Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik and Maimonides

This chapter talks about the central role of Maimonides in the life and thought of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, which was attested as a moving autobiographical passage in his work titled And from There You Shall Seek. It describes Rabbi Soloveitchik as an independent thinker who had been deeply involved in European intellectual life before the Second World War but had not blindly adopted Maimonides' philosophical positions. It also mentions how Rabbi Soloveitchik agrees with Maimonides but presents his thought in sharp terms that often evoke resistance among his more traditional readers. The chapter reviews Maimonides' interpretation by Professor Isadore Twersky, Rabbi Soloveitchik's son-in-law. It analyses how Rabbi Soloveitchik presents Maimonides in a language acceptable to contemporary traditional Jews.