S1, E27 Negative Theology; from Rabbeinu Sa'adiah Gaon to the Mekubalim

What do we know about God?

This is the most central dispute between the rival philosophic and esoteric schools of Jewish thought. Armed with ink and quill, the opposing camps have waged impassioned and heated battles throughout the centuries.

Rabbeinu Sa'adiah Gaon, Rambam and others assert that it is impossible to understand Hashem's essence. We know only that He exists, or, more accurately, that He doesn’t not exist. Nothing else.

R’ Chasdai Crescas and others, including the Mekubalim, reject that philosophy as antithetical to the Torah. We can know that Hashem is mighty and all-knowing and merciful. However, attributes that pertain to God are entirely unlike attributes that pertain to humans. God's attributes, like God Himself, are infinite.

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