The Rabbi Who Defended Free Speech: A 16th Century Sage’s Message for Today

In 1571, as flames consumed forbidden books across Europe, an extraordinary Jewish sage in Prague was about to make a revolutionary stand for free speech. While Catholic authorities were creating their infamous Index of Prohibited Books and Protestant reformers were burning “heretical” texts, Rabbi Judah Loew ben Bezalel – known as the Maharal of Prague – would pen words that could have been written for today’s cancel culture wars.

Most Christians know the Maharal as the mystical rabbi who, according to legend, created the Golem of Prague – a clay creature brought to life to defend Jews from persecution. But his true legacy is far more powerful: in an age of religious warfare and censorship, he developed an astonishingly modern defense of free speech that speaks directly to both Jewish and Christian communities today.

The streets of 16th-century Prague were a tinderbox of religious tension. Catholic Habsburg kings ruled over mostly Protestant subjects, while Jews were caught precariously in between, twice expelled from the city only to return and rebuild. In this volatile atmosphere, the Jesuit Order was granted power to censor Jewish books, claiming to protect the faith from dangerous ideas.

It was against this backdrop that the Maharal made his remarkable stand. While religious authorities were silencing dissent with sword and fire, this Jewish sage offered a completely different perspective: “It is wrong to disqualify any matter that is opposed to one’s view when expressed for the sake of inquiry and knowledge… even if such words run counter to the belief and religion of the one who is in power.”

His argument would have shocked both Catholics and Protestants of his time: suppressing opposing viewpoints reveals weakness, not strength. “If he seals the other’s mouth and prevents him from speaking,” the Maharal wrote, “this only betrays the weakness of the religion in question.”

For modern readers, both Jewish and Christian, the Maharal’s insights cut to the heart of today’s cultural battles. When authors face cancellation for perceived offenses, when speakers are shouted down on college campuses, when social media mobs demand silence from those who disagree – his words ring with prophetic clarity.

Consider his metaphor of the warrior: A true champion, he argued, wants to face an opponent at full strength. Only by defeating an unrestrained adversary can victory be meaningful. “But what prowess does he show when his opponent is not allowed… to put up a fight against him?”

Even more remarkably, the Maharal insisted that even works arguing against fundamental religious beliefs – like pagan philosophers claiming the universe wasn’t created – should not be censored. Why? Because wrestling with opposing viewpoints strengthens and clarifies one’s own faith.

This wisdom resonates deeply with biblical tradition. Both Jewish and Christian scriptures show God engaging in dialogue with doubters and questioners. Abraham argues with God over Sodom. Job challenges divine justice. The Psalms are filled with questions and complaints. Thomas doubts the resurrection and is invited to investigate for himself.

The Maharal’s defense of free speech emerged from the Jewish people’s long experience with persecution. For two millennia, Jews had faced opponents who, lacking confidence in their own positions, resorted to force rather than reason. As Jewish novelist Vasily Grossman would later write, “Antisemitism is also an expression of a lack of talent, an inability to win a contest on equal terms.”

Today, as social media amplifies calls for cancellation and silence, the Maharal’s voice speaks across the centuries to both Jewish and Christian communities. His message is clear: True faith need not fear questioning. True strength welcomes challenge. True wisdom grows through engagement with opposing views.

For Christians, his teaching aligns with Paul’s admonition to “test everything; hold fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21). For Jews, it echoes the Talmudic tradition of vigorous debate and the principle that both majority and minority opinions should be preserved.

More than 400 years after the Maharal penned his defense of free speech, we face our own censors – not with swords and fire, but with tweets and cancellations. Whether it’s an author criticized for insensitive descriptions, a speaker deplatformed for unpopular views, or voices silenced for questioning prevailing narratives, his wisdom remains relevant.

The Maharal’s message transcends religious boundaries: The answer to offensive speech is not suppression but engagement. The response to wrong ideas is not silence but better ideas. The path to truth requires the courage to hear and wrestle with opposing views.

In our polarized age, as both Jewish and Christian communities grapple with internal debates and external challenges, the Maharal of Prague offers a powerful alternative to the impulse to silence and cancel. His legacy reminds us that true faith and genuine wisdom grow stronger, not weaker, through open dialogue and honest debate.