Sacred Fragments SACRED FRAGMENTS Recovering Theology for the Modern Jew NEIL GILLMAN Original copyright © 1990 by Neil Gillman First edition All rights reserved Sacred fragments: recovering theology for the modern Jew / Neil Gillman. p. cm. Bibliography: p. Clothbound ISBN ––– Paperback ISBN ––– . Judaism—Doctrines. . Judaism–th century. . Philosophy, Jewish. I. Title. BM.G  .—dc – CIP For Abby and Debby with abiding love Contents Acknowledgments xi Introduction xv I REVELATION:WHAT REALLY HAPPENED?  II RELIGIOUS AUTHORITY:WHO COMMANDS?  III KNOWING GOD: HOW AND WHAT?  IV TALKING ABOUT GOD: SYMBOLIC LANGUAGE  V SENSING GOD’S PRESENCE: EMPIRICISM  VI PROVING GOD’S EXISTENCE: RATIONALISM  VII ENCOUNTERING GOD: EXISTENTIALISM  VIII SUFFERING:WHY DOES GOD ALLOW IT?  IX RITUAL:WHY DO WE NEED IT?  X THE END OF DAYS:WHAT WILL BE?  Afterword: Doing Your Own Theology  Index  “Thereupon the Lord said to me, ‘Carve out two tablets of stone like the first, and come up to Me on the mountain; and make an ark of wood. I will inscribe on the tablets the commandments that were on the first tablets that you smashed, and you shall deposit them in the ark.’ ” —Deuteronomy :– “Rabbi Joseph taught: ‘. . . that you smashed, and you shall deposit them. . .’ teaches us that both the tablets and the fragments of the tablets were deposited in the ark.” —Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Baba Bathra b