The Popularization of Philosophy in Medieval Islam, Judaism, and Christianity

by Marieke Abram (Editor), Steven Harvey (Editor), Lukas Muehlethaler (Editor)

Overview

This volume explores attempts at the popularization of philosophy and natural science in medieval Islam, Judaism, and Christianity. Medieval philosophers usually wrote their philosophical books for philosophers, so the desire to convey psychological, cosmological, metaphysical, or even physical teachings to the 'vulgus' may seem surprising. This disdain for the multitude and their weak intellectual capabilities is expressed most clearly in the medieval Islamic and Jewish Aristotelian traditions of philosophy, but is certainly found among the Scholastics as well. Yet philosophy was taught to non-philosophers and via a variety of literary genres. Indeed, scholars have argued that philosophy most influenced medieval society through popular forms of transmission. Among the questions this volume addresses are the following: Which philosophers or theologians sought to direct their philosophical writings to the many? For what purposes did they seek to popularize philosophy? Was the goal to teach philosophical truths? Were certain teachings not transmitted? Which teachings were transmitted most often? For whom exactly were these popularized texts written? Were the authors of popularized philosophy always aware they were writing for non-philosophers? How did they go about teaching philosophy to a wide audience? How successful were these attempts? In what ways did popularized philosophy impact upon society? To what extent were the considerations and problems in the medieval popularization of philosophy the same or different in the various religious traditions of philosophy? How philosophical was the popularized philosophy? In addressing these questions, this pioneering volume is the first of its kind to bring together scholars of medieval Islamic, Jewish, and Christian thought to discuss the popularization of philosophy in these three religious traditions of philosophy.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9782503577838
Publisher:	Brepols Publishers
Publication date:	03/02/2022
Series:	Philosophy in the Abrahamic Traditions of the Middle Ages , #3
Pages:	465
Product dimensions:	6.50(w) x 1.50(h) x 9.50(d)
Language:	Arabic

Table of Contents

General Introduction Marieke Abram Steven Harvey 9

Part I Introductory Remarks

1 Philosophy as Literature: Appraisal, Defence, and Satire of Rational Thought in Classical Arabic Poetry and Prose Gerhard Endress 37

2 Broadening the Audience for Philosophy among Medieval Jews Charles H. Manekin 61

3 Popularization of Philosophy in the Latin West: The Philosophical Opportunities of Popularization John Marenbon 75

Part II Popularization of Philosophy via Encyclopaedias of Philosophy and Science

4 Popularization of Philosophy via Encyclopaedias of Philosophy and Science: Introduction Steven Harvey 93

5 Anonymous Philosophical Compendia: An Attempt at Vulgarization? Elvira Wakelnig 109

6 Levels of Philosophical Sophistication in Medieval Hebrew Encyclopaedias of Philosophy and Science Resianne Fontaine 121

7 The Summa dictorum: A Theological-Philosophical Encyclopaedia for Monks Guy Guldentops 135

Part III Popularization of Philosophy via Books of Instruction

8 Popularization of Philosophy via Books of Instruction: Introduction Sarah Stroumsa 151

9 Between Popularity and Marginality: al-Batalyawsi's Book of Imaginary Circles Ayala Eliyahu 161

10 Ruah Hen: An Early Popular Hebrew Introduction to Science Ofer Elior 173

11 Medieval Philosophy of Nature Popularized? Albert the Great's De animalibus Katja Krause 185

Part IV Popularization of Philosophy via Mystical Literature

12 Popularization of Philosophy via Mystical Literature: Introduction Yossef Schwartz 203

13 Popularization of Philosophy in the Sufi Milieu: The Reception of Avicenna's Doctrine of the Origination of the Human Soul in 'Ayn al-Qudat al-Hamadani's Writings Salimeh Maghsoudlou 217

14 Myth and Metaphysics: The Popularization of Platonic and Neoplatonic Motifs through Kabbalistic Theosophy Tanja Werthmann 231

15 Popularized Philosophy in Hendrik Herp's Mystical Guide, the Spieghel der volcomenheit Marieke Abram 247

Part V Popularization of Philosophy via Scriptural Exegesis and Sermons

16 Popularization of Philosophy via Scriptural Exegesis and Sermons: Introduction Howard Kreisel 269

17 The Conception of Philosophical Problems in Fakhr al-Din al-Razi's Qur'an Commentary (Mafatih al-ghayb) and the Popularization of Philosophy Lukas Muehlethaler 283

18 Fifteenth-Century Synagogue Sermons Chaim Meir Neria 295

19 Approaching Wisdom: The 'Anonymous of Tegernsee' and his Translation of Bernard's Sermones super Cantica Canticorum Lydia Wegener 307

Part VI Popularization of Philosophy via Poetry

20 Popularization of Philosophy via Poetry: Introduction Anne Eusterschulte 323

21 Intellectual Poetry in the Medieval Islamicate World: Verse and the Popularization of Philosophical Knowledge M. A. Mujeeb Khan 337

22 The Road to Hell is Paved with Good Philosophers: The Ladder of Knowledge in Immanuel of Rome's Hell and Heaven Yehuda Halper 351

23 'Donna gentile': Philosophy in and around the Vita nuova Myrtha de Meo-Ehlert 363

Part VII Concluding Reflections

24 Religious Critique as a Popularization of Philosophy Frank Griffel 379

25 Jewish Averroists contra the Popularization of Philosophy: The Case of the Philosophists Shalom Sadik 389

26 Popular Philosophy is the True Philosophy Warren Zev Harvey 401

27 The Modern Popularization of Medieval Philosophy Peter Adamson 411

28 Some Remarks on Vulgarization of Philosophy in the Middle Ages Loris Sturlese 419

Index of Names, Ancient and Premodern 433

Index of Names, Modern and Contemporary 439

Index of Books, Ancient and Premodern 447

Index of Subjects 459

Editorial Reviews

"The volume will be of interest to specialists in the field who will welcome the case studies as well as the well-conceived effort to think systematically about what it may have meant to popularize what is perceived to be an elitist tradition. Specialists in adjacent fields will appreciate the opportunity to explore the relationship between different truth regimes, and those who teach these texts will find strategies to make unfamiliar texts a little more familiar to new readers." Akasoy, Anna, Church History, 19 March 2024

From the Publisher