THE LAW" and the LAW of CHANGE* (Concluded.)
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Regulating Communal Space: Mikvaot in Seventeenth-Century Altona
EMW - Workshops EMW 2010 EARLY MODERN WORKSHOP: Jewish History Resources Volume 7: Jewish Community and Identity in the Early Modern Period, 2010, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT Regulating Communal Space: Mikvaot in Seventeenth-Century Altona Debra Kaplan, Yeshiva University, USA ABSTRACT: Over the course of a few years in the latter half of the seventeenth century, the community of Altona made several changes in the administration of local ritual baths. A series of entries in the communal pinkas, or logbook, elucidates how the community raised funds from mikvaot, how lay and rabbinic leaders worked together, and how communal leaders regulated ritual space both in homes and in communal space. This presentation is for the following text(s): Communal Logbook of Altona (CAHJP AHW 14 [50]) Communal Logbook of Altona (CAHJP AHW 14 [90]) Communal Logbook of Altona (CAHJP AHW 14 [91]) Copyright © 2012 Early Modern Workshop 44 EMW - Workshops EMW 2010 EARLY MODERN WORKSHOP: Jewish History Resources Volume 7: Jewish Community and Identity in the Early Modern Period, 2010, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT Introduction Debra Kaplan, Yeshiva University, USA Introduction The texts presented here are all excerpts from the pinkas of Altona, held at the Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People, AHW 14. The communal pinkas, or record book, contains notes of some of the decisions issues by the parnassim, the lay leaders of the Jewish community. Altona, subject to the Danish king, was part of the triple Jewish community together with neighboring Hamburg and Wandsbeck. These three texts concern the policies of the parnassim towards local ritual baths, mikvaot. -
ONEIROCRITICS and MIDRASH on Reading Dreams and the Scripture
ONEIROCRITICS AND MIDRASH On Reading Dreams and the Scripture Erik Alvstad A bstr act In the context of ancient theories of dreams and their interpretation, the rabbinic literature offers particularly interesting loci. Even though the view on the nature of dreams is far from un- ambiguous, the rabbinic tradition of oneirocritics, i.e. the discourse on how dreams are interpreted, stands out as highly original. As has been shown in earlier research, oneirocritics resembles scriptural interpretation, midrash, to which it has lent some of its exegetical rules. This article will primarily investigate the interpreter’s role in the rabbinic practice of dream interpretation, as reflected in a few rabbinic stories from the two Talmuds and from midrashim. It is shown that these narrative examples have some common themes. They all illustrate the polysemy of the dream-text, and how the person who puts an interpretation on it constructs the dream’s significance. Most of the stories also emphasize that the outcome of the dream is postponed until triggered by its interpretation. Thus the dreams are, in a sense, pictured as prophetic – but it is rather the interpreter that constitutes the prophetic instance, not the dream itself. This analysis is followed by a concluding discussion on the analogical relation between the Scripture and the dream-text, and the interpretative practices of midrash and oneirocritics. he striking similarities between the rabbinic traditions of Scriptural exegesis, midrash, and the rabbinic practice of Tdream interpretation, -
Sanhedrin 053.Pub
ט"ז אלול תשעז“ Thursday, Sep 7 2017 ן נ“ג סנהדרי OVERVIEW of the Daf Distinctive INSIGHT to apply stoning to other cases גזירה שוה Strangulation for adultery (cont.) The source of the (1 ואלא מכה אביו ואמו קא קשיא ליה, למיתי ולמיגמר מאוב וידעוני R’ Yoshiya’s opinion in the Beraisa is unsuccessfully וכו ‘ ליגמרו מאשת איש, דאי אתה רשאי למושכה להחמיר עליה וכו‘ .challenged at the bottom of 53b lists אלו הן הנסקלין Stoning T he Mishnah of (2 The Mishnah later derives other cases of stoning from a many cases which are punished with stoning. R’ Zeira notes gezeirah shavah from Ov and Yidoni. R’ Zeira questions that the Torah only specifies stoning explicitly in a handful גזירה שוה of cases, while the other cases are learned using a דמיהם בם or the words מות יומתו whether it is the words Rashi states that the cases where we find . אוב וידעוני that are used to make that gezeirah shavah. from -stoning explicitly are idolatry, adultery of a betrothed maid . דמיהם בם Abaye answers that it is from the words Abaye’s explanation is defended. en, violating the Shabbos, sorcery and cursing the name of R’ Acha of Difti questions what would have bothered R’ God. Aruch LaNer points out that there are three addition- Zeira had the gezeirah shavah been made from the words al cases where we find stoning mentioned outright (i.e., sub- ,mitting one’s children to Molech, inciting others to idolatry . מות יומתו In any case, there .( בן סורר ומורה—After R’ Acha of Difti suggests and rejects a number of and an recalcitrant son גזירה possible explanations Ravina explains what was troubling R’ are several cases of stoning which are derived from the R’ Zeira asks Abaye to identify the source from which . -
Ideal" and "Real" in Classical Jewish Political Theory
IDEAL" AND "REAL" IN CLASSICAL JEWISH POLITICAL THEORY Gerald J.Blidstein This essay considers the degree to which Jewish political and legal ? ? theory allows and, indeed, mandates the recognition that the Torah legislates an ideal law which is not appropriate for situations of social and political stress, and the degree to which such situations are really the historical norm rather than the exception. The Talmud, it is shown, adum brates this concept, but in a fairly marginal form.Maimonides places it at center stage of societal governance, apparently expecting that a Jewish so ciety will of necessity be thrown back upon this option; but he also sug gests guidelines for its regulation. R. Nissim of Barcelona (fourteenth century) both expands the concept and also relaxes the Maimonidean re strictions on its use. This final form of the doctrine receives a thorough critique at the hands of Isaac Abrabanel; but it also serves as the linchpin for much contemporary argument for the legitimacy of Israeli legislation from a classical Jewish perspective. The relationship of law and political theory to reality, that is, to the actual doings of people in society and to the concrete problems faced by societies, is undoubtedly complex. Are law and political theory to are shape reality? Or is the reverse true, and both law and theory to take their cue from society? This, of course, is a very abstract formula tion of the issue. It is also an overly extreme and polarized formulation, for it is likely that the relationship of law and political theory to re ality is dynamic and indeed dialectical. -
Who Have Interested Tltemselves in the Endeavour to Acquire Any
TilE HALACHA AND THE HAGADA. ALL who have interested tltemselves in the endeavour to acquire any knowledge of the Talmud are aware that the Rabbis who have contributed to that strange· and enormous encyclop<edia of twelve folio volumes,. fa.ll into two schools-the Halachists and the Haga dists ; and although an Halachist might occasionally indulge himself in Hagadoth, and a Hagadist might sometimes distinguish himself in the Halacha, 1 yet the distinction between the two schools is so radical, that we cannot advance a step until it is completely grasped and understood. I. The origin, development, and intention of the HALACHA will, I think, be clear to any reader of my papers on the Oral Law in previous numbers of Tu1c: ExPOSITOR. 2 The word (of which the plural is Hilchoth or Halachoth) is derived from I-Ialak, "to walk," and simply means a rule, a decisive tradition, "the ultimate conclusion on a matter long debated.''3 No system of laws, and above all no system so brief as the Mosaic legislation in its earliest form, could possibly include all the vast varieties of human cir cumstance ; and since the law was regarded as in· finitely sacred in its minutest regulations, it was x For imtnnce, R. Levi Ben Sisi tried to unite the Ha gad a and the lblacha, as R. Jochnnan Den Zakkai had tried to do befo1e him. Hamburger, s. v. v. Agada and Jochanan. 2 February, March, and May, 1S77. 1 i1:~~i1, Halachah. "Apud Rahbinos et Thalmudi<:os est constitutio juri,, sententia, decisio, traditio decisa, et usu ac consuetudine recepta et approhata. -
Talmud from the Balcony Beyond the Limits of Law: Repairing the Fabric of Society
Talmud from the Balcony Beyond the Limits of Law: Repairing the Fabric of Society Session 5 The Original Tikkun Olam: Taking Legal Outcomes Seriously and Fixing the System Elana Stein Hain December 14, 2020 shalomhartman.org #hartmanathome Talmud From the Balcony Beyond the Limits of Law: Repairing the Fabric of Society Session 5: The Original Tikkun Olam Taking Legal Outcomes Seriously and Fixing the System Elana Stein Hain December 14, 2020 I. What Does Tikkun Ha-Olam Mean? 1 Mishnah Gittin 4:5 1 Isaiah 45:18; Targum Yonatan 1 Menachem Kahana, Mipnei Tikkun Ha-Olam, p. 37 2 Mishnah Gittin 4:3 3 Mishnah Shevi’it 10:3 3 Sagit Mor, “Tiqqun ‘olam (repairing the world) in the Mishnah: from populating the world to building a community,” Journal of Jewish Studies Vol. 62, no. 2, 2011, p. 284 3 II. What is the Controversy? 4 Babylonian Talmud Gittin 36a-b 4 The Shalom Hartman Institute is a leading center of Jewish thought and education, serving Israel and North America. Our mission is to strengthen Jewish peoplehood, identity, and pluralism; to enhance the Jewish and democratic character of Israel; and to ensure that Judaism is a compelling force for good in the 21st century. Share what you’re learning! #hartmanathome @SHI_america shalomhartmaninstitute hartmaninstitute 475 Riverside Dr., Suite 1450 New York, NY 10115 212-268-0300 [email protected] | shalomhartman.org Happy Chanukah! I. What Does Tikkun Ha-Olam Mean? Mishnah Gittin 4:5 מי שחציו עבד וחציו בן חורין עובד את רבו יום אחד ואת עצמו יום אחד כדברי בית הילל. -
Kelley Reviewed Work(S): Source: the American Historical Review, Vol
Gaius Noster: Substructures of Western Social Thought Author(s): Donald R. Kelley Reviewed work(s): Source: The American Historical Review, Vol. 84, No. 3 (Jun., 1979), pp. 619-648 Published by: Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Historical Association Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1855400 . Accessed: 09/11/2012 06:39 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp . JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. Oxford University Press and American Historical Association are collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to The American Historical Review. http://www.jstor.org Gaius Noster: Substructuresof Western Social Thought DONALD R. KELLEY "tu regereimperio populos, Romane, memento... GAIUS, THE MOST INFLUENTIAL OF CLASSICAL JURISTS, is apparently a modern discovery. The dramatic storyof his resurrectionhas oftenbeen told. In i8i6 the historian Barthold Georg Niebuhr came across a manuscript in Verona, a text from Saint Jerome writtenover a much earlier work. He reported this palimpsest (at some points ter scriptus,a double palimpsest) to his friend Friedrich Karl von Savigny, the greatest legal scholar of the age and the emerging leader of the so-called Historical School of Law. Savigny immedi- ately recognized it as the work of the second-centuryjurist Gaius, otherwise preserved only in fragmentaryform in that great sixth-centuryanthology, the Digestof Justinian. -
How Did Halacha Originate Or Did the Rabbis Tell a “Porky”?1 Definitions Written Law the Written Law Is the Torah Or Five Books of Moses
How Did Halacha Originate or Did the Rabbis Tell a “Porky”?1 Definitions Written Law The Written Law is the Torah or Five books of Moses. Also known from the Greek as the Pentateuch. (What status is the Tanach?) Oral Law An Oral Law is a code of conduct in use in a given culture, religion or community …, by which a body of rules of human behaviour is transmitted by oral tradition and effectively respected, ...2 lit. "Torah that is on the ,תורה שבעל פה) According to Rabbinic Judaism, the Oral Torah or Oral Law mouth") represents those laws, statutes, and legal interpretations that were not recorded in the Five lit. "Torah that is in writing"), but nonetheless are ,תורה שבכתב) "Books of Moses, the "Written Torah regarded by Orthodox Jews as prescriptive and co-given. This holistic Jewish code of conduct encompasses a wide swathe of rituals, worship practices, God–man and interpersonal relationships, from dietary laws to Sabbath and festival observance to marital relations, agricultural practices, and civil claims and damages. According to Jewish tradition, the Oral Torah was passed down orally in an unbroken chain from generation to generation of leaders of the people until its contents were finally committed to writing following the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE, when Jewish civilization was faced with an existential threat.3 Halacha • all the rules, customs, practices, and traditional laws. (Lauterbach) • the collective body of Jewish religious laws derived from the Written and Oral Torah. (Wikipedia) • Lit. the path that one walks. Jewish law. The complete body of rules and practices that Jews are bound to follow, including biblical commandments, commandments instituted by the rabbis, and binding customs. -
To View the Itinerary
9 Day, 8 Night - Return to the Land of Your Soul: A Kabbalistic Journey to Israel With Rabbi Rayzel Raphael and Rabbi Sarah Leah Grafstein May 4-12, 2016 Whether this is your first or tenth visit, take a fresh look at an ancient land with this groundbreaking spiritual pilgrimage to Israel. With a unique approach that accesses contemporary issues through personal storytelling and relationship-building, the tour features a diverse array of guides and speakers—Jewish, Christian, and Muslim, conservative, moderate and progressive. Explore the sacred sites of Jerusalem, Tiberias, and Tzfat, and join with Israelis in celebration of Shabbat, Rosh Chodesh, and Yom Ha’Atzmaut (Independence Day) and participate in national commemorations of Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Memorial Day) and Yom HaZikaron (Memorial Day). With time for intensive discussion, spiritual connections, and personal reflection, join us for this once-in-a-lifetime journey that will investigate the complex issues facing Israel, explore prospects for security and peace in the region, and celebrate the hospitality and vibrant cultures of the local communities. Day 1, Wednesday, May 4, 2016: Arrival • Group transfer from the airport to Neve Ilan. • Dinner at the hotel followed by an organized Memories@Home event with a Holocaust survivor for Yom Hashoah. Hotel: C Hotel Neve Ilan [D] Day 2, Thursday May 5 (Yom Hashoah): Judean Hills • Have a leisurely breakfast, consider a spa treatment, use the pool, and/or enjoy the hotel’s other amenities. • Regroup at 10:30 to meet the guide. To commemorate Yom Hashoah, begin with a visit the Scroll of Fire, one of the most beautiful sculptures in Israel, located in what is the single largest memorial to the Holocaust in the world, the Martyrs Forest comprised of six million trees – truly, a living memorial. -
Wage Theft and Consumer Boycotts -למען נחדל מעשק ידינו
Wage Theft and Consumer Boycotts -למען נחדל מעשק ידינו Morris Panitz, Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies Introduction: The Consumer Boycott as a Resistance Strategy Consumer boycotts are a resistance strategy that draws heavily on the foundational principles of civil disobedience.1 An individual engaged in an act of civil disobedience “seeks not only to convey her disavowal and condemnation of a certain law or policy, but also to draw public attention to this particular issue and thereby to instigate a change in law or policy.”2 The public sphere serves as the ideal forum for civil disobedience for two reasons. First, the target of the direct action is forced to confront the issue under the scrutiny of the public eye, thereby raising the stakes for how the issue is dealt with. Ideally, the public will hold the target accountable for its response to the act of civil disobedience. Second, the calculation on the part of the target of whether or not to meet the demands of the protestors is partially determined by the following generated by the act of civil disobedience. Thus, the public sphere helps attract further support to instigate a change in law or policy. Consumer boycott campaigns are “where citizens act collectively and use their purchasing power to achieve economic, social or political objectives….Consumers can use their purchasing power as a kind of vote that is capable, among other things, of educating corporate 1 I am grateful to Rabbis Elliot Dorff and Aryeh Cohen for their thoughtful teaching and editorial remarks that shaped the development of this essay. -
It Is Fitting That We Come Together Today, on the Day the Members Of
I would like to begin by thanking David Berger and the other Keshet organizers for allowing me to submit a paper to be read to you in my absence. I am, regrettably, unable to be in New York today, but am grateful for the honor of having been asked to participate in this way, nevertheless. My talk is entitled: Svara, Queers, and the Future of Rabbinic Judaism According to Masechet Sanhedrin [5a], there are two requirements for one who wants to exercise rabbinic authority—one must be both gamirna and savirna. Now, what do these Aramaic terms mean? Gamirna implies that one has to have amassed sufficient knowledge or learning. Basically, they gotta know their stuff. And savirna implies they have to have the ability to exercise svara. But what is this svara that is so crucial to functioning as a rabbi and to interpreting God’s will? It seems pretty straightforward: svara, the ability to be “savir,” “reasonable.” The capacity to reason. But, actually, svara is much more complicated, and, it turns out, is not only a prerequisite for those aspiring to rabbinic authority, but is probably the most significant source of Jewish law we have. After the destruction of the Second Temple, our founding Rabbis increased the number of places to which they could turn to discover God’s will—that is, the sources of Jewish Law—from one to five. In addition to our old standby—a verse in the Torah, which they called kra (and which legal scholars call midrash)—they added ma’aseh (precedent), minhag (custom), takkanah (legislation) and last but not least, svara. -
A Comparative Study of Jewish Commentaries and Patristic Literature on the Book of Ruth
A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF JEWISH COMMENTARIES AND PATRISTIC LITERATURE ON THE BOOK OF RUTH by CHAN MAN KI A Dissertation submitted to the University of Pretoria for the degree of PHILOSOPHIAE DOCTOR Department of Old Testament Studies Faculty of Theology University of Pretoria South Africa Promoter: PIETER M. VENTER JANUARY, 2010 © University of Pretoria Summary Title : A comparative study of Jewish Commentaries and Patristic Literature on the Book of Ruth Researcher : Chan Man Ki Promoter : Pieter M. Venter, D.D. Department : Old Testament Studies Degree :Doctor of Philosophy This dissertation deals with two exegetical traditions, that of the early Jewish and the patristic schools. The research work for this project urges the need to analyze both Jewish and Patristic literature in which specific types of hermeneutics are found. The title of the thesis (“compared study of patristic and Jewish exegesis”) indicates the goal and the scope of this study. These two different hermeneutical approaches from a specific period of time will be compared with each other illustrated by their interpretation of the book of Ruth. The thesis discusses how the process of interpretation was affected by the interpreters’ society in which they lived. This work in turn shows the relationship between the cultural variants of the exegetes and the biblical interpretation. Both methodologies represented by Jewish and patristic exegesis were applicable and social relevant. They maintained the interest of community and fulfilled the need of their generation. Referring to early Jewish exegesis, the interpretations upheld the position of Ruth as a heir of the Davidic dynasty. They advocated the importance of Boaz’s and Ruth’s virtue as a good illustration of morality in Judaism.