INTRODUCTION

TO THE

HISTORY OF HE-

BREW PHILO-

SOPHY.

I have no doubt that Hebrew philosophy philosophia Ebraeorum The author uses "philosophy" here in its classical sense: the systematic study of divine and natural truths. derives from Adam himself. For no one would rashly deny that he was endowed with the highest wisdom sapientia while he was still established in the state of innocence status innocentiae In Christian theology, this refers to the period before the Fall of Man, when humanity lived in perfect harmony with God.. He who was created in the image of God imago Dei could not fail to know God perfectly. That he possessed an intimate insight into the nature of created things is clear from his naming of them original: nominum impositione. This refers to the Book of Genesis, where Adam names the animals; scholars of this period viewed this not as a random act, but as a demonstration of Adam's perfect understanding of the "essence" of every creature.. As—