Abstract

This paper explores Hermann Cohen's engagement with, and appropriation of, Maimonides to refute the common assumption that Cohen's endeavor was to harmonize Judaism with Western culture. Exploring the changes of Cohen's conception of humility from _Ethik des reinen Willens_ to the _Ethics of Maimonides_ and _Religion of Reason out of the Sources of Judaism_, this paper highlights the centrality of the collective Jewish mission to bear witness against the dominant order of Western civilization and philosophy in Cohen's Jewish thought.