spend their time learning Torah. I found it interesting that according to Maimonides, Judaism is simply a physical representation of the true meaning of divine law that is limited by human understanding, while other religions are altered versions of Judaism, and are therefore even more limited and imprecise (Lerner 20).
Maimonides described how an ignorant person can easily recognize surface features but not understand deeper meanings. He used a metaphor of a statue that resembles a man but does not contain man’s inner complexity gifted to him by God. “Man’s interior contains true wonders and matters attesting to the Creator’s wisdom: The distension of his nerves in his muscles and their ramification, and the joining of his sinews and points of their connections, the intertwining of their ligaments and their manner of growth, the structure of his bones and the joints, the egress of his pulsating and nonpulsating blood vessels and their branching out, the setting of his limbs into one another, the open and concealed parts, every one of them in the appropriate measure, form, and place” (Lerner 105). This detailed metaphor made me wonder if one of the reasons that Maimonides chose to become a doctor is because he believed that we should study God’s creations to gain a better understanding of Him, and surely man would be the best creation to deeply study.
Maimonides wrote that anyone who claims to overwrite or change the commandments is obviously a false prophet, since the laws of Moses are eternal and unchanging (Lerner 116). He also wrote that Jews should not try to predict the future or the End of Days like other religions, since disconfirmations of our predictions will only cause us to lose faith in God. The true Messiah will be the only one to predict our future (Lerner 115). He will appear in the land of Israel and will not be recognized until God reveals him to be the Messiah (Lerner 127). By this statement, it makes sense that Jews should not attempt to predict when the Messiah will come or who he will be, since it is written that it will be impossible to recognize him. It seems as though when the Messiah arrives there will not be any doubt that he was sent by God, so any speculation about his identity is pointless. If one thinks he may have found Messiah, then the fact that he is not completely certain is a clear indication that he is not the true Messiah.
Despite all of this, Maimonides gave his own prediction of the End of Days, 4970 years after Creation, even though this proved to be false after that time had passed (Lerner 125). Maimonides claimed that Saadyah, who also predicted the End of Days inaccurately, went against the prohibition in order to unify the Jews and to strengthen their belief in God. Maimonides would probably justify his transgression similarly to how he justified writing down the Oral Torah in the Mishneh Torah. It is clear that he wanted to reignite the passion of the Jews in Exile for learning Torah and serving God.
What do you all think? Do you believe that Maimonides was right to provide his own prediction for the End of Days, after arguing against doing just that? Do you think it is possible for Jews to have a continued belief in Messiah without attempting to predict when he will arrive and who he will be?