The Human and the Holy: The Spirituality of Abraham Joshua Heschel

431 Pages·1989·0.99 MB·English

by  Donald Moore

The Human and the Holy : The Spirituality
title:
of Abraham Joshua Heschel
author: Moore, Donald J.
publisher: Fordham University Press
isbn10 | asin: 082321236X
print isbn13: 9780823212361
ebook isbn13: 9780585148311
language: English
subject Heschel, Abraham Joshua,--1907-1972.
publication date: 1989
lcc: BM755.H37M66 1989eb
ddc: 296.3/092
subject: Heschel, Abraham Joshua,--1907-1972.
Page iii
The Human and the Holy
The Spirituality of Abraham Joshua Heschel
Donald J. Moore, S.J..
Fordham University Press
New York
Page iv
© Copyright 1989 by Fordham University
All rights reserved.
LC 89-80461
ISBN 0-8232-1235-1
ISBN 0-8232-1236-x
First paperback printing 1996
Moore, Donald J.
The human and the holy: the spirituality of Abraham Joshua Heschel /
Donald J. Moore.
1. Heschel, Abraham Joshua, 1907-1972.
2. ReligionPhilosphy
BM755.H37 M66 1996 296.3/092
Printed in the United States of America
Page v
To all of those,
family and friends, companions and colleagues,
students and strangers,
of various faiths and of no faith
whose humanness has imaged god's holiness
in our world
Page vi
Acknowledgments
I should like to express a word of profound gratitude to:
-the late Rev. William F. Lynch, , singled out as one among many
S.J.
whose critique of this manuscript in the early stages provided a
constant source of encouragement;
-Sylvia Heschel, whose advice, suggestions, and insights were of
enormous assistance, and who shared with me, as did Rev. Daniel
Berrigan, , many personal anecdotes about Heschel;
S.J.
-Rabbi Marc Tanenbaum and the American Jewish Committee for
permission to use unpublished or archival materials cited in the
Introduction of this work;
-Dr. Mary Beatrice Schulte, who patiently and painstakingly edited
the final copy for Fordham University Press.
Page vii
Contents
Introduction 1
1 21
The Quest for Being Human
Humanity on Trial 22
Authentic Humanity 24
The Struggle for Meaning 27
The Challenge of Living 33
Wonder, Awe, and Amazement 37
Manipulation and Appreciation 41
2 50
Faith: The Flowering of the Human
The Genesis of Faith 51
Response to the Mystery 58
Faith and Belief 63
Faith and Revelation 66
3 77
The God of Care and Concern
Pathos as Fundamental 77
Apathy vs. Sympathy 82
The Wrath of God 85
The Divine Initiative 88
Partnership with God 89
God as Challenge and Demand 93
The Presence and Glory of God 94
4 100
Religion and Human Existence
Origin of Religion 100
Dangers and Weaknesses of Religion 106
The Role of Prayer 112
An Invitation to God 114
Becoming Known by God 116
Prayer and Worship 119
The Prophetic Religion of Sympathy 121
Uniqueness of Prophetic Religion 124
5 130
The Demand To Be Human
Covenant and Election 131
Centrality of the Deed 135
To Be What One Does 139
Halacha and Agada 141
The Danger of Symbolism 147
The Sabbath: Sanctifying Time 151

Page viii
Redemption: A Divine and a Human Task 156
The Role of the Land 159
Judaism and Christianity 163
6 172
Holiness Through Humanness
The Pious Man 173
A Prophetic Spirituality 176
The Baal Shem and the Kotzker 182
The Jewish Community in Eastern Europe 193
The Role of Education 198
A Universality of Concern 201
An Unfinished Task 206
Bibliography 213
Page 1
Introduction
Few Jews of this or any age have so profoundly influenced relations
between Christians and Jews, and more specifically between Catholics
and Jews, than Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel. In the view of a
former student and colleague of his, one need only record, not
embellish, the accomplishments of Heschel's life because his
"contributions and achievementsintellectual, theological, and, above
all, the impact of his personwere so singular, profound, varied and
lasting. . . . "The facts alone present a "monumental statement."
1
Less than three months after his death on December 23, 1972,
America, the Jesuit weekly and one of the leading Catholic journals in
the United States, devoted an entire issue (March 10, 1973) to an
assessment of Heschel's life, thought, and influence upon Christians
and Jews in this country and throughout the world. Donald Campion,
editor of America at the time, noted that this was probably the first
time that a Christian journal had devoted an entire issue to a
contemporary Jewish religious figure. Heschel merited such a
testimony because he was an enormously energetic person "both
intellectually and spiritually." Just as we Christians often point to the
life of an authentic Christian as the best way of learning about
Christianity, so we may point to the life and example of a Jew like
Heschel as the best mode of instruction concerning "the continuing
vitality and richness of the Judaic tradition in which we providentially
share." To encounter Abraham Heschel is to encounter "the living
tradition of Judaism in all its energy, holiness and compassion." 2
Much has also been made of Pope Paul VI's remark on January 31,