Gil Student Libri

More than three centuries after Baruch Spinoza’s excommunication from the Jewish community of Amsterdam, his legacy remains contentious. Born in 1632, Spinoza is a pivotal Enlightenment thinker and exemplifies the secular Jew, having left Orthodoxy without converting. A notable critique of Spinoza comes from Leo Strauss, who grew up in a nominally Orthodox home and emigrated to the U.S. in the 1930s. As a prominent political philosopher at the University of Chicago until his death in 1973, Strauss examined modern philosophy's challenge to traditional religion in a well-known essay. He argued that while the Enlightenment failed to decisively refute Orthodoxy, the latter could only assert belief in its core tenets without claiming knowledge of their truth. Strauss leaves the debate unresolved; both sides rest on unprovable axioms. Interestingly, he never consulted Orthodox thinkers about his defense of Judaism against Enlightenment claims. This volume addresses that gap by posing Strauss’ questions to Orthodox Jewish scholars, exploring whether Orthodoxy offers better answers than Strauss provided. The seventeen essays draw from diverse sources, including Scripture, Talmud, medieval rationalists like Maimonides, and modern philosophical movements. While responses vary, they share a commitment to engaging with Strauss’ inquiry, aiming to recover authentic religious belief in the modern world—an endeavor that invites serious consi