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Preface to the Paperback Edition Arthur A. Cohen died on the 31st of October 1986. Although severely enfeebled by disease for nine months-a period coinciding with the last stage of this volume's preparation-he diligendy saw the manuscript to press. A former publisher and a master editor, he attended to every detail with consummate care. A bound copy of the volume reached Arthur less than a week before his death. Graced with a prodigious capacity for friendship, Arthur regarded this volume as principally an act of sharing-a sharing with the panicipants of the volume (whom he deemed to be his colleagues in the deepest sense) and in a special way, with me, his co-editor. With a gende enthusiasm he introduced me to the joy and fantasy of publishing, of conceiving and creating a volume of such enormous dimensions. The actual process, of course, was often beset with tedious, vexing chores. Arthur taught me how to acknowledge frustration, and to bound back with renewed commitment. Through transcontinental post and occasional meetings-in New York City, Jerusalem and at "Los Tres Almendro5," Arthur's summer retreat in Mallorcahe shared with me his seasoned strategies of editing, illuminating the an of xii PREFACE TO THE PAPERBACK EDITION reading critically and helping an author recast his or her thoughts to achieve conceptual precision without a sacrifice of elegance. Arthur was a sympathetic editor who appreciated exuberance and rhetorical flourish, but he insisted ill maintaining a rigorous distinction between homily and intellectual passion, between sermon and theological reflection. He also insisted that we vigilantly guard against the confusion-which he held to be the bane of contemporary religiOUS discourse-of theological apologetics masquerading as theological argument. A fastidious man of the most refined intellectual and artistic taste, Arthur did not suffer fools lightly. But he was no intellectual snob; as in his friendships, he did not relate to individuals and their work through the prism of their credentials. He listened to each sympathetically, prepared to delight in the discovery of new inSight and understanding. This volume would thus be open to all who, regardless of rank and stature, had "something to say." As an editor-and as a human being-I grew under Arthur's affable tutelage. Arthur also saw this book as sponsoring the type of intellectual sharing that quickens genuine spiritual fellowship between thinking individuals. It was Arthur's hope that by bringing Jews of diverse theological opinion together in a forum of shared reflection, the volume would highlight that the bonds that ultimately bind the Jews are drawn not only by the imperatives of communal solidarity, but also a universe of discourse grounded in a shared spiritual heritage and concern. I thus regard this volume as Arthur's gift to me personally, and to all who wish to affirm Judaism as a spiritually and intellectually engaging discourse. May this volume serve to honor Anhur's blessed memory. Erev .Rosh Ha-Shanah 5748 Jerusalem Paul Mendes-Bohr ...

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