The Wars of The Lord Volume Three Author:Levi Ben Gershom, Levi Ben Gershom The Wars of the Lord is the major treatise of Levi ben Gershorn of Provence (1288-l344), one of the outstanding philosophers of the medieval world. The work, an unparalleled achievement of Jewish thought, is devoted to a demonstration that the Torah, properly understood, is identical to true philosophy. Volume Three concludes this work with a t... more »ranslation of the two longest books of the treatise: Books Five and Six, each of which consists of several parts. In Book Five, the focus is clearly celestial: even when Gersonides discusses earthly matters, such as biological reproduction, he is primarily concerned with the influences of the heavenly domain upon terrestrial phenomena. In Part Three of Book Five, he even explores the domain of separate intelligences, some of which are called "angels" in popular religious literature. It is in this section that one finds Gersonides's most systematic discussion of the nature of God. Book Six focuses on one of the most controversial questions in medieval philosophy: the creation of the universe. Beginning with a critique of various cosmological theories in ancient and medieval literature, Gersonides goes on to develop his own theory of creation, which diverges markedly from most of his Jewish philosophical predecessors such as Saadia Gaon and Maimonides. His theory borrows heavily from Greek thought, particularly from Plato. Other issues discussed in this book include time and infinity, and the role of miracles in prophecy. Whereas Volumes One and Two focus primarily on human affairs-the intellect and its immortality, and Cods relationship with humanity-this last volume has a much wider scope: Gods relationship with the entire Universe. Also contained in this volume are an Appendix by Tzvi Langermann on Gersonides and Astrology, plus a bibliography, a critical apparatus, and a cumulative index. This is the first complete modern-language rendering of Gersonides's fourteenth-century masterpiece. Volumes One and Two will soon be available from JPS in a single combined volume.« less