The Refutation of the Christian Principles


Book Description

During the fourteenth century, there was a general demoralization in the Jewish community in Spain. Many Jews were on the brink of conversion. Rabbi Crescas met the Christian challenge by writing this pithy book refuting the principles of the Christian religion. He argued that the basic Christian doctrines, namely, original sin, salvation, trinity, incarnation, virgin birth, transubstantiation, baptism, the messiah, a new covenant, and demons, contradict human reason, thereby calling into question Christianity's claim to be a true religion. The Refutation is an important document of the medieval Jewish-Christian debate and is also especially important for the history of Jewish philosophy in general.







Disproving Christianity and Other Secular Writings (2nd edition, revised)


Book Description

"Not only do I believe that it is possible to maintain moral standards without the crutch of religion but I would argue that it is the only way to achieve true goodness." Disproving Christianity and Other Secular Writings compiles popular and lesser-known arguments against the principles established by the Christian canon. Using a phenomenological approach to build his case based on in-depth study at the University of California, Santa Barbara McAfee analyzes the Hebrew Scriptures and New Testament doctrine to build a logical and reasonable case against their validity. From contradictions between lived and portrayed religions to factual errors within the texts themselves, no stone is left unturned in this fully updated and expanded refutation of Christianity.










Principles of Christian Morality


Book Description

A collection of essays by three giants of twentieth-cenutry theology: Joseph Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict XVI), Hans Urs von Balthasar, and Heinz Schurmann. Balthasar's and Schurmann's essays were written for the International Theological Commission. Schurmann examines how the New Testament's teaching provides enduring moral norms for Christian conduct. Balthasar presents nine basic principles of the Christian moral life. Ratzinger, who originally wrote this essay as a series of articles for L'Osservatore Romano, addresses the relationship between faith and morality, and the place of the Church's teaching authority with regard to moral issues. Learn more about Pope Benedict! Visit the




In Iberia and Beyond


Book Description

"This collection of articles is an attempt to get at the complexities of Sephardic history by bringing together scholars who approach the topic from quite different points of view and quite different methodologies. It includes twelve essays selected from those presented at a conference at the University of Maryland to mark the 500th anniversary of the expulsion of Jews from Spain." "The papers range chronologically from the eleventh to seventeenth centuries, and geographically from Spain to Italy and the Low Countries."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved




Refuting Compromise


Book Description

Many otherwise sound evangelical leaders, thinking that hte only misleading doctrine is "Darwinism," are being seduced by the promise of "progressive creationism." Its most prominent voice, astronomer Dr. Hugh Ross, has convinced many that here is a biblically sound way to accommodate the "facts of science." With brilliant clarity, Jonathan Sarfati, author of the best-selling Refuting Evolution (1 & 2) has produced a comprehensive and biblically-based refutation of progressive creationism. He addresses such issues as: death, bloodshed, and disease existed before Adam and Eve. True? ; Noah's flood was only a local event. Really? ; Man-like creatures existed before Adam and Eve, but had no spirit, and thus no salvation. Evidence? ; Six days or six ages? What does the biblical text actually say? -back cover.




Averroes and Averroism in Medieval Jewish Thought


Book Description

The Andalusian Muslim philosopher Averroes (1126–1198) is known for his authoritative commentaries on Aristotle and for his challenging ideas about the relationship between philosophy and religion, and the place of religion in society. Among Jewish authors, he found many admirers and just as many harsh critics. This volume brings together, for the first time, essays investigating Averroes’s complex reception, in different philosophical topics and among several Jewish authors, with special attention to its relation to the reception of Maimonides.




Reader's Guide to Judaism


Book Description

The Reader's Guide to Judaism is a survey of English-language translations of the most important primary texts in the Jewish tradition. The field is assessed in some 470 essays discussing individuals (Martin Buber, Gluckel of Hameln), literature (Genesis, Ladino Literature), thought and beliefs (Holiness, Bioethics), practice (Dietary Laws, Passover), history (Venice, Baghdadi Jews of India), and arts and material culture (Synagogue Architecture, Costume). The emphasis is on Judaism, rather than on Jewish studies more broadly.