DOCSLIB.ORG

Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash Free

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash Free FREE INTRODUCTION TO THE TALMUD AND MIDRASH PDF Hermann L Strack,GГјnter Stemberger,Professor of Biblical and Early Christian Studies Markus Bockmuehl,Stemberger,Professor of Religion Jacob Neusner | 472 pages | 01 Jan 2009 | Augsburg Fortress | 9780800625245 | English | Minneapolis, United States The Midrash: Introduction AMONG the thousand odds and ends of wisdom and fantasy stored up for us within the Midrash is the statement that all of the Jewish law would have been written out for the people, as was the Torah, or Five Bible Books of Moses, only "God saw that the Torah would eventually be translated into Greek, and published as though it were the law entrusted to Greeks," meaning Gentiles. Hence Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash Talmud and Midrash, "the oral law, the key to and interpreter of the written law, being entrusted to Israelites only, the Jews alone have the whole of God's word with the interpretation in full. This will make clear, at least from the Hebrew viewpoint, the value of the Midrash. It is the last and final word given as "explanation" of the Holy Scriptures. Some Midrashim, or explanations of the Bible, have of Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash always existed among the Hebrews. The Talmud, as pointed out in the preceding volume, consists of such early explanations as were accepted as authoritative and incorporated in the Jewish faith before A. During the Middle Ages a large number of such Midrashim were written. Most of these deal with some particular book of the Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash. A studious rabbi would resolve to write a Midrash upon Genesis or upon Exodus and would collect all he had learned upon the theme from earlier teachers. Some studious successor would copy this book and enlarge it, adding a Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash points culled from another Midrash. Sometimes the new work became known by the reviser's name, sometimes it retained that of the earlier writer. In that way we have often several very different forms of a Midrash, all going under the same name. The present Midrash, therefore, is a loose collection of commentaries, said to be founded on traditions as old as the Bible and Talmud. Some of its books are reputed to have originated with noted rabbis of the third and fourth centuries. But we can not trace any of its known books of to-day back to such a high antiquity, and where one still retains some antique writer's name we can be sure that it has been changed and changed and changed again, until very little of the reputed author's work remains. Perhaps the oldest of the surviving Midrashim is that known as the Mekilta; but the Mekilta is almost wholly a textual commentary. That is, it confines itself to explaining Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash exact shades of grammar and meaning in the Bible text. As Christian scholars wholly reject these elaborate textual commentaries, modern readers will find far more interest in the oldest Midrash, which, going beyond mere definition of the text, illustrates its points with examples and thus recalls some vision of the past. This still vivid and living Midrash is the Tanhuma. It is so called because its origin is attributed to a learned Palestinian rabbi, Tanhuma, who lived in the fourth century; but our present Midrash Tanhuma can not have been composed before the seventh century. It is still, of course, chiefly concerned with grammar and text, so that only the essence of its more living spirit is given here. After this we print, in the same concentrated form, the living items or bits of still interesting information gleaned from the most celebrated of the later Midrashim. These are the "Rabba," or a collection of commentaries on ten of the most sacred of the Biblical books, more especially on the five books of Moses. Among these the Genesis Rabba, which is known as the Bereshith, is regarded as particularly venerable, and sacred. No part of the Rabba, however, seems likely to have been written before the ninth century, and most of it is of about the twelfth century. Only, when we speak of such comparatively. In illustration of what is still being done by modern Hebrew scholars with the mass of the Midrash, we close our section on its books with the story of the king of demons, Ashmedai. This has been put together by a modern rabbi, who, going carefully through the Midrash, collected all its references to Ashmedai and so built up the life-story of the demon-king. Talmud and Midrash | Judaism | Britannica The term "Talmud" normally refers to the collection of writings named specifically the Babylonian Talmud Talmud Bavlialthough Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash is also an earlier collection known as the Jerusalem Talmud Talmud Yerushalmi. The term "Talmud" may refer to either the Gemara alone, or the Mishnah and Gemara together. The entire Talmud consists of 63 tractatesand in the standard print, called the Vilna Shasit is 2, double-sided folios. The Talmud is the basis for all codes of Jewish law and is widely quoted in rabbinic literature. Talmud translates as "instruction, learning", from the Semitic root LMDmeaning "teach, study". Originally, Jewish scholarship was oral and transferred from one Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash to the next. Rabbis expounded and debated the Torah the written Torah expressed Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash the Hebrew Bible and discussed the Tanakh without the benefit of written works other than the Biblical books themselvesthough some may have made private notes megillot setarimfor example, of court decisions. This situation changed drastically, mainly as the result of the destruction of the Jewish Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash and the Second Temple in the year 70 and the consequent upheaval of Jewish social and legal norms. As the rabbis were required to face a new reality—mainly Judaism without a Temple to serve as the center Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash teaching and study and Judeathe Roman province, without at least partial autonomy—there was a flurry of legal discourse and the old system of oral scholarship could not be maintained. It is during this period that rabbinic discourse began to be recorded in writing. The oldest full manuscript of the Talmud, known as the Munich Talmud Codex Hebraicus 95dates from and is available online. The process of "Gemara" proceeded in what were then the two major centers of Jewish scholarship, Galilee and Babylonia. Correspondingly, two bodies of analysis developed, and two works of Talmud were created. The older compilation is called the Jerusalem Talmud or the Talmud Yerushalmi. It was compiled in the 4th century in Galilee. The Babylonian Talmud was compiled about the yearalthough it continued to be edited later. The word "Talmud", when used without qualification, usually refers to the Babylonian Talmud. While the editors of Jerusalem Talmud and Babylonian Talmud each mention the other community, most scholars believe these documents were written independently; Louis Jacobs writes, "If the editors of either had had access to an actual text of the other, it is inconceivable that they would not have mentioned this. Here the argument from silence is very convincing. The Jerusalem Talmudalso Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash as the Palestinian Talmud, or Talmuda de-Eretz Yisrael Talmud of the Land of Israelwas one of the two compilations of Jewish religious teachings and commentary that was transmitted orally for centuries prior to its compilation by Jewish scholars in the Land of Israel. It is written largely in Jewish Palestinian Aramaica Western Aramaic language that differs from its Babylonian counterpart. This Talmud is a synopsis of the analysis of the Mishnah that was developed over the course of nearly years by the Academies in Galilee principally those of Tiberias and Caesarea. Because of their location, Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash sages of these Academies devoted considerable attention to the analysis of the agricultural laws of the Land of Israel. It is traditionally known as the Talmud Yerushalmi "Jerusalem Talmud"but the name is a misnomer, as it was not prepared in Jerusalem. It has more accurately been called "The Talmud of the Land of Israel". Its final redaction probably belongs to the end of the 4th century, but the individual scholars who brought it to its present form cannot be fixed with assurance. By this time Christianity had become the state religion of the Roman Empire and Jerusalem the holy city of Christendom. In Constantine the Greatthe first Christian emperor, said "let us then have nothing in common with the Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash Jewish crowd. The compilers of the Jerusalem Talmud consequently lacked the time to produce a work of the quality they had intended. The text is evidently incomplete and is not easy to follow. The apparent cessation of work on the Jerusalem Talmud in the 5th century has been associated with the Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash of Theodosius II in to suppress the Patriarchate and put an end to the practice of semikhahformal scholarly ordination. Some modern scholars have questioned this connection. Despite its incomplete state, the Jerusalem Talmud remains an indispensable source of knowledge of the development of the Jewish Law in the Holy Land. It was also an important resource in the study of the Babylonian Talmud by the Kairouan school of Chananel ben Chushiel and Nissim ben Jacobwith the result that opinions ultimately based on the Jerusalem Talmud found their way into both the Tosafot and the Mishneh Torah of Maimonides. Following the formation of the modern state of Israel there is some interest in restoring Eretz Yisrael traditions.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Jewish Law and the Private Facts Tort
    “THOU SHALT NOT GO ABOUT AS A TALEBEARER AMONG 1 THY PEOPLE” : JEWISH LAW AND THE PRIVATE FACTS TORT INTRODUCTION...................................................................811 I. THE PRIVATE FACTS TORT IN THE UNITED STATES..............813 A. The Creation of the Private Facts Tort ............................813 B. Justifications for the Private Facts Tort ...........................814 C. Questioning the Premise of the Public Facts Tort..............816 D. Free Speech and the Right to Privacy...............................818 II. FUNDAMENTAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN AMERICAN AND JEWISH LAW ........................................................................820 A. Law and Morality .........................................................820 B. Judaism and Human Rights..........................................824 C. Judaism and the Right to Free Speech..............................825 III. EVIL SPEECH IN JEWISH LAW ...............................................828 A. Lashon Hara—Introduction ........................................828 B. Lashon Hara—Justifications for the Prohibition............829 C. The Parameters of Lashon Hara (Evil Speech)...............831 D. Modesty vs. Privacy: Jewish Law and Non-Defamatory Disclosures of Private Fact .............834 IV. DAMAGES AND THE PRIVATE FACTS TORT .............................838 A. Jewish Law and Damages for Verbal Harms....................838 CONCLUSION........................................................................841 INTRODUCTION As we begin the twenty-first century,
    [Show full text]
  • Medieval English Rabbis: Image and Self-Image Pinchas Roth
    Medieval English Rabbis: Image and Self-Image Pinchas Roth Early Middle English, Volume 1, Number 1, 2019, pp. 17-33 (Article) Published by Arc Humanities Press For additional information about this article https://muse.jhu.edu/article/731651 [ Access provided at 2 Oct 2021 13:24 GMT with no institutional affiliation ] MEDIEVAL ENGLISH RABBIS: IMAGE AND SELF-IMAGE PINCHAS ROTH “The neglect of the British situation is explicable largely on the grounds that, compared with other northern, Ashkenazic communities, the Anglo-Jewish community was not perceived to have produced the scholarly superstars so evident in France and Germany.”1 tantalizing about the Jews of medieval England. So much about them is unknown, perhaps unknowable, and even those facts that are well known There is someThing and ostensibly unquestionable have drawn attempts2 There to were bend, no crack, Jewish or communitiesotherwise move in Anglo-Saxonthem. The chronologically England.3 first fact known about this Jewish community is that itHistory came intoof the being Jews onlyin England after the Norman Conquest. 4 The end of the But, medieval as Cecil Anglo-Jewish Roth commented experience on the is first also pageclear—the of his Edict of Expulsion of 1290 did, not“Fantasy allow hasfor any… attempted continued to Jewish carry presencethe story inback England. to a remote5 That hasantiquity.” not stopped various people from believing that Jews continued to live in England for * Boyarin and Shamma Boyarin for their kind invitation and extraordinary hospitality at the University I am deeply of Victoria. grateful to Menachem Butler for his unflagging help, and to Adrienne Williams 1 Patricia Skinner, “Introduction: Jews in Medieval Britain and Europe,” in The Jews in Medieval Britain: Historical, Literary, and Archaeological Perspectives, ed.
    [Show full text]
  • צב | עב January Tevet | Sh’Vat Capricorn Saturn | Aquarius Saturn
    צב | עב January Tevet | Sh’vat Capricorn Saturn | Aquarius Saturn Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1 | 17th of Tevet* 2 | 18th of Tevet* New Year’s Day Parashat Vayechi Abraham Moshe Hillel Rabbi Tzvi Elimelech of Dinov Rabbi Salman Mutzfi Rabbi Huna bar Mar Zutra & Rabbi Rabbi Yaakov Krantz Mesharshya bar Pakod Rabbi Moshe Kalfon Ha-Cohen of Jerba 3 | 19th of Tevet * 4* | 20th of Tevet 5 | 21st of Tevet * 6 | 22nd of Tevet* 7 | 23rd of Tevet* 8 | 24th of Tevet* 9 | 25th of Tevet* Parashat Shemot Rabbi Menchachem Mendel Yosef Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon Rabbi Leib Mochiach of Polnoi Rabbi Hillel ben Naphtali Zevi Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi Rabbi Yaakov Abuchatzeira Rabbi Yisrael Dov of Vilednik Rabbi Schulem Moshkovitz Rabbi Naphtali Cohen Miriam Mizrachi Rabbi Shmuel Bornsztain Rabbi Eliyahu Eliezer Dessler 10 | 26th of Tevet* 11 | 27th of Tevet* 12 | 28th of Tevet* 13* | 29th of Tevet 14* | 1st of Sh’vat 15* | 2nd of Sh’vat 16 | 3rd of Sh’vat* Rosh Chodesh Sh’vat Parashat Vaera Rabbeinu Avraham bar Dovid mi Rabbi Shimshon Raphael Hirsch HaRav Yitzhak Kaduri Rabbi Meshulam Zusha of Anipoli Posquires Rabbi Yehoshua Yehuda Leib Diskin Rabbi Menahem Mendel ben Rabbi Shlomo Leib Brevda Rabbi Eliyahu Moshe Panigel Abraham Krochmal Rabbi Aryeh Leib Malin 17* | 4th of Sh’vat 18 | 5th of Sh’vat* 19 | 6th of Sh’vat* 20 | 7th of Sh’vat* 21 | 8th of Sh’vat* 22 | 9th of Sh’vat* 23* | 10th of Sh’vat* Parashat Bo Rabbi Yisrael Abuchatzeirah Rabbi Yehudah Aryeh Leib Alter Rabbi Chaim Tzvi Teitelbaum Rabbi Nathan David Rabinowitz
    [Show full text]
  • History of the Jews Vol. III
    History of the Jews Vol. III By Heinrich Graetz HISTORY OF THE JEWS CHAPTER I THE DECAY OF JUDÆA AND THE JEWS IN DISPERSION The Zendik Religion—King Kobad and Mazdak the Reformer—Revolt of the Jews—Mar-Zutra—Revival of the Schools—The Saburaïm—The Talmud committed to writing—Tolerance of Chosru II—The Christianization of Judæa—The Jews under Byzantine Rule—Justinian—Persecution of the Samaritans—Benjamin of Tiberias—Attack on Tyre—The Emperor Heraclius. 500–628 C. E. Hardly had the Jews recovered from the long and horrible persecution to which they had been subjected by King Firuz, when they were overtaken by fresh storms, which subverted the work of three centuries. Firuz had been followed by his brother, who reigned a short time, and was succeeded by Kobad (Kovad, Cabades). The latter was a weak king, not without good qualities, but he allowed himself to become the tool of a fanatic, and was prevailed upon to institute religious persecutions. There arose under this monarch a man who desired to reform the religion of the Magi and make it the ruling faith. Mazdak—for that was the name of this reformer of Magianism—believed that he had discovered a means of promoting the promised victory of Light over Darkness, of Ahura-Mazda over Angromainyus. He considered greed of property and lust after women the causes of all evil among men, and he desired to remove these causes by introducing community of property and of women, even allowing promiscuous intercourse among those related by ties of consanguinity. In Mazdak's opinion it was on the foundation of communistic equality that the edifice of Zoroaster's doctrine could most safely be raised.
    [Show full text]
  • Download: Repository.Upenn.Edu/Cgi/Vicwcl1ll Reformation Auf Die Rechtsstellung Der Frau Im Protestantismus
    ASCHKENAS Zeitschrift für Geschichte und Kultur der Juden 17. Jg., Heft 2, 2007 Sonderdruck ISBN 978-3-484-98615-2 Max Niemeyer Verlag Tübingen 2010 ASCHKENAS - Zeitschrift für Geschichte und Kultur der Juden 17/2007, H. 2 323 Inhalt 17/2 MARTHAKEIL Aguna (s-dieVerankerte«): Strategien gegen die Themenschwerpunkt: Benachteiligung der jüdischen Frau im Eherecht Strategien gegen Ungleichheiten in Ehe, Recht und Beruf: (1400-1700) Jüdische Frauen im vormodernen Aschkenas (Hg. von ROBERTJÜTTE) In einem seiner Rechtsgutachten schrieb der Rabbiner Menachem Mendel Kroch• mal von Nikolsburg (1600-1661): ROBERTJÜTTE,Strategien gegen Ungleichheiten in Ehe, Recht und Beruf: Jüdische Frauen im vormodernen Aschkenas 315 Der Schrei eines Mädchens drang zu mir, die mit einem jungen Mann verheiratet war, und nach der Hochzeit ging er mit den Soldaten in den Krieg in ferne Länder, um diese MARTHAKEIL, Aguna (vdie Verankerte-s): Strategien gegen die Benachteili- mit Nahrung und Proviant auszustatten. Und er blieb dort lange Zeit, über fünf Jahre, gung der jüdischen Frau im Eherecht (1400-1700) 323 bis sie sich entschloss, ihm nachzufahren, in ein fremdes Land. Und bei ihrem U mher• BIRGIT E. KLEIN, Ungleichheiten als Chance? Jüdinnen und das jüdische wandern fand sie ihn schließlich in einer Stadt in diesem Land [Mähren, M. K.] und sie Ehegüterrecht in Norm und Praxis . .. .. ... .. .. .. 345 bat ihn, bei ihr zu bleiben und nicht mehr in den Krieg zu ziehen oder sie mit einem Scheidebrief zu befreien, denn sie fürchtete, dass ihr Ehemann im Krieg getötet werden BARBARASTAUDINGER,Ungleichheiten als Chance? Hof jüdinnen als Kauf- könnte oder an einem Ort sterben würde, wo man seinen Tod nicht würde bezeugen frauen 385 können, und sie für immer eine Aguna bliebe.
    [Show full text]
  • Of the Mishnah, Bavli & Yerushalmi
    0 Learning at SVARA SVARA’s learning happens in the bet midrash, a space for study partners (​chevrutas​) to build a relationship with the Talmud text, with one another, and with the tradition—all in community and a queer-normative, loving culture. The learning is rigorous, yet the bet midrash environment is warm and supportive. Learning at SVARA focuses on skill-building (learning how to learn), foregrounding the radical roots of the Jewish tradition, empowering learners to become “players” in it, cultivating Talmud study as a spiritual practice, and with the ultimate goal of nurturing human beings shaped by one of the central spiritual, moral, and intellectual technologies of our tradition: ​Talmud Torah​ (the study of Torah). The SVARA method is a simple, step-by-step process in which the teacher is always an authentic co-learner with their students, teaching the Talmud not so much as a ​normative​ document prescribing specific behaviors, but as a ​formative​ document, shaping us into a certain kind of human being. We believe the Talmud itself is a handbook for how to, sometimes even radically, upgrade our tradition when it no longer functions to create the most liberatory world possible. All SVARA learning begins with the CRASH Talk. Here we lay out our philosophy of the Talmud and the rabbinic revolution that gave rise to it—along with important vocabulary and concepts for anyone learning Jewish texts. This talk is both an overview of the ultimate goals of the Jewish enterprise, as well as a crash course in ​halachic​ (Jewish legal) jurisprudence. Beyond its application to Judaism, CRASH Theory is a simple but elegant model of how all change happens—whether societal, religious, organizational, or personal.
    [Show full text]
  • THE BA'alei TOSAFOS of GERMANY 12Th
    THE BA’ALEI TOSAFOS OF GERMANY 12th - 13th CENTURIES The history of Jewry in Germany is closely bound with that of France. The cultural ties between the French and German Jewish communities existed for centuries. Travel seems not to have been hampered between the academies of the two countries, even during the Crusades. The development of the French Tosafists academies, with their unique approach to Talmudic studies, was paralleled in Germany, although the work of the German scholars has come down to us in a different form from that of the French school. Where the thoughts of the French scholars exist for us largely in the collection of Tosafos, the German scholars’ words have come down to us in a more individualized form - in halachic works of individual authors. These works differ from the French Tosafists not only in individualization, but in content and purpose as well. The goal of Tosafos is the elucidation of the Talmudic texts per se, without attempting to apply the implications of their studies to practical halacha. However, the main thrust of the works of the German school is halachic application. To the German scholars, the Tosafist method was a vehicle to arrive at halachic conclusions relating to practical questions of law. The father of the German Tosafists was R. Yitzchak ben Asher I (d.1133), known as the Riva. The Riva studied in Mainz, and later became a pupil of Rashi. After ​ spending a few years as a merchant, which sometimes involved business trips that took him as far as Russia, he repaired to Speyer where he gathered many disciples who later became the leaders of German Jewry.
    [Show full text]
  • Kitniyot on Pesah – Are They Really Forbidden?
    Rice, beans and kitniyot on Pesah – are they really forbidden? By Rabbi David Golinkin The following responsum was approved by the CJLS on December, 24 2015 by a vote of fifteen in favor, three opposed, and four abstaining (15-3-4). Voting for: Rabbis Kassel Abelson, Pamela Barmash, David Booth, Elliot Dorff, Susan Grossman, Reuven Hammer, Joshua Heller, Jeremy Kalmanofsky, Adam Kligfeld, Gail Labovitz, Jonathan Lubliner, Daniel Nevins, Paul Plotkin, Elie Spitz, and Jay Stein. Voting against: Rabbis Amy Levin, Micah Peltz, and Avram Reisner. Abstaining: Rabbis Aaron Alexander, Miriam Berkowitz, Baruch Frydman-Kohl, and Noah Bickart This responsum was originally written in Hebrew for the Va'ad Halakhah of the Rabbinical Assembly of Israel in 1989 and published in the Responsa of the Va'ad Halakhah 3 (5748- 5749), pp. 35-55 (which can be accessed at www.responsafortoday.com/vol3/4.pdf). It was aimed at Israel where hundreds of products are labeled "Kosher for Pesah for those who eat Kitniyot" and where many Ashkenazim marry Sephardim. This revised translation is addressed to all Jews. In this version, we have added some new sources and references, but we have also abbreviated some sections by referring to the Hebrew original. Since this responsum is quite lengthy, I have included a brief summary at the beginning. DG * * * * * Question: Why do Ashkanazic Jews refrain from eating rice, beans and kitniyot on Pesah? Is there any way of doing away with this custom which causes much hardship and also divides Jewish communities and even members of the same family? A Brief Summary of the Responsum: 1) In our opinion it is permitted (and perhaps even obligatory) to eliminate this custom.
    [Show full text]
  • History of the Jews, Vol. VI (Of 6) - Containing a Memoir of the Author by Dr
    History of the Jews, Vol. VI (of 6) - Containing a Memoir of the Author by Dr. Philip Bloch, a Chronological Table of Jewish History, an Index to the Whole Work By Graetz, Heinrich English A Doctrine Publishing Corporation Digital Book This book is indexed by ISYS Web Indexing system to allow the reader find any word or number within the document. 6)*** generously made available by Internet Archive (https://archive.org) Images of the original pages are available through Internet Archive. See https://archive.org/details/historyofjews06graeuoft Transcriber's note: Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (italics). Text enclosed by equal signs is in bold face (=bold=). Small-capital text is shown as all-capital. Transcriber-provided Hebrew transliterations are enclosed by curly braces next to the Hebrew text .({Hebrew: Beyt Shmuel Acharon} בית שמואל אחרון :example) Some devices might lack the necessary character sets, in which case question marks, squares, or other symbols will be displayed. In this case the reader should refer to the html version referred to above or to the original page images at Internet Archive. Other transcriber's notes will be found at the end of this eBook, following the Footnotes. HISTORY OF THE JEWS by HEINRICH GRAETZ VOL. VI CONTAINING A MEMOIR OF THE AUTHOR BY DR. PHILIP BLOCH A CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE OF JEWISH HISTORY AN INDEX TO THE WHOLE WORK [Illustration] Philadelphia The Jewish Publication Society of America 5717-1956 Copyright, 1898, by The Jewish Publication Society of America All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher: except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review to be printed in a magazine or newspaper.
    [Show full text]
  • Apostasy and Jewish Identity in High Middle Ages Northern Europe: 'Are
    7 Converts to Judaism Apostasy and Jewish identity Converts to Judaism he Jewish ethos sees the Jew as unique, by virtue of his being the Toffspring of the chosen group of people who left Egypt, stood at Mount Sinai, received God’s Torah, and entered into an eternal covenant with God. This ethos constituted the foundation of the Jew’s identity during the Middle Ages. The concept is expressed in the personality of the Jew and is transmitted in a direct and unmediated way to his descendants. Thus, only a Jew, himself the descendant of Jews, can recite the formula of the blessing ‘Blessed are You, O Lord God, King of the Universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us,’ as a descendant of those who directly received the Torah from God, and were sanctified and commanded by Him. Only a Jew, as the descendant of Jews, can address God in prayer using the phrase ‘our God and God of our fathers,’ because God is indeed his God and the God of his ancestors. Similarly, he may thank God in the Blessing after Meals for giving him ‘the goodly land which You promised to our forefathers,’ because he is a direct descendant of those who stood at Sinai and received that promise. This approach is closely related to the attitudes examined during the course of this study, according to which the nature of the Jew is not subject to change; hence, even if he converts to Christianity and is now immersed in the impurity of the Christian religion, which is seen as tantamount to idolatry, he still remains a ‘New Christian,’ a Jew in essence.
    [Show full text]
  • Dagesh Print
    בס"ד On Women and Reading Megillah On Women and Reading Megillah Compiled and translated by: Noah Gradofsky KOE Potluck Dinner, 1/16/04 Please contact [email protected] with any questions or comments. משנה מסכת מגילה פרק ב משנה ד (בבלי יט:) (Mishnah Megillah 2:4 (Babylonian Talmud 19b .1 הכל כשרין לקרות את המגילה חוץ מחרש שוטה וקטן . All are fit to read the Megillah, except a deaf* person, an insane person, and a minor. .(is translated as deaf-mute (Danby חרש ,Generally * תלמוד בבלי מסכת ערכין דף ב עמוד ב - ג עמוד א Babylonian Talmud Arachin 2b-3a .2 הכל חייבין במקרא מגילה, הכל כשרין לקרות את המגילה לאיתויי (ג.) מאי? לאתויי נשים, וכדר' יהושע בן לוי, דאמר ר' יהושע בן לוי: נשים חייבות במקרא מגילה, שאף הן היו באותו הנס. "All are obligated in the reading of Megillah," "all are fit to read the Megillah" [the term "all" is intended] to bring you to what [conclusion]? To bring you to women, as Rabbi Joshua ben Levi [said], for Rabbi Joshua ben Levi said "Women are obligated in the reading of Megillah because they were in the same miracle." תלמוד בבלי מסכת מגילה דף ד עמוד א 2a. Babylonian Talmud Megillah 4a ואמר רבי יהושע בן לוי: נשים חייבות במקרא מגילה, שאף הן היו באותו הנס. Rabbi Joshua ben Levi said "Women are obligated in the reading of Megillah because they were in the same miracle." שאילתות דרב אחאי פרשת ויקהל שאילתא סז ד"ה שאילתא דמחייבי' 2b. Sheiltot Vayakahel 67 ואמר רבי יהושע בן לוי נשים חייבות במקרא מגילה .
    [Show full text]
  • Fine Judaica: Printed Books, Manuscripts, Holy Land Maps & Ceremonial Objects, to Be Held June 23Rd, 2016
    F i n e J u d a i C a . printed booKs, manusCripts, holy land maps & Ceremonial obJeCts K e s t e n b au m & C om pa n y thursday, Ju ne 23r d, 2016 K est e n bau m & C o m pa ny . Auctioneers of Rare Books, Manuscripts and Fine Art A Lot 147 Catalogue of F i n e J u d a i C a . PRINTED BOOK S, MANUSCRIPTS, HOLY LAND MAPS & CEREMONIAL OBJECTS INCLUDING: Important Manuscripts by The Sinzheim-Auerbach Rabbinic Dynasty Deaccessions from the Rare Book Room of The Hebrew Theological College, Skokie, Ill. Historic Chabad-related Documents Formerly the Property of the late Sam Kramer, Esq. Autograph Letters from the Collection of the late Stuart S. Elenko Holy Land Maps & Travel Books Twentieth-Century Ceremonial Objects The Collection of the late Stanley S. Batkin, Scarsdale, NY ——— To be Offered for Sale by Auction, Thursday, 23rd June, 2016 at 3:00 pm precisely ——— Viewing Beforehand: Sunday, 19th June - 12:00 pm - 6:00 pm Monday, 20th June - 10:00 am - 6:00 pm Tuesday, 21st June - 10:00 am - 6:00 pm Wednesday, 22nd June - 10:00 am - 6:00 pm No Viewing on the Day of Sale This Sale may be referred to as: “Consistoire” Sale Number Sixty Nine Illustrated Catalogues: $38 (US) * $45 (Overseas) KESTENBAUM & COMPANY Auctioneers of Rare Books, Manuscripts and Fine Art . 242 West 30th Street, 12th Floor, New York, NY 10001 • Tel: 212 366-1197 • Fax: 212 366-1368 E-mail: [email protected] • World Wide Web Site: www.Kestenbaum.net K est e n bau m & C o m pa ny .
    [Show full text]