Moses Maimonides Religion

Analyse the impact of Moses Maimonides on the Jewish tradition

Moses Maimonides (Hebrew: Moses Ben Maimon) was born in 1135 in Cordoba Spain and died in 1204 in Cairo Egypt. He was a Jewish philosopher, jurist, physician, rabbi and the greatest intellectual figure of medieval Judaism.

Maimonides had an extensive impact on the Jewish tradition. Through his written works and teachings such as the Commentary on the Mishna, Mishnah Torah and Guide for The Perplexed, Maimonides had an extensive effect on Judaism, much more than any other Rabbi. For the past 2000 years, his insights into philosophy, medicine and the Torah remain strongly prescient in Judaism today.

The Commentary on the Mishnah

At the age of 23, Maimonides began to write his first

Maimonides decided to change that, as he felt that the Jews of that century needed a philosophical basis of understanding their faith, and could do so through his introductions to his commentary on the Mishnah. Although originally controversial in some Jewish communities, his essay became accepted with time, and the basis of the prayer Yigdal, which closes Friday night services and is also one of the opening prayers in the morning service. His commentary also simplified individual words and phrases, relevant to information in archaeology, theology and science within Judaism.

Thus Maimonides’ first major work of writing, the Commentary on the Mishnah, impacted the Jewish tradition in a positive way, making it easier for every Jew to understand their faith and their holy text, the Mishnah.

Mishnah

The Guide for The Perplexed is a book which addresses questions for which people eventually ask such as the nature and existence of G-d, G-d and His relation to the universe, the purpose of creation, the meaning of life and human destiny, the purpose of the precepts of the Torah, the true way of worshipping G-d, and many others. It was originally written in Arabic as it’s target audience was people in countries under Islamic cultural influence that drove them away from their faith, such as Egypt where Maimonides lived but was eventually translated to other