Jewish Ethics

The purpose of this study is to implement a comparative approach to investigate the interplay between religion and the rise of capitalism through the perspectives of Max Weber and Werner Sombart. By contextualizing their positions within the intellectual debates of their time, this study highlights their respective inclinations towards the Austrian School and the German Historical School. Weber's Neo-Kantian influences and Sombart's Hegelian roots further deepen the philosophical and epistemological divide between them. In the next step, the methodology and theories regarding the spirit of modern capitalism, religious motivation, and the future of capitalism are reflected. Weber's work, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, posits that Protestant ethics played a crucial role in the development of modern capitalism, emphasizing rationalization and ethical discipline. In contrast, Sombart's works, including Der Moderne Kapitalismus and Jews and Modern Economic Life, argue for a broader array of influences, integrating psychological, social, and cultural factors in shaping capitalist behavior and especially emphasizing the role of Judaism. The research underscores their contrasting views: Weber sees capitalism and Protestant ethics as singular phenomena with an elective affinity, while Sombart views capitalism as the manifestation of a modern capitalist spirit (Geist) influencing psychological incentives and broader social needs.

Every ethical system possesses at least six core elements: a theory of moral value, fundamental moral principles, rules of inference, incentives for adhering to ethical principles and rules, enforcement mechanisms for those principles and rules, and a justification for the necessity of being moral and for the validity of the said ethical system. This system is constructed and refined based on sources of moral knowledge and ethical foundations and is presented to its target society. Within this system, the theory of moral value is recognized as the principal element, upon which all other elements rely in some manner. Within Jewish ethical systems, two distinct theories are observed concerning the theory of moral value: "A deontological perspective and a teleological perspective. Some scholars currently argue that Jewish ethics is deontological and present reasoning for this position." This paper, with reference to the Tanakh (the Old Testament) and the foundations of ethics in Judaism, emphasizes the teleological viewpoint and critiques the arguments put forth by deontologists. The difference between these two perspectives has been notably evident in the conduct of the Zionist regime and its supporters over the past two years. From a deontological viewpoint, it is sufficient for a religious scholar to justify, based on their own interpretation, the massacre of the people of Gaza, Lebanon, Yemen, and Iran by citing a divine command; in this scenario, no rational, empirical or even emotional argument can prevent such crimes.