The Concept of Nature in Jewish Thought: Origins and Evolution

As part of a large project to chart conceptions of nature in Judaism from antiquity to the present, this study focuses on the origins and development of the term ‘nature’ (in Hebrew, teva) in medieval Jewish thought. Contrary to the belief that the term ‘nature’ emerged as an abstract concept in western literature only in the 19th century, this study shows that the term physis originated with the ancient Greek philosophers and was fully in place in the writings of Aristotle for whom ‘physis’ signified the all that exists, and physics was understood as the “science of nature.” The study explores when the Aristotelian understanding of nature entered Jewish thought and how it shaped Jewish self-understanding. The project highlights the conceptual tension between the Aristotelian understanding of nature and the Jewish belief that God created the world and explains how medieval Jewish philosophers solved the tension. Committed to the methodology of intellectual history, the project explains how philosophic notions of ‘nature’ impacted non-philosophical genres in medieval Judaism such as secular poetry, medical texts, astrological works, or scientific texts. The study further highlights explores how the concept of nature changed overtime, reflecting the shifts from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. Special attention will be given to the relationship between philosophy and kabbalah (the Jewish mystical tradition), the interplay between Platonic, Neoplatonic, and Aristotelian schools of thought, and to understanding of the concepts such as “creation” and “emanation.” The project contributes to the overarching theme of “Humanities and Human Origins” by showing that inquiry about “origins,” especially the origins of the natural world, is not restricted to “science” and it is definitely not the purview of modern science. Rather, the quest for origins characterizes philosophy and religion from their earliest beginning among the ancient Greeks and the ancient Hebrews.