Erwin K Thomas

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks’ book on The Great Partnership presents readers with a predominantly Jewish perspective about the meaning of life. Sacks makes a comparison between the thinking of Athens and that of Jerusalem. He argues that philosophy and science although they have examined life’s burning questions weren’t able to answer them satisfactorily. This is where Sacks sees the importance of embracing the religion of Abrahamic monotheism. The writer explains that Judaism existed for over 4,000 years, and has influenced the Christian and Islamic faith traditions that constitute about half of the world’s believers. This he points out is an extraordinary achievement especially when Jewish culture is such a minority of the world’s population. Sacks said nations without God have failed, namely those during the Enlightenment, Soviet Union, Communist China, and North Korea. He argues only Abrahamic monotheism has endured to influence the structures of democracies all over the world. So Rabbi Sacks believes in having a new synthesis of religion and science, for societies to deal with the underlying problems of poverty, crime, ignorance, racism, consumerism, greed, and power. This synthesis he argues would be best for the future direction of the world.