Derekh Hashem (The "Way of God"), written in the 1730s, is a philosophical classic text systematizing the basic principles of Jewish belief regarding the existence of God, God's purpose in Creation, and the logical consequence of other concepts in Judaism, by Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto, the author of the well-known Mesillat Yesharim. Presented from an underlying Kabbalistic framework, yet presupposing no prior knowledge and without the use of Kabbalistic terminology, this work provides a foundation for understanding the worldview and ideas found in the Zohar, the writings of Isaac Luria (the Arizal) and other Kabbalistic and Hassidic works. The book is organized into four main sections: 1) the general basis of all existence, 2) God's Providence, 3) prophecy, and 4) religious observance. Events and Trends The Great Awakening - A Protestant religious movement active in the British colonies of North America Sextant invented (probably around 1730) independently by John Hadley in Great Britain and Thomas Godfrey in the American colonies World leaders Louis XV King of France (king from 1715 to 1774) George... These five broad types of question are not the only subjects of philosophical inquiry, and there are many overlaps between the categories which are subsumed within the discipline under the four major headings of Logic, Ontology, Epistemology, and Axiology. ... Judaism is the religion of the Jewish people. ... God is the term used to denote the Supreme Being ascribed by monotheistic religions to be the creator, ruler and/or the sum total of, existence. ... Creation is a doctrinal position in many religions which maintains that one or a group of gods or deities is responsible for creating the universe. ... Rabbi (Classical Hebrew רִבִּי ribbÄ«;; modern Ashkenazi and Israeli רַבִּי rabbÄ«) in Judaism, means teacher, or more literally great one. The word Rabbi is derived from the Hebrew root-word RaV, which in biblical Hebrew means great or distinguished, (in knowledge). In the ancient Judean schools the sages were addressed as רִבִּי (Ribbi... Moshe Chaim Luzzatto (also Moses Chaim, Moses Hayyim, also Luzzato) (1707-1746), also known by the Hebrew acronym as the RAMCHAL (also RAMHAL), was a prominent Italian Jewish rabbi, mystic, and philosopher best remembered today for his ethical treatise Mesillat Yesharim (Path of the Just). ... The work Mesillat Yesharim was composed by the influential Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzato (1707-1746) in 1740 when living in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, and published in the same city. ... Kabbalah (Hebrew קַבָּלָה reception, Standard Hebrew Qabbala, Tiberian Hebrew Qabbālāh; also written variously as Cabala, Cabalah, Cabbala, Cabbalah, Kabala, Kabalah, Kabbala, Qabala, Qabalah, Kaballah) is an interpretation (exegesis, hermeneutic) key, soul of the Torah (Hebrew Bible), or the religious mystical system of Judaism claiming an insight into divine nature. ... A world view, also spelled as worldview is a term calqued from the German word Weltanschauung (look onto the world). The German word is also in wide use in English, as well as the translated form world outlook. ... The Zohar (Hebrew זהר Splendor, radiance) is widely considered the most important work of Kabbalah, Jewish mysticism. ... Rabbi Isaac Luria (1534–July 25, 1572) was a Jewish scholar and mystic who was secretly believed by some to be the messiah (Mashiach ben Yossef to be more precise). ... Hasidic Judaism (Hebrew: Chasidut חסידות) is a Haredi Jewish religious movement. ... ... Divine Providence, or simply Providence, is a theological term which refers to the sovereignty, superintendence, or agency of God over events in peoples lives and throughout history. ... Prophecy, in a broad sense, is the prediction of future events. ...

External links and references

• References
  • First step on the ladder of ascent, Rabbi Avraham Greenbaum

• Resources
  • Hebrew Fulltext, daat.ac.il
  • Online classes, Rabbi Yaakov Feldman, torah.org
  • The Way of God, Transl. Aryeh Kaplan, Feldheim 1997. ISBN 087306769X