Wednesday, August 16, 2006

Prophecy - Human nature or miracle?

To Judaism prophecy is fundamental and without it many of our beliefs would not survive. It is therefore a very important aspect of our religion and needs to be well understood. The Rishonim spent a lot of energy trying to define it and explain it. There are basically two schools of thought, each with its own variations. I would name them as the school of the Kuzari and the school of Rambam. Rambam in Moreh 2:32 presents the Kuzari School as follows:

The first opinion – that of the multitude of those among the pagans who considered prophecy as true and also believed by some of the common people professing our law - is that God selects any person He pleases, inspires him with the spirit of Prophecy, and entrusts him with a mission. It makes no difference whether that person be wise or stupid, old or young; provided he be, to some extent, morally good. For these people have not yet gone so far as to maintain that God might also inspire a wicked person with His spirit. They admit that this is impossible, unless God has previously caused him to improve his ways”.

This approach sees prophecy as a miraculous event rather than a human accomplishment. The way Rambam presents it, especially the tone of the introduction “also believed by some of the common people professing our law” shows that not only does he not accept it but thinks it to be wrong and irrational. In fact Rambam does not place prophecy among things that we accept based on tradition but rather as something that we have to prove to ourselves. In Hilchot Yesodei Hatorah he introduces prophecy as follows:

מיסודי הדת, לידע שהאל מנבא את בני האדם

Note the use of the word , לידע to know rather than a term that would imply belief. It is the same term he uses when discussing the existence of God:

יסוד היסודות ועמוד החכמות, לידע שיש שם מצוי ראשון

Both of these fundamental beliefs are rationally demonstrable and note that both are described as “foundations”. The difference is that belief in God is deemed, יסוד היסודות “foundation of all foundations”, in other words it affects all human thought while prophecy is a foundation of religion, it affects only the religious person.

The way I understand this is that prophecy affects how we perceive God as religious people. It is the analysis of the results of God’s action and it affects how we perceive Him and consequently our own actions. To Rambam prophecy is a key element in our belief in God the Creator, God as having Will, Providence and Reward and Punishment. In other words all the dogmas of Judaism are impacted by prophecy. In his listing of the Ikarim (dogmas) it is listed as the sixth one right after those dealing with God and Avodah Zara.

The purpose of religion is to develop a system that helps us interpret our existence, its provenance and its purpose. It has to be based on reality otherwise it is pure myth. Rambam understood that as the difference between idolatry and Judaism. Just like the existence of God has to be understood objectively, so too prophecy. That is the reason Rambam sees prophecy as human nature. It is the ability of the human being, using all of his faculties and developing them, to grasp abstract concepts. Prophecy is something that is the result of a person reaching the ultimate levels of development and perfection. A religion developed in this way has meaning. It would be irrational to base a religious belief which ultimately is subjective, on another subjective belief. Rambam therefore sees prophecy as a natural phenomenon:

The philosophers hold that prophecy is a certain faculty of man in a state of perfection, which can only be obtained by study. Although the faculty is common to the whole race, yet it is not fully developed in each individual, either on account of the individual's defective constitution, or on account of some other external cause. This is the case with every faculty common to a class. It is only brought to a state of perfection in some individuals, and not in all; but it is impossible that it should not be perfect in some individual of the class: and if the perfection is of such a nature that it can only be produced by an agent, such an agent must exist. Accordingly, it is impossible that an ignorant person should be a prophet: or that a person being no prophet in the evening, should, unexpectedly on the following morning, find himself a prophet, as if prophecy were a thing that could be found unintentionally. But if a person, perfect in his intellectual and moral faculties, and also perfect, as far as possible, in his imaginative faculty, prepares himself in the manner which will be described, he must become a prophet; for prophecy is a natural faculty of man.

But here is a twist. The divine will can preclude a person who has developed his abilities, from prophesying. Rambam accepts the philosopher’s concept to a point.

The third view is that which is taught in Scripture, and which forms one of the principles of our religion. It coincides with the opinion of the philosophers in all points except one. For we believe that, even if one has the capacity for prophecy, and has duly prepared himself, it may yet happen that he does not actually prophesy. It is in that case the will of God [that withholds from him the use of the faculty] According to my opinion, this fact is as exceptional as any other miracle, and acts in the same way. For the laws of Nature demand that every one should be a prophet, who has a proper physical constitution, and has been duly prepared as, regards education and training.”

The positive aspects of prophecy are seen as natural and objective. Prophecy has to be seen as objective and not a religious belief. The fact that someone who has the ability to prophesize does not can be a subjective and religious belief. It is an interpretation of a phenomenon just like miracles and God’s will.

There is much more to come on this subject of prophecy.

I will be away on vacation next week through Labor Day. As I plan to dedicate my time to my grandchildren, I will probably not be posting unless I get very inspired.

13 comments:

  1. The previous post was NOT me. (Ha ha.) Anyway, have a nice vacation. On the topic of prophecy, on Rambam's view does prophecy just end up looking like tremendous individual inspiration (like Einstein's discovery of relativity)? Was Einstein a prophet?

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  2. >On the topic of prophecy, on Rambam's view does prophecy just end up looking like tremendous individual inspiration (like Einstein's discovery of relativity)?

    It is not far from it. However Moshe's prophecy is totally different.

    >Was Einstein a prophet?

    Not raelly as he did not address the metaphysical question too.

    Btw, interpretation on Rambam's prophecy runs a very wide gammut of positions. I am just putting out my understanding which is based on all the different interpretations I read and my own choice among them, sometimes combining several.

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  3. Have you read Cogninitive prediction theory?

    Or the theory of how memory predicts future events?

    If not, there have been many case studies that show, that 400ms before you Consciously decide to do something, your brain is working on that task.

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  4. Irviner, The problem is that a prophet can never be wrong or he dies!

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  5. How is that a problem?

    Also, I am curious how the Rambam holds in regards to the idea that music was needed for proophecy? How does he equate music with perfect learning?

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  6. >For we believe that, even if one has the capacity for prophecy, and has duly prepared himself, it may yet happen that he does not actually prophesy. It is in that case the will of God [that withholds from him the use of the faculty]

    I have no idea what this means. What does he mean by the "will of God"? Is it some kind of supernatural force? It seems like it, because he finishes by saying:

    >For the laws of Nature demand that every one should be a prophet, who has a proper physical constitution, and has been duly prepared as, regards education and training

    If it's not the laws of Nature which is preventing him from being a prophet it must be some Supernatural Law

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  7. BS, you are asking the right question which will lead me to discuss will and miracles.

    However vacation first unless as i say great inspiration!

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  8. >How is that a problem?

    Because seers other than prophets are never 100% right!

    Re music and art in prophecy i will be writing about it. it is complicated.

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  9. >However vacation first unless as i say great inspiration!

    I'm looking forward to it. Do you mean unless you have a prophetic vision? :)

    I wonder how the Ramabam understood the phrase a wise man is greater than a prophet

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  10. >Because seers other than prophets are never 100% right!

    Being that being 100% right makes you a prophet, than yes, but seers should just be more carefull about what they predict, and then they would be labeled prophets.

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  11. But if prophesy is just a very high level of inspiration, how can a prophet ever reach the state where he can state "G-d spoke to me"? How would a prophet even know that he had prophesied? Even if Einstein's brilliance had also expressed itself in the metaphysical realm, would he have recognized himself as a prophet? I think not.

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  12. Maran - For it to be prophecy, a person's inspiration is so strong that he cannot control himself and has an urge to say what he has in mind at risk of life and limb. Galileo was one and other inspired thinkers were too. I don't see where your objection is. Isn't it the story of Yonah who could not hide from his obsession?

    Keep on reading and it will become clear. Two posts on Nevuah cannot answer all questions.

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  13. How does the Rambam explain Billam's Avimelech's and Laban's prophecy in light of his requirement of prior moral perfection?

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