Torah UMadda (Hebrew תורה ומדע - "Torah and (secular) knowledge/science") is a philosophy of Modern Orthodox Judaism, concerning the interelationship between the secular world and Judaism, and in particular between secular knowledge and Jewish knowledge. The resultant mode of Orthodox Judaism is referred to as "Centrist Orthodoxy".

Philosophy

Torah Umadda, as formulated today, is to a large extent a product of the teachings and philosphy of Joseph Soloveitchik (1903-1993), Rosh Yeshiva at Yeshiva University. “The Rav” articulated a paradigm which allowed for a "synthesis" between Torah scholarship and Western, secular scholarship; see further on Rav Soloveitchik’s Philosophy and below. Torah Umadda remains closely associated with Yeshiva University.

Torah and secular knowledge

In the view of Torah UMadda, "Jewishness and Jewish faith.. and the universal concerns and preoccupations of humanity" are not "fundamentally inapposite"; Judaism and culture are, "in essence part of one continuum". Jewish knowledge and secular knowledge, Torah and Madda, do not, therefore, require "substantive reconciliation", in fact, the study of Torah with other knowledge results in a heightened and enriched Judaism. As articulated by Rabbi Norman Lamm: "Torah ... on the one side and worldly knowledge... on the other, together offer us a more over-arching and truer vision than either one set alone. Each set gives one view of the Creator as well as of His creation, and the other a different perspective that may not agree at all with the first ... (but) both together present the possibility of a larger truth."

Synthesis

Although Torah UMadda regards science and religion as separate, where the "wisdom of the world" maintains its own domain of significance, it nevertheless conceives of a "synthesis" between the two realms. In Torah UMadda "the integration of secular knowledge with sacred wisdom" takes place "within the personality of the individual". Thus, the realization of Torah UMadda may find "different legitimate expressions in each individual". The philosophy recognizes the challenge this is likely to pose to its adherents, and posits a framework in which "the confrontation between Judaism and secular culture results in heightened creativity within Judaism".

Centrality of Torah

Despite the simultaneous acceptance of both Torah and secular knowledge and culture, the philosophy demands "unquestioned allegiance to the primacy of Torah, and that the apprehension of all other intellectual disciplines must be rooted and viewed through the prism of Torah". In the words of Lamm, "Torah Umadda does not imply ... coequality. Torah remains the unchallenged and preeminent center." Lamm is careful to point out that Torah UMadda demands strict adherence to Halakha ("Jewish law"). "Not a single fundamental of Judaism has been disturbed by us, we adhere to the same ikkarim ("principles of faith"), we are loyal to the same Torah, we strive for the same study of Torah and observance of mitzvot that our parents and grandparents before us cherished throughout the generations."

Other paradigms

Another model of Torah Umadda, less emphasized in Modern Orthodox literature, de-stresses the intellectual role of Madda. Rather, to some degree, "the theories and methods of secular disciplines [can] be used to secure not intellectual ends, but practical ends in [daily life]." God's blessing to Adam and Eve "Fill the land and conquer it" (Genesis 1:28) is interpreted by Rav Soloveitchik (as well as Samson Raphael Hirsch and Isaac Breuer ) as a positive Mitzvah calling man to develop and improve God's world; this Mitzvah of creative activity expresses the Divine image in all branches of human culture [1]. Thus, secular knowledge enables the religious Jew "to fulfill the biblical mandate of 'Fill the land and conquer it'… to carry out their responsibilities to others and, further, by increasing the modalities for improving human welfare, to expand the range of these responsibilities; and, finally, to fulfill the mandate of imitatio Dei."

Relationship with Torah im Derech Eretz

Torah im Derech Eretz - "Torah with worldly involvement" - is a philosophy of Orthodox Judaism which formalises a relationship between Torah Judaism and the modern world, first articulated by Samson Raphael Hirsch in c. 1840. In some senses the two philosophies are largely similair - both value the acquisition of secular knowledge, coupled with adherence to halakha. The two are distinct though, in that in the Hirschian view, the acquisition of secular culture and knowledge is (largely) functional, whereas here, "the study of worldly wisdom is not a concession to economic necessity, it is de jure not de facto"; see further below.

Criticism

Ultra Orthodoxy / Haredi Judaism

Critics of Torah Umadda – particularly within the Haredi camp - see the "complementarity" of Torah and secular knowledge proposed by the philosophy, as suggesting that the Torah is not of itself whole or complete; in their view, Torah Umadda is thus premised on a flawed appreciation of Torah. They hold further, that Torah Umadda is problematic in that its synthesis allows for an "encroachment" of the scientific worldview on Jewish theology; Torah Umadda thus represents a dilution of the "pure sanctity" (taharat hakodesh) of the Torah.

Neo-Orthodoxy

Critics within Neo-Orthodoxy, the movement directly descended from Hirsch’s Frankfurt community, point out that whereas "Hirsch's fight was not for balance and not for reconcilement, nor for synthesis and certainly not for parallel power, but for domination", Torah Umadda posits a relationship between Torah and secular, which, in fact results in a diminution in the status of Torah. Thus, the distinction between the two approaches, though subtle, is such that Shimon Schwab , second Rabbi of this community in the United States, is described as being "spiritually very distant" from Yeshiva University. See further discussion in Torah im Derech Eretz.

Modern Orthodoxy

Although not directly critical, some on the right of the Religious Zionist Movement differ with Torah Umadda in its approach to secular knowledge. In this view – a variant on “practical madda” above – engagement with the secular is permissible, and encouraged, but only insofar as this benefits the State of Israel (based on Numbers 33:53, per Ramban). Here, secular knowledge has a practical, as opposed to philosophical value; thus, for example, the study of engineering or medicine is deemed valuable, whereas the study of literature and the humanities is discouraged.

Within the Torah Umadda camp itself, there are those who note that “the very logic of the practice is far removed from the ideology”, thus there are questions raised as to whether “the literature on Torah u-Madda with its intellectually elitist bias fails to directly address the majority of its practitioners.” The “Torah u-Madda suburbanite” does not in reality study high culture in order to achieve an intellectual synthesis, but rather “view[s] a college degree as the gateway toward professional advancement.” Thus, although Torah u-Madda may allow Yeshiva University students “to navigate the use of their college years”, it may not provide a sufficient “theology for the family in contemporary America”.

History

Torah Umadda is closely associated with Yeshiva University. The actual philosophy underlying the combination of Torah and secular wisdom at Yeshiva University was variously articulated, first by Rabbi Dr. Bernard Revel , by his successors Rabbi Dr.Samuel Belkin and Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik, and most recently, and formally, by Rabbi Dr. Norman Lamm. It was only as recently as 1946, however, that the University adopted "Torah Umadda" as its slogan. Today, Yeshiva University publishes the Torah Umadda Journal which "explores the complex relationships between Torah, the humanities, and the natural and social sciences", as well as studies on related topics in the Library of Jewish Law and Ethics (with Ktav Publishing House).

The phrase itself is thought to originate with Jonathan Eybeschutz , who mentions "Torah u-Madda" in his Yaarot Devash. This use of "Madda" as "secular knowledge" is, however, recent. In Rabbinic literature, "secular knowledge" is usually referred to as chokhmah חכמה. The first book in Maimonides' compendium of Halakha, the Mishneh Torah, is entitled "Madda" מדע - there, though, the term refers to knowledge of the fundamentals of Judaism. "In the first book I will include all the commandments that are principles of the law of Moses and that a man should know before all else, such as the Unity of God and the prohibitions related to idolatry. And I have called this book Sefer ha Madda the Book of Knowledge."

References

• Torah Umadda, Rabbi Dr Norman Lamm, Pub. Jason Aronson, 1990, ISBN 0876688105
• Torah Umadda Revisited (PDF), Rabbi Jacob Schachter
• Some Comments on Centrist Orthodoxy (JPG) Rabbi Dr Norman Lamm
• American "Centrist" Orthodoxy, Prof. Eliezer Segal
• Orthodox Judaism and The Liberal Arts, Rabbi Shalom Carmy
• Dilemmas of modern orthodoxy: sociological and philosophical, Prof. Chaim Waxman, Judaism, Winter, 1993
• Practical Endeavor and the Torah u-Madda Debate (PDF) Dr. David Shatz
• "Torah u'Maddah" and "Torah and Derech Eretz", Rabbi Shlomo Riskin
• Diverse Orthodox Attitudes to Torah U'Maddah, Rabbi Saul J. Berman, Edah
• Torah Im Derech Eretz, Rabbi Aryeh Carmell
• Judaism in Culture: Beyond the Bifurcation of Torah and Madda, Rabbi Alan Brill
• Contemporary Fads and Torah u-Madda: A Response to Alan Brill, Rabbi Yitzchak Blau
• Religious Zionism: Between Openness and Closedness, Prof. Avi Saguy

Resources

• Torah u'Maddah Journal
  • Articles by topic
  • Articles by author

• The Library of Jewish Law and Ethics
  • Halakhah and Politics: The Jewish Idea of the State, ISBN 0881251291
  • Economics and Jewish Law, ISBN 0881251062
  • Economic Public Policy and Jewish Law, ISBN 0881254371
  • Judaism and Psychology: Halakhic Perspectives, ISBN 0870687034
  • Business Ethics: A Jewish Perspective, ISBN 0881255823
  • Contemporary Halakhic Problems (4 vols), ISBN 0870684507, ISBN 0881254746, ISBN 0881253154, ISBN 087068275X
  • Jewish Woman in Jewish Law, ISBN 0870683292
  • Holocaust and Halakhah, ISBN 0870682962
  • Medicine in the Bible and the Talmud, ISBN 0881255068