Revel Addresses Student Body on Rambam Halacha; Third Lecture of Series Works of Maimonides is by College Head (Vol.1, Issue 5)

Dr. Bernard Revel, Rosh Ha-Yeshiva, and President of the faculty of Yeshiva College, delivered the third of a series of lectures commemorating the eight hundredth anniversary of the birth of Maimonides, last Wednesday night before a large assemblage of” students, faculty members, and visitors gathered in the Dormitory Social Hall.

Dr. revel dwelt at length on several of the fundamental principles of the Maimonidean approach to Halacha. He advanced an interpretation of these principles that differed in many respects from that usually adopted by the Rambam’s commentators. Dr. Revel’s complete command of the vast field of Talmudic lore and his familiarity with every detail of Maimonides’ Halachic works were brought to bear in masterful manner to support his particular interpretation. 

Asserting that many misunderstandings of Maimonides’ philosophical assumptions can be traced either to his being read either in translation, or in the often imperfectly understood original, Dr. Revel regretted that the “Moreh Nevuchim” had not been written in Hebrew. “The meticulous care Maimonides exercised in his choice and use of words and expressions in the Mishneh Torah, undoubtedly characterized the ‘Guide To The Perplexed’ as well,” declared the speaker. “It is our failure to appreciate the niceties of language employed in the ‘Guide To The Perplexed’, as we fo that of the ‘Mishne Torah’ that has resulted in so many misunderstandings of its basic philosophical principles.”