Maimonides Quotes

“The self-control of passion, the reshaping of his image of the world, the elimination of the sense of merit, the change of language, the effect of his profession on the structure of his life, all hint at the depth of this crisis.”
― Abraham Joshua Heschel, Maimonides: A Biography

“So far, Maimonides had penned all his writings and letters in the Arabic which the Jews in Spain, North Africa, Egypt, Syria, and Persia were using at that time. However, like nearly all Jewish–Arabic authors, he employed the Hebrew alphabet.”
― Abraham Joshua Heschel, Maimonides: A Biography

“All thinking men,” Maimonides now claimed, “are rendered perplexed and helpless by experiences like those of Job, so that in regard to God’s knowledge and providence one may say that sometimes the blameless, perfect man, whose dealings are upright and who eschews all sin, may be struck by heavy, unexpected, and uninterrupted evils—to wit, concerning his property, his children, and his body—and this may happen through no fault of his own.”7 Maimonides himself was scarcely in the mood of a Job.”
― Abraham Joshua Heschel, Maimonides: A Biography

“the wise.5 This view had been the fundamental feature of his image of the world and the basis of his conduct in life. It justified the structure of his economic existence. He could permit his livelihood to be assured by his brother’s strenuous and dangerous work, so that Maimonides could devote himself to realizing his plans in peace and quiet. This view also had a place in his self-confidence and probably aroused a certain awareness of the relationship of providence to his own life.”
― Abraham Joshua Heschel, Maimonides: A Biography