00c Judasim i-xii 8/11/10 13:01 Page i Oliver Leaman is Professor of Philosophy and Zantker Professor of Judaic Studies at the University of Kentucky. His many books include: Evil and Suffering in Jewish Philosophy (1995); Moses Maimonides (1997, revised edition); Averroes and his Philosophy (1997, second edition), An Introduction to Classical Islamic Philosophy (2001); The Cambridge Companion to Medieval Jewish Philosophy (edited with D Frank, 2003); and Jewish Thought: An Introduction (2006). ‘Judaism: An Introduction is a balanced and engaging introduction to Judaism and Jewish life. By avoiding tedious academic arguments and going right to the point of the issue, Oliver Leaman engages the general reader as well as college students who are interested in the Jewish journey. In doing so, Leaman presents the ebb and flow of Jewish life, with its issues, arguments and hopes, in a readable form. I highly recommend it.’– Marc H Ellis, University Professor of Jewish Studies, Baylor University ‘This contemporary introduction to Judaism is well written, engaging, and easily accessible to students. Particularly valuable is Oliver Leaman’s treatment of “issues” at the end of the book. He is able to cover a wide range of important and current topics – from Israel to blood libel to the question of race – that any student of the Jewish tradition would find to be of interest. His writing maintains the complexity of the issue while also being straightforward and clear. All in all, the book is a wonderful and welcome addition to the literature.’–Claire Katz, Associate Professor of Philosophy and Women’s Studies, Texas A&M University ‘In Judaism: An Introduction, Oliver Leaman offers lecturers, students and general readers a lively and highly original approach to understanding the manifold aspects of Jewish history and religion. His book is a superb introduction to the experience of being Jewish, as well as to the Jewish tradition.’–Susannah Heschel, Eli Black Professor of Jewish Studies, Dartmouth College 00c Judasim i-xii 4/11/10 13:09 Page ii I.B.TAURIS INTRODUCTIONS TO RELIGION In recent years there has been a surge of interest in religion and in the motivations behind religious belief and commitment. Avoiding over- simplification, jargon or unhelpful stereotypes, I.B.Tauris Introductions to Religion embraces the opportunity to explore religious tradition in a sensitive, objective and nuanced manner. A specially commissioned series for undergraduate students, it offers concise, clearly written overviews, by leading experts in the field, of the world’s major religious faiths, and of the challenges posed to all the religions by progress, globalization and diaspora. Covering the fundamentals of history, theology, ritual and worship, these books place an emphasis above all on the modern world, and on the lived faiths of contemporary believers. They explore, in a way that will engage followers and non-believers alike, the fascinating and sometimes difficult contradictions or reconciling ancient tradition with headlong cultural and technological change. ‘I.B.Tauris Introductions to Religion offers students of religion something fresh, intelligent and accessible. Without dumbing down the issues, or making complex matters seem more simple than they need to be, the series manages to be both conceptually challenging while also providing beginning undergraduates with the complete portfolio of books that they need to grasp the fundamentals of each tradition. To be religious is in the end to be human. The I.B.Tauris series looks to be an ideal starting point for anyone interested in this vital and often elusive component of all our societies and cultures.’ – John M Hull, Emeritus Professor of Religious Education, University of Birmingham ‘The I.B.Tauris Introductions to Religion series promises to be just what busy teachers and students need: a batch of high-quality, highly accessible books by leading scholars that are thoroughly geared towards pedagogical needs and student course use. Achieving a proper understanding of the role of religion in the world is, more than ever, an urgent necessity. This attractive-looking series will contribute towards that vital task.’ –Christopher Partridge, Professor of Religious Studies, Lancaster University ‘The I.B.Tauris series promises to offer more than the usual kind of humdrum introduction. The volumes will seek to explain and not merely to describe religions, will consider religions as ways of life and not merely as sets of beliefs and practices, and will explore differences as well as similarities among specific communities of adherents worldwide. Strongly recommended.’ – Robert A Segal, Professor of Religious Studies, University of Aberdeen Please see the back of the book for the full series list 00c Judasim i-xii 8/11/10 13:01 Page iii U.P.[O\YUZ UW[YXR\Q[UXWZ [X YSVUTUXW Judaism An Introduction by Oliver Leaman 00c Judasim i-xii 29/7/10 15:49 Page iv For Renée and Robert Published in 2011 by I.B.Tauris & Co Ltd 6 Salem Road, London W2 4BU 175 Fifth Avenue, New York NY 10010 www.ibtauris.com Distributed in the United States and Canada Exclusively by Palgrave Macmillan 175 Fifth Avenue, New York NY 10010 Copyright © 2011 Oliver Leaman The right of Oliver Leaman to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by the author in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. This book, or any part thereof, may not be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. I.B.Tauris Introductions to Religion ISBN: 978 1 84885 394 2 (HB) ISBN: 978 1 84885 395 9 (PB) A full CIP record for this book is available from the British Library A full CIP record is available from the Library of Congress Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: available Designed and Typeset by 4word Ltd, Bristol, UK Printed and bound by TJ International Ltd, Padstow, Cornwall 00c Judasim i-xii 26/7/10 13:15 Page v Contents Preface vii Abbreviations and Technical Details xi Chapter I: The Bible in Jewish History 1 Chapter II: Exile 33 Chapter III: Conflict and Survival 63 Chapter IV: What Jews Do 95 Chapter V: Festivals and Rites of Passage 125 Chapter VI: Issues 163 Illustration, Map and Picture Credits 229 Bibliography 233 Index 245 00c Judasim i-xii 26/7/10 13:15 Page vi 00c Judasim i-xii 26/7/10 13:15 Page vii Preface In many ways I am not a good person to write an introduction to Judaism, or indeed any religion, since I do not think that religions have essences in the sense of beliefs and principles that define them. I think that religions are much looser collections of ideas and practices and can encompass a wide range of doctrines and beliefs, and that makes it tough to write an introduction. It is much easier if one can just specify what the principles of a religion are and then derive the consequences from them. Despite this difficulty, I hope that readers will find something of interest in this account. It is untidy in the sense that I include a whole variety of views and actions as being Jewish which others might exclude, and constantly raise the issue of how we define things as Jewish and what the point of that process really is. I have written several books on religion and in them I do tend to take a much more permissive attitude to what counts as reli- gious, and as part of the religion, than is often the case, which I think has the advantage of reflecting reality, but undoubtedly also has the disadvantage of being messy. I certainly have not included every piece of information on Judaism in this book, though occasionally I have gone into a fair amount of detail to represent something of the richness of the tradition that is involved in these areas of religious life. I teach a course every year on Judaism at my university and have looked in vain for a book I could use which would serve as an appropriate textbook for the sorts of things I like to talk about, and so in the end I thought I would write one myself. A few years ago I wrote Jewish Thought: An Introduction, which covers some of the theoretical issues I discuss in my course. In that book I wrote quite a lot on Judaism’s relations with the other religions and with other systems of thought, and thought it would be useful to have a book that looked a bit more closely at the main ideas that arise in Judaism, but that also tried to put them into the context of their historical and 00c Judasim i-xii 26/7/10 13:15 Page viii viii Judaism: An Introduction cultural environment. This is what I have tried to do here, and yet the emphasis is still very much on those ideas and how they often remain at the forefront of discussions among Jews and between Jews and others even today. I pay especially close attention to the Talmud and the whole commentary tradition in Judaism, since I think it brings out a lot that is interesting about the religion and how it has developed. On the other hand, I am very aware of the problems in using bits of theology to try to make points about a religion, since it is all too easy to select a passage here and there to make almost any point one wants to make, and that is hardly very illuminating about the religion, though rhetorically it may be very effective.