DOCSLIB.ORG

Talmud-Based Solutions to the Problem of the Agunah

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text

Load more

Talmud-Based Solutions to the Problem of the Agunah To my parents Agunah Research Unit, Volume 4 Talmud-Based Solutions to the Problem of the Agunah Avishalom Westreich Deborah Charles Publications 2012 Copyright © 2012 Deborah Charles Publications All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be duplicated in any way without the expressed written consent of the publisher, except in the form of brief excerpts or quotations for the purpose of review. ISBN 978-1-906731-20-5 (hardback) Published and Distributed by: Deborah Charles Publications On behalf of The Agunah Research Unit, University of Manchester E-mail: [email protected] http://www.deborahcharles.co.uk Printed and bound in Great Britain by CPI Antony Rowe, Chippenham and Eastbourne. This is the fourth volume of a five-volume series, by each of the members of the Agunah Research Unit: Vol.1: Bernard S. Jackson, Agunah : The Manchester Analysis (Agunah Research Unit, vol.1, based on the Working papers of Yehudah Abel, Nechama Hadari, Shoshana Knol, Bernard S. Jackson and Avishalom Westreich) Vol.2: Yehudah Abel, Confronting ‘Iggun Vol.3: Shoshana Knol, Agunah and Ideology Vol.4: Avishalom Westreich, Talmud-Based Solutions to the Problem of the Agunah Vol.5: Nechama Hadari , The Kosher Get: A Halakhic Story of Divorce Ordering details, for one or more volumes, may be found at: http://www.legaltheory.demon.co.uk/ARU.htm Acknowledgements The problem of agunot – the chained wives, whose husbands refuse to divorce and thus cannot remarry – has occupied a wide range of scholars from antiquity to modern days: from talmudic sages to modern day scholars; from rabbis to academics; from politicians to lay people: women, men and professional attorneys. All are concerned with, and seek to find a solution to, one of the major challenges to Jewish Law and Jewish society in both the past and the present. This book, devoted to discussing the modern agunah problem and its Talmud based solutions, is one link in this chain. The book is an outcome of several years of research, mainly at the Agunah Research Unit of the University of Manchester, where I spent nearly two years. Some periods of time at the Shalom Hartman Institute and in the Hebrew University Law Faculty were also devoted to this research. My current home institution, The Academic Center of Law and Business in Ramat Gan, enabled the completion of this work. Prof. Bernard Jackson, the founder of the Agunah Research Unit of the University of Manchester, has directed it in the past eight years with faith and vision. Without his guidance, support and constructive involvement, both in content and structure, this book could not have been written and completed. His contribution to the international agunah issue in general, and to this work in particular, cannot be overstated. The company of teachers, colleagues, friends and students has made this work possible. Their thoughtful observations and useful comments assisted me in the long quest for understanding the sugyot discussed in this book. In particular, I would like to express my gratitude to Mordechai Akiva Friedman, David Henshke, Berachyahu Lifshitz, Leib Moskovitz, Amihay Radzyner, Avi Sagi, Pinhas Shifman and the members of the Agunah Research Unit: Yehudah Abel, Nechama Hadari and Shoshana Knol. I would also like to thank my seminar students at the Academic Center of Law and Business in Ramat Gan and at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, with whom I have studied and discussed the complicated issues arising from the agunah problem, and to Edward Levin for his excellent assistance in translations and linguistic editing. Special thanks to my family: my parents, Sara and Elimelech Westreich, my שלי ושלכ שלה :children, Tamar, Aryeh, Shmuel and Bacol, and to my wife, Miri . הוא Earlier writings of mine were the basis of this book with some necessary updates and modifications: four working papers, published as part of the Agunah Research Unit publications (ARU Working Papers 9, 10, 11 and 15, available at http://www.manchesterjewishstudies.org/publications), and a few related articles, published in several periodicals (cited as Westreich, Divorce on Demand ; Gatekeepers ; Hafka‘at Kiddushin , Moredet , The Right to Divorce and Umdena : for full details see Bibliography, infra ). References to these and other relevant writings are provided throughout this book. Tamuz 5772 July 2012 Contents Introduction 1 Chapter One: The Rebellious Wife ( Moredet ): A Talmudic Source for Unilateral Divorce? 4 1.1 Introduction 4 1.2 Tannaitic and Amoraic Sources Regarding the Moredet 7 1.2.1 Tannaitic Sources: Would the Moredet receive a Get ? 7 1.2.2 The Babylonian Sugya of Moredet 13 1.3 Conclusions 23 Chapter Two: Ketubbah Stipulations and the Rebellious Wife in the Palestinian Tradition 25 2.1 The Rebellious Wife in the Palestinian Talmud 25 2.2 Ketubbah Stipulations in the Post-Talmudic Palestinian Tradition 29 Chapter Three: Palestinian Ketubbah Stipulations and the Geonic Moredet 32 Chapter Four: Marriage Annulment: From Mishnah to Talmud 39 4.1 Hafka‘at Kiddushin 39 4.2 Talmudic Cases of Hafka‘at Kiddushin 41 4.3 The Foundation of Hafka‘at Kiddushin 45 4.4 The Character of Hafka‘at Kiddushin 53 Chapter Five: Marriage Annulment in Post-Talmudic Times 60 5.1 Introduction 60 5.2 Mere Annulment or Coercion? 61 Chapter Six: Hafka‘at Kiddushin in Practice 70 6.1 The Various Talmudic Approaches as Bases for the Later Disputes: Does Hafka‘at Kiddushin Require a Get ? 70 6.2 Marriage Annulment in Practice: Can hafka‘ah be applied today? 76 Chapter Seven: Mistaken Marriage, Conditional Marriage: The Talmudic Basis of an Innovative Approach 78 7.1 Introduction 78 7.2 Mistaken Marriage; Conditional Marriage 80 7.3 “And the Sages Did Not Have the Power to Release Her without a Get ” (BT Ketubbot 74a) 82 7.4 Ada‘ata dehakhi lo kidshah nafshah (‘Umdena ) – Mistake or Condition? 85 7.5 The Integrated Approach 92 7.6 Iggrot Moshe : an Application of the Integrated Approach 98 7.7 Conclusion 104 Chapter Eight: From Theory to Practice: Will and Ability 106 8.1 The Pluralistic Nature of the (Normal) Halakhic Discourse 106 8.2 Legitimizing Solutions to the Problem of ‘ Iggun 108 Chapter Nine: Who is an Agunah ? 111 9.1 Introduction 111 9.2 No-Fault Divorce? 112 9.3 The Right to Impose Conditions on Divorce 117 9.4 The Motivating Force: Restricting the Right to Divorce 119 Epilogue 124 Bibliography 125 Abbreviations B.K.: Bava Kamma BT: Babylonian Talmud EH: Even Ha‘Ezer Ket.: Ketubbot M: Mishnah PT: Palestinian Talmud (Talmud Yerushalmi) T: Tosefta Introduction Is there a solution to the Agunah problem? Divorce in Jewish law is executed by a writ of divorce (henceforth: a get ) delivered by the husband to his wife. Typically, divorce requires both spouses’ consent: the husband’s agreement is fundamentally mandated by talmudic law (a desideratum that has been unanimously accepted from the talmudic era onwards), while that of the wife is required according to medieval rabbinical authorities (“the ban of Rabbenu Gershom”, which was originally adopted by Ashkenazi communities, but today is accepted by most, if not all, Jewish communities). 1 The Mishnah 2 lists several cases in which the husband is coerced to divorce his wife. Several others are added by the Talmud and post-talmudic authorities. 3 Usually, these are cases of faults, blemishes, and so on, which support the wife’s entitlement to the divorce. 4 But even when a formal fault does exist, it is not always possible to obtain divorce, due to the husband’s recalcitrance or incapability. Does Jewish Law provide us with routes for solving this kind of cases? More than that. Not rarely, one spouse demands divorce, but cannot prove one or more of the classic faults. So, is this spouse – usually the wife – entitled to divorce when no formal fault exists? And if she (or he) is entitled to divorce, how can it be executed, if her or his spouse refuses to participate? This book discusses several halakhic routes for executing unilateral divorce, or, when divorce cannot be obtained, routes for establishing a formal halakhic separation between the couple by-passing divorce, as follows: get compulsion in no-fault-divorce cases, mainly on the basis of the law of the rebellious wife (moredet ); constitutive marriage annulment on the basis of the talmudic maxim: 1 On the ban of Rabbenu Gershom and its spreading among Jewish communities see E. Westreich, Temurot . 2 M Ketubbot 7:10. 3 See , e.g., Rema (Rabbi Moses Isserles), gloss to Shul xan Arukh , EH 154:1. 4 In those cases the wife receives her financial rights (the ketubbah payment, i.e., the husband’s obligation of payment written in the marriage document, including the dowry, the wife’s prenuptial property, etc.). Similarly, there are cases in which the husband is entitled to divorce. According to talmudic law, prior to the ban of Rabbenu Gershom, the husband usually had a right unilaterally to divorce his wife, with or without a basis in fault, and with or without her consent. The effect of a fault or blemish in such cases was therefore mainly financial (i.e., the wife would not receive her ketubbah payment). After Rabbenu Gershom’s ban, consent for divorce, or fault or blemish on the part of the wife, became needed to establish the husband’s right to divorce and not only to support his financial claims. 2 Westreich: Talmud-Based Solutions to the Problem of the Agunah “everyone who betroths does so subject to the consent of the Rabbis, and the כל דמקדש אדעתא דרבנ מקדש ואפקעינהו רבנ לקידושי ) ”Rabbis annul his betrothal declarative marriage annulment on the basis of a mistaken transaction; and ;( מיניה conditional marriage, whether explicitly stipulated by the couple, or implied retroactively by the halakhic decisor ( posek ).
Recommended publications
  • Sukka Book.Indb

    Sukka Book.Indb

    Perek IV Daf 44 Amud a NOTES Th e Sages say: For them in Eretz Yisrael it also does not overrideN ָא ְמִרי: ְלִד ְיד ּהו ַנ ִמי ָלא ָ ּד ֵחי. ְו ֶא ָּלא ַק ׁ ְשָיא The : ְלִד ְיד ּהו ַנ ִמי ָלא ָ ּד ֵחי – Shabbat. Th e Gemara asks: But if that is the case, the contradic- For them it also does not override Rambam explains that the Sages instituted ordinances to ָה ֵני ַּתְר ֵּתי; ְ ּד ָת ָנא ֲח ָדא: ָּכל ָה ָﬠם ִמוֹל ִיכין -tion between these two sources is diffi cult, as it was taught in prevent the Jews from splitting into sects where some seg ֶאת ּלו ְל ֵב ֶיהן ְל ַהר ַה ַּבִית, ְו ַת ְנָיא ִא ָיד ְך: one mishna: All the people bring their lulavim to the Temple -ments of the people practice one custom and other seg ְל ֵבית ַה ְּכ ֶנ ֶסת. ּו ְמ ָתְר ִצ ַינן: ָּכאן – ִּבְז ַמן Mount on Friday, and it was taught in another mishna that they ments either do not practice it or practice another custom bring their lulavim to the synagogue. And we resolved this con- instead. Although in other matters, e.g., the second day of ׁ ֶש ֵּבית ַה ִּמ ְקָ ּד ׁש ַקָיּים, ָּכאן – ִּבְז ַמן ׁ ֶש ֵאין ,tradiction as follows: Here, where the mishna says that they bring the Festivals observed in the Diaspora, this is not a concern ֵּבית ַה ִּמ ְקָ ּד ׁש ַקָיּים. their lulavim to the Temple Mount, it is referring to when the as can be explained the way Ritva explained it here: With Temple is standing, and there, where the mishna says that they regard to lulav, the Sages instituted that everyone follows his ancestral custom.
  • Mishnah: the New Scripture Territories in the East

    Mishnah: the New Scripture Territories in the East

    176 FROM TEXT TO TRADITION in this period was virtually unfettered. The latter restriction seems to have been often compromised. Under the Severan dynasty (193-225 C.E.) Jewish fortunes improved with the granting of a variety of legal privileges culminating in full Roman citizenship for Jews. The enjoyment of these privileges and the peace which Jewry enjoyed in the Roman Empire were·· interrupted only by the invasions by the barbarians in the West 10 and the instability and economic decline they caused throughout the empire, and by the Parthian incursions against Roman Mishnah: The New Scripture territories in the East. The latter years of Roman rule, in the aftermath of the Bar Kokhba Revolt and on the verge of the Christianization of the empire, were extremely fertile ones for the development of . The period beginning with the destruction (or rather, with the Judaism. It was in this period that tannaitic Judaism came to its restoration in approximately 80 C.E.) saw a fundamental change final stages, and that the work of gathering its intellectual in Jewish study and learning. This was the era in which the heritage, the Mishnah, into a redacted collection began. All the Mishnah was being compiled and in which many other tannaitic suffering and the fervent yearnings for redemption had culmi­ traditions were taking shape. The fundamental change was that nated not in a messianic state, but in a collection of traditions the oral Torah gradually evolved into a fixed corpus of its own which set forth the dreams and aspirations for the perfect which eventually replaced the written Torah as the main object holiness that state was to engender.
  • Melilah Agunah Sptib W Heads

    Melilah Agunah Sptib W Heads

    Agunah and the Problem of Authority: Directions for Future Research Bernard S. Jackson Agunah Research Unit Centre for Jewish Studies, University of Manchester [email protected] 1.0 History and Authority 1 2.0 Conditions 7 2.1 Conditions in Practice Documents and Halakhic Restrictions 7 2.2 The Palestinian Tradition on Conditions 8 2.3 The French Proposals of 1907 10 2.4 Modern Proposals for Conditions 12 3.0 Coercion 19 3.1 The Mishnah 19 3.2 The Issues 19 3.3 The talmudic sources 21 3.4 The Gaonim 24 3.5 The Rishonim 28 3.6 Conclusions on coercion of the moredet 34 4.0 Annulment 36 4.1 The talmudic cases 36 4.2 Post-talmudic developments 39 4.3 Annulment in takkanot hakahal 41 4.4 Kiddushe Ta’ut 48 4.5 Takkanot in Israel 56 5.0 Conclusions 57 5.1 Consensus 57 5.2 Other issues regarding sources of law 61 5.3 Interaction of Remedies 65 5.4 Towards a Solution 68 Appendix A: Divorce Procedures in Biblical Times 71 Appendix B: Secular Laws Inhibiting Civil Divorce in the Absence of a Get 72 References (Secondary Literature) 73 1.0 History and Authority 1.1 Not infrequently, the problem of agunah1 (I refer throughout to the victim of a recalcitrant, not a 1 The verb from which the noun agunah derives occurs once in the Hebrew Bible, of the situations of Ruth and Orpah. In Ruth 1:12-13, Naomi tells her widowed daughters-in-law to go home.
  • First-Suk 1..16

    First-Suk 1..16

    English Abstracts: Bavli Sukkah Chapter IV Chapter IV, Sugya 1: ‘‘Rabbah’’ (42b-43a) According to Mishnah Sukkah 4:1-2, the lulav is not taken up on the Sabbath of the intermediary days of Sukkot; if, however, the first day of Sukkot falls on the Sabbath, the lulav is taken up on that day. Our sugya begins by probing the reason for the ban on taking up the lulav on the intermediary Sabbath. It cites the famous statement of Rabbah, according to which the Sages prohibited taking up the lulav on the Sabbath lest one come to carry it in the public domain. The Talmud’s assumption is that this prohibition applied even in the Temple, where taking up the lulav is considered scripturally mandated both on the first day of Sukkot and on the intermediary days, and it is puzzled by the discrepancy between the ruling regarding the first day of Sukkot and the ruling regarding the intermediary Sabbath. A number of suggestions are offered as to the reason for the discrepancy, the final one being that since the mitzvah on the first day of Sukkot is scripturally mandated not only in the Temple but all over, the Sages decided that it should override the fear of carrying a lulav into the public domain. The Talmud then asks why the lulav is not taken up on the first day of Sukkot today when it falls on the Sabbath; the answer given is that the lulav is taken up under such circumstances in the land of Israel; it is only in Babylonia that lulav on the first day does not override the Sabbath, because of the doubt as to which is the first day of the festival.
  • Of Selected Amoraim/Saboraim

    Of Selected Amoraim/Saboraim

    INDEX OF SELECTED AMORAIM/SABORAIM Abuha de-Shmuel n. 190, 95–97, 66, 95–97 and activity in Nehardea 4 n. 6 n. 269 R. Adda b. Ahava I chronological location 37–43 chronological location 112 confused with “the Nehardean pupil of Rav 112 say” 42–43 R. Adda b. Ahava (Abba) II confused with Amemar bar Mar chronological location 112 n. 69 Yanuka 41 pupil of Rava 112 n. 69 confused with R. Yemar 41 R. Adda b. Minyumi died during R. Ashi’s lifetime 40–41 chronological location 148 n. 115 geographical location 44–45 subject to the authority of halakhic rulings in actual Rabina 148 n. 115 cases 55–66 R. Aha b. Jacob halakhic rulings issued in Nehardea and the exilarch 135 67–82 chronological location 133–136 halakhic rulings issued in Sura, does not interact with second and Mahoza or Pumbedita 55–56 third generation amoraim 134 interpretation of tannaitic present in R. Huna’s pirka 136–138 sources 84–91, 93–94 and n. 256 quotes halakhic tradition in the legal methodology compared name of third generation with Nehardean amoraim 84 amoraim 133–134 (Samuel, R. Sheshet, subordinates to R. Nahman 133 R. Nahman), 92–93 and n. 252 and n. 26 (R. Zebid of Nehardea), 176 superior to R. Aha son of (R. Zebid of Nehardea), 193 R. Ika 135–136 (R. Dimi of Nehardea) superior to R. Elazar of Hagrunya literary contribution compared with and R. Aha b. Tahlifa 136 sages from his generation 84–85, superior to R. Papa/Papi 135 93–94 n.
  • The Babylonian Talmud

    The Babylonian Talmud

    The Babylonian Talmud translated by MICHAEL L. RODKINSON Book 10 (Vols. I and II) [1918] The History of the Talmud Volume I. Volume II. Volume I: History of the Talmud Title Page Preface Contents of Volume I. Introduction Chapter I: Origin of the Talmud Chapter II: Development of the Talmud in the First Century Chapter III: Persecution of the Talmud from the destruction of the Temple to the Third Century Chapter IV: Development of the Talmud in the Third Century Chapter V: The Two Talmuds Chapter IV: The Sixth Century: Persian and Byzantine Persecution of the Talmud Chapter VII: The Eight Century: the Persecution of the Talmud by the Karaites Chapter VIII: Islam and Its Influence on the Talmud Chapter IX: The Period of Greatest Diffusion of Talmudic Study Chapter X: The Spanish Writers on the Talmud Chapter XI: Talmudic Scholars of Germany and Northern France Chapter XII: The Doctors of France; Authors of the Tosphoth Chapter XIII: Religious Disputes of All Periods Chapter XIV: The Talmud in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries Chapter XV. Polemics with Muslims and Frankists Chapter XVI: Persecution during the Seventeenth Century Chapter XVII: Attacks on the Talmud in the Nineteenth Century Chapter XVIII. The Affair of Rohling-Bloch Chapter XIX: Exilarchs, Talmud at the Stake and Its Development at the Present Time Appendix A. Appendix B Volume II: Historical and Literary Introduction to the New Edition of the Talmud Contents of Volume II Part I: Chapter I: The Combination of the Gemara, The Sophrim and the Eshcalath Chapter II: The Generations of the Tanaim Chapter III: The Amoraim or Expounders of the Mishna Chapter IV: The Classification of Halakha and Hagada in the Contents of the Gemara.
  • Torah Portion Summary

    Torah Portion Summary

    PARASHAT BERESHEIT - BIRKAT HAHODESH October 6, 2007 – 24 Tishrei 5768 Annual: Genesis 1:1 – 6:8 (Etz Hayim, p. 3; Hertz p. 2) Triennial Cycle: Genesis 1:1 – 2:3 (Etz Hayim, p. 3; Hertz p. 2) Haftarah: Isaiah 42:5 – 43:10 (Etz Hayim, p. 36; Hertz p. 21) Prepared by Rabbi Joyce Newmark Teaneck, New Jersey Torah Portion Summary The Torah begins with God’s creation of the world – light, heaven and earth, the oceans and dry land, the heavenly bodies, plants, animals, and finally the first human beings – in six days. God then blesses the seventh day, Shabbat, the day of rest. The human beings are placed in the Garden of Eden “to till it and tend it,” but when Adam and Eve disobey God’s commandment and eat the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil they are expelled from the Garden. Eve gives birth to two sons. When they are grown Cain, the elder, kills his brother, Abel, and is punished by God. Adam and Eve have a third son, Seth, and the Torah relates the 10 generations from Adam to Noah. The parasha concludes with God’s sorrow over human wickedness. 1. Does "Torah" Mean "Law"? When God began to create heaven and earth – the earth being unformed and void, with darkness over the surface of the deep and a wind from God sweeping over the water – God said “let there be light,” and there was light. (Bereisheit 1:1-3) A. Rabbi Yitzhak said: It was only necessary to begin the Torah with “This month shall mark for you...” (Shemot 12:2), for this is the first mitzvah about which Israel was commanded.
  • Divine Science: Reevaluating Rambam's View of Ma'aseh

    Divine Science: Reevaluating Rambam's View of Ma'aseh

    Divine Science: Reevaluating Rambam’s View of Ma’aseh Merkavah Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of the Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein Honors Program Yeshiva College Yeshiva University September 2020 Yehuda Goldfeder Mentor: Dr. Jonathan Dauber, Jewish Studies Divine Science: Reevaluating Rambam’s View of Ma’aseh Merkavah By: Yehuda Goldfeder Advisor: Dr. Jonathan Dauber Introduction Esoteric traditions within Judaism Overview of Aristotelian Physics and Metaphysics Understanding the Position of the Rambam Merkavah According to the Rambam Two Schools of Interpretation Fundamental Issues with Rambam's Position The Easy Way Out Does Not Suffice Why Not Reject His Opinion? A Closer Read of The Guide: Metaphysics is just the start Were Chazal Really Philosophers? Only some of Chazal engaged in speculation: Their Speculation Employed different methods: Angels as a Paradigm of Different Methodologies Summation of his view of Chazal and its accuracy Setting the Stage: The plausibility of his reconstruction An Overview of the Cosmology of Chazal: Celestial Spheres and Heavenly Bodies Correspondence between Chazal’s and Rambam’s Cosmology Classical Elements in Rabbinic Literature The Merkavah Theory in Full View Rambam’s Theory of Prophecy Jacob’s Ladder Hekhalot as a corrupted but surprisingly accurate precursor: The structure of the Guide: Significance of Prophetic Error: A final assessment: Not so unlikely Moving Towards a Non proof based Metaphysics A general approach to antiquated science in divine literature Conclusion Introduction Within Judaism, the areas of Cosmology and Cosmogony are most often where a perceived clash is found between science and religion. Among those who accept the validity of both the Torah and science, various solutions have been posed to these problems, and they generally fall under one of two categories.
  • Daf Review – Berachos 46 Compiled by Larry Ziffer • Yehudah Bar

    Daf Review – Berachos 46 Compiled by Larry Ziffer • Yehudah Bar

    Daf Review – Berachos 46 Compiled by Larry Ziffer • Yehudah bar Mereimar, Mar bar Rav Ashi and Rav Acha mi'Difti ate together; normally, the most important one is motzi the others, but none of them was more important than the others; they thought that perhaps if all participants are equal, each should bench by himself; they did so, and asked Mereimar. He answered that they fulfilled birkas hamazon, but they did not fulfill their obligation to say birkas hazimun. • If one arrives at a meal and finds people saying birkas hazimun, what should he answer? Rav Zevid: "Baruch u'Mevorach"; Rav Papa: "Amein." Resolution: if one hears them saying, "Nivarech (Let us bench)" he answers, "Baruch u'Mevorach"; if one hears them saying “Baruch (Blessed is He),” he answers "AmeIn." • Two views on saying Amein after one’s own bracha: It is either praiseworthy or it is disdainful o Resolution: It is praiseworthy regarding boneh Yerushalayim (in benching) but it is disdainful regarding any other bracha. o Abaye would answer "Amein" loudly after boneh Yerushalayim so that workers would hear it and return to work; they should not stay to hear hatov vehametiv (it is only mid'rabanan.) o Rav Ashi would answer "Amein" quietly, so that people would not think that hatov vehametiv is only mid'rabanan and therefore treat it lightly. • R. Zeira was ill; R. Abahu visited him and said he would make a feast for the rabbis if R. Zeira would recover, which he did. At the meal, R. Abahu asked R. Zeira to be botzeia (make hamotzi for everyone).
  • Humor in Talmud and Midrash

    Humor in Talmud and Midrash

    Tue 14, 21, 28 Apr 2015 B”H Dr Maurice M. Mizrahi Jewish Community Center of Northern Virginia Adult Learning Institute Jewish Humor Through the Sages Contents Introduction Warning Humor in Tanach Humor in Talmud and Midrash Desire for accuracy Humor in the phrasing The A-Fortiori argument Stories of the rabbis Not for ladies The Jewish Sherlock Holmes Checks and balances Trying to fault the Torah Fervor Dreams Lying How many infractions? Conclusion Introduction -Not general presentation on Jewish humor: Just humor in Tanach, Talmud, Midrash, and other ancient Jewish sources. -Far from exhaustive. -Tanach mentions “laughter” 50 times (root: tz-cho-q) [excluding Yitzhaq] -Talmud: Records teachings of more than 1,000 rabbis spanning 7 centuries (2nd BCE to 5th CE). Basis of all Jewish law. -Savoraim improved style in 6th-7th centuries CE. -Rabbis dream up hypothetical situations that are strange, farfetched, improbable, or even impossible. -To illustrate legal issues, entertain to make study less boring, and sharpen the mind with brainteasers. 1 -Going to extremes helps to understand difficult concepts. (E.g., Einstein's “thought experiments”.) -Some commentators say humor is not intentional: -Maybe sometimes, but one cannot avoid the feeling it is. -Reason for humor not always clear. -Rabbah (4th century CE) always began his lectures with a joke: Before he began his lecture to the scholars, [Rabbah] used to say something funny, and the scholars were cheered. After that, he sat in awe and began the lecture. [Shabbat 30b] -Laughing and entertaining are important. Talmud: -Rabbi Beroka Hoza'ah often went to the marketplace at Be Lapat, where [the prophet] Elijah often appeared to him.
  • Bal Tashchit : the Jewish Prohibition Against Needless Destruction Wolff, K.A

    Bal Tashchit : the Jewish Prohibition Against Needless Destruction Wolff, K.A

    Bal Tashchit : the Jewish prohibition against needless destruction Wolff, K.A. Citation Wolff, K. A. (2009, December 1). Bal Tashchit : the Jewish prohibition against needless destruction. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/1887/14448 Version: Corrected Publisher’s Version Licence agreement concerning inclusion of doctoral thesis in the License: Institutional Repository of the University of Leiden Downloaded from: https://hdl.handle.net/1887/14448 Note: To cite this publication please use the final published version (if applicable). BAL TASHCHIT: THE JEWISH PROHIBITION AGAINST NEEDLESS DESTRUCTION Copyright © 2009 by K. A. Wolff All rights reserved Printed in Jerusalem BAL TASHCHIT: THE JEWISH PROHIBITION AGAINST NEEDLESS DESTRUCTION Proefschrift ter verkrijging van de graad van Doctor aan de Universiteit Leiden, op gezag van de Rector Magnificus prof. mr P.F. van der Heijden, volgens besluit van het College voor Promoties te verdedigen op dinsdag 1 december 2009 klokke 15:00 uur door Keith A. Wolff geboren te Fort Lauderdale (Verenigde Staten) in 1957 Promotiecommissie Promotores: Prof. Dr F.A. de Wolff Prof. Dr A. Wijler, Rabbijn, Jerusalem College of Technology Overige leden: Prof. Dr J.J. Boersema, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam Prof. Dr A. Ellian Prof. Dr R.W. Munk, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam Prof. Dr I.E. Zwiep, Universiteit van Amsterdam To my wife, our children, and our parents Preface This is an interdisciplinary thesis. The second and third chapters focus on classic Jewish texts, commentary and legal responsa, including the original Hebrew and Aramaic, along with translations into English. The remainder of the thesis seeks to integrate principles derived from these Jewish sources with contemporary Western thought, particularly on what might be called 'environmental' themes.
  • Elements of Negotiability in Talmudic and Geonic Times

    Elements of Negotiability in Talmudic and Geonic Times

    8 ELEMENTS OF NEGOTIABILITY IN TALMUDIC AND GEONIC TIMES by ELIMELECH WESTREICH* A. Introduction This article seeks to identify elements of negotiability in Jewish law in the Mishnah and the Talmud and in Geonic times as part of a comprehensive enquiry which aims to determine the degree to which the treatment of deeds in Jewish law is compatible with modern-day life, as well as the ability of Jewish law to conduct a fruitful dialogue with Israeli law in this area.1 Accordingly, I will not confine myself to internal-halakhic categories, which would have sufficed had we been undertaking a purely legal-historical investigation; rather, I will examine the principles of negotiability in Jewish law through categories drawn from the concepts of negotiability in Israeli law, which are none other than concepts of English law.2 I should emphasise that the English concepts will serve only as a looking-glass through which to view Jewish law at various times and places over a period of around one thousand years, rather than as tools for conducting * Associate Professor in Family Law and Jewish Law, Faculty of Law, Tel-Aviv University, Israel. This article is dedicated to the memory of my parents in law, Yafa Sheindel and Shmuel Goldner. 1 Different scholars have dealt with this subject from a variety of perspectives. Some scholars disputed the question of the contribution of Jews to the creation of the bill of exchange in its various incarnations, which was widespread in Europe and in the Mediterranean basin from the time of the Middle Ages.