ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses David Hartman's view of relational theology. Looking at the titles of Hartman's books, one will readily note that they presuppose the existence of several types of Jewish theologies. Titles like A Heart of Many Rooms and Conflicting Visions are just two of many conspicuous examples that present competing modes of thought. The chapter on "Two Competing Covenantal Paradigms" in A Living Covenant is highly significant from this point of view. Equally important is the content of Israelis and the Jewish Tradition. Thus, Hartman does not work under the assumption that he is discovering or formulating "the" Jewish theology but rather chooses and articulates a Jewish theology while explicitly recognizing the existence of many other, competing Jewish theologies. David Hartman's project is distinctly anti-harmonistic. From this point of view, it is quite characteristic not only of the main source of his thought, rabbinic literature, but also of another central Jewish religious document: the Jewish prayer book (the siddur).
