Division 1: Biblical Thought – Question 2
According to Kaufmann, the basic characteristic of monotheism in Israelite religion, is the idea that God is supreme over all: There is no realm above him or beside him to limit his absolute sovereignty. God is utterly distinct from and other than the world and is subject to no laws or powers that transcend him. On this view, the central mark of monotheism is sovereignty, rather than arithmetical oneness. By contrast, paganism assumes a realm of being prior to the gods and above them, a realm upon which the gods depend and whose decree they must obey.
Regarding the emergence of monotheism, the views of more recent scholars conflict with that of Kaufmann on two main issues.
Division 2: Medieval Jewish Thought – Question 4
Maimonides' three major innovations:
First: The struggle against idolatry must take place not in the realm of external plastic representations but rather in that of internal, mental representation. In this struggle the main challenge is the tendency to think and talk about God in human terms, thereby attributing to him human qualities. Maimonides' suggestion for a way to meet this difficulty is that religious language should be understood as symbolic or allegorical.
Division 3: Modern Jewish Thought – Question 5
The attitudes towards Zionism and the Jewish state taken by R. Kook, on the one hand, and by the ultra-orthodox movement, on the other, are similar in that both judge and evaluate them in terms of their religious significance. These attitudes of both ideological currents can be understood as consisting of three main components. First, historical determinism: Viewing history as the unfolding of a pre-determined plan. Second, Essentialism (with regard to the idea of a Jewish state): An understanding of the idea of a Jewish state as the political embodiment of some ideal notion of the Jewish people.
