But the subjects treated are the same--the nature of God
and His attributes, His relation to the universe and man, the manner
of the creation, and the way of righteousness.
Maimonides, who is in form more loyal to Jewish tradition, is to a
larger degree than Philo dependent on authority for the philosophical
ideas which he applies to religion. To a great extent this is due to
the spirit of his age, for in the Middle Ages not only was the matter
of thought, but also its form, accepted on authority, and Aristotle
ruled the one as imperiously as the Bible ruled the other. The
differences of form and substance do not, however, obscure the
essential likeness with Philo's interpretation of Judaism. With him
Maimonides holds that the essential nature of God is incognizable.[332]
No positive predication can properly be applied to Him, but we know
Him by His activities in relation to man and the world, _i.e._, by His
attributes or by what Philo called His powers. Maimonides does not
preserve the absolute monarchy of the Divine government, but places
between God and man intermediate beings with subordinate creative
powers--the separate intelligences of the stars, which are identified
with the angels of the Bible.[333] But he maintains inviolate the sole
causality of God and His immanence in the human soul.
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