[Avodah] Rambam Prophesy

[Micha Berger]

While on the subject of Rambam and nevu'ah, his position is unlike many
other rishonim in another way. At least, according to the Abarbanel on
Moreh 2:42. Since most people don't own a MN with Abarbanel (nor with
Abravanel), here's a HebrewBooks.org link to the first page of the coverage
https://hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=30672&st=&pgnum=79 .

The Abarbanel answers the Ramban's question on the Rambam on parashas
Vayeira (roughly): How can the Rambam say that Avraham saw the malakhim
in a prophetic vision, if the malakhim then go on to do some very real-world
things, like save Lot?

According to the Rambam, things seen in prophecy really occur. They are
visions of events happening in higher planes of reality. The prophet's
mind and pen may make sense of the vision by interpreting its contents
as things familiar from normal sensory experience, but the event seen
is both non-physical and real. This is consistent with the Rambam's
position on the vision of Hashem in a Throne in Mishpatim. Nevu'ah means
experiencing something real, even if your perception mechanisms are then
forced to clothe it in the familiar. And since G-d does not have a body in
any plane of existence, not even a metaphysical "body", their vision had
to be of kevod Hashem, something created.

The Ramban, on the other hand, understands prophecy to be the relaying of
a message by the medium of a metaphor. The message relays a truth, but
the vision is not of something real, it is a kind of communication. He,
therefore, is not bothered by the idea that the metaphor they were given
the message in was an anthropomorphic one, that of Hashem sitting on
a throne. But, he couldn't understand how symbols of a message could save
Lot.

Derashos haRan, who many cite for his similarlities to the Rambam on
the difference between nevu'ah and Moshe's nevu'ah, actually is on
the Ramban's side on this. (The Ramban lived in Girona 50 years before
the Ran. The Ran ends up in Barcelona, but in general draws from the
shalsheles of the Ramban, Rashba and Ritva a lot.)


Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger                 It's nice to be smart,
http://www.aishdas.org/asp   but it's smarter to be nice.
Author: Widen Your Tent                      - R' Lazer Brody
- https://amzn.to/2JRxnDF