1. Eichah (Lamentations) Rabbah 2:13 – What wisdom do the nations possess?
If someone tells you that there is wisdom amongst the nations, believe him. [If someone tells you] that there is Torah amongst the nations, do not believe him.
2. Rabbi Pinchas Stolper, Chanukah in a New Light, p. 43 (based on Rabbi Yitzchak Hutner, Pachad Yitzchak: Chanukah 4:6) – Whereas Greek wisdom builds its philosophy from the lessons of nature, the starting point of Jewish wisdom is the revelation of the Torah.
“There was an intense commitment by the Greeks to intellectual inquiry and an effort to understand the natural world. However, Greek philosophy and thought was dominated by their fixation on nature, where human choice plays no role. This intellectual fixation made it impossible for the Greeks to comprehend or appreciate the Jews’ Torah, which is totally rooted in the spiritual world created by God and sustained through human choice. While both Israel and the Greeks were highly intellectual, the Greeks viewed reality through the lens of the physical world where compulsion rules.” (Pachad Yitzchak)
Through their study of nature and the constellations, the Greeks saw the world as mechanical and automatic. They then extended the rules of nature to all aspects of life so that Greek wisdom and intellect inexorably led to the development of a philosophy that drove the Greeks to misunderstand and oppose Jewish intellectualism.
3a. Talmud Bavli, Berachot 58a – There are different blessings recited over Torah Sages and non-Jewish scholars.
הרואה חכמי ישראל אומר ברוך שחלק מחכמתו ליראיו.
חכמי עובדי כוכבים אומר ברוך שנתן מחכמתו לבריותיו [לבשר ודם]
One who sees an outstanding scholar of Torah wisdom recites, “Blessed are You, our God, King of the universe, Who separated from His wisdom to those who fear Him.”
One who sees a scholar of worldly wisdom recites, “Blessed are You, our God, King of the universe, Who gave from His wisdom to man.”
(ט) הָרוֹאֶה חָכָם גָּדוֹל בַּתּוֹרָה מִיִשְֹרָאֵל, מְבָרֵךְ, בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה ה' אֱלֹקֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם שֶׁחָלַק מֵחָכְמָתוֹ לִירֵאָיו, (לְפִי שֶׁיִשְֹרָאֵל הֵם חֵלֶק אֱלֹהּ וּדְבֵקִים בּוֹ, לָכֵן אוֹמֵר שֶׁחָלַק) וְהָרוֹאֶה חָכָם גָּדוֹל בְּחָכְמַת הָעוֹלָם מֵאֻמּוֹת הָעוֹלָם, מְבָרֵךְ בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה ה' אֱלֹקֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, שֶׁנָּתַן מֵחָכְמָתוֹ לְבָשָׂר וָדָם.
(9) When you see an outstanding Torah scholar in Israel, you should say: Baruch ata Adonoy Elokeinu melech ha'olam shechalak meichochmaso lirei'av,9According to the poskim, you should also say Shehecheyanu if you have not seen him for thirty days. (Mishnah Berurah 225: 1)[Blessed are You, Hashem, our God, King of the universe Who has apportioned of His knowledge to those who fear him]. (Because Israel is God's portion and clings to Him, the term "apportioned" is used.) When you see an outstanding scholar, renowned for secular knowledge,10Excluding gentile theologians. (Mishnah Berurah 224: 10) who is a gentile, you say: Baruch ata Adonoy Elokeinu melech ha'olam shenasan meichochmaso levasar vadam, [Who has given of his wisdom to human beings].
3b. Ma’adaney Yom Tov, Berachot 58a – The reason we recite the different blessings.
The reason that regarding outstanding Torah scholars [we recite “Who separated from His wisdom to those who fear Him”] is because their wisdom cannot reach the ultimate depth of Torah, since the Torah is infinite. Therefore the word used is chalak – “separated,” which means that it was a part of a greater entity. In contrast, the wisdom of the nations can ultimately be fully understood; therefore it is appropriate to use the language of matanah – a “gift,” as all wisdom was given to them to be fully comprehended.
4. Rabbi Chaim Friedlander, Sifsei Chaim, Vol. II, p. 66 – The difference in the quest for Torah wisdom in contrast to other forms of knowledge.
The Holy Torah is the revelation of God to the Jewish nation, in which He placed the ability to perfect man. Torah, as its name connotes, teaches man how to live; Torat Chaim means a complete life of good attributes and performing mitzvot in accordance with God’s Will. The purpose of Torah is not just to make a person wiser, but through it, one can ethically develop and educate himself to achieve perfection. Any wisdom that does not improve the human character is not classified as wisdom.
The nations of the world did not merit a Divine revelation of Torah. Therefore, their quest for knowledge is for the purpose of gaining wisdom alone and does not instruct man to perfect his character. They are also of the opinion that the purpose of knowledge is to advance man, meaning that through wisdom man will rule over nature and make it subservient to his needs in a more efficient way. However, this wisdom does not inherently improve a person’s character.