The Ways of the Sages and the Way of the World
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Load more
Recommended publications
-
Source Sheet on Prohibitions on Loshon Ha-Ra and Motzi Shem Ra and Disclosing Another’S Confidential Secrets and Proper Etiquette for Speech
Source Sheet on Prohibitions on Loshon ha-ra and motzi shem ra and disclosing another’s confidential secrets and Proper Etiquette for Speech Deut. 24:9 - "Remember what the L-rd your G-d did unto Miriam by the way as you came forth out of Egypt." Specifically, she spoke against her brother Moses. Yerushalmi Berachos 1:2 Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai said, “Had I been at Mount Sinai at the moment when the torah was given to Yisrael I would have demanded that man should have been created with two mouths- one for Torah and prayer and other for mundane matters. But then I retracted and exclaimed that if we fail and speak lashon hara with only one mouth, how much more so would we fail with two mouths Bavli Arakhin15b R. Yochanan said in the name of R.Yosi ben Zimra: He who speaks slander, is as though he denied the existence of the Lord: With out tongue will we prevail our lips are our own; who is lord over us? (Ps.12:5) Gen R. 65:1 and Lev.R. 13:5 The company of those who speak slander cannot greet the Presence Sotah 5a R. Hisda said in the name of Mar Ukba: When a man speaks slander, the holy one says, “I and he cannot live together in the world.” So scripture: “He who slanders his neighbor in secret…. Him I cannot endure” (Ps. 101:5).Read not OTO “him’ but ITTO “with him [I cannot live] Deut.Rabbah 5:10 R.Mana said: He who speaks slander causes the Presence to depart from the earth below to heaven above: you may see foryourselfthat this is so.Consider what David said: “My soul is among lions; I do lie down among them that are aflame; even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword” (Ps.57:5).What follows directly ? Be Thou exalted O God above the heavens (Ps.57:6) .For David said: Master of the Universe what can the presence do on the earth below? Remove the Presence from the firmament. -
The Generic Transformation of the Masoretic Text of Qohelet 9. 7-10 in the Targum Qohelet and Qohelet Midrash Rabbah
Durham E-Theses Wine, women and work: the generic transformation of the Masoretic text of Qohelet 9. 7-10 in the Targum Qohelet and Qohelet Midrash Rabbah Hardy, John Christopher How to cite: Hardy, John Christopher (1995) Wine, women and work: the generic transformation of the Masoretic text of Qohelet 9. 7-10 in the Targum Qohelet and Qohelet Midrash Rabbah, Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/5403/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk 2 WINE, WOMEN AND WORK: THE GENERIC TRANSFORMATION OF THE MA50RETIC TEXT OF QOHELET 9. 7-10 IN THE TARGUM QOHELET AND QOHELET MIDRASH RABBAH John Christopher Hardy This tnesis seeks to understand the generic changes wrought oy targum Qonelet and Qoheiet raidrash rabbah upon our home-text, the masoretes' reading ot" woh. -
Jewish Perspectives on Reproductive Realities by Rabbi Lori Koffman, NCJW Board Director and Chair of NCJW’S Reproductive Health, Rights and Justice Initiative
Jewish Perspectives on Reproductive Realities By Rabbi Lori Koffman, NCJW Board Director and Chair of NCJW’s Reproductive Health, Rights and Justice Initiative A note on the content below: We acknowledge that this document invokes heavily gendered language due to the prevailing historic male voices in Jewish rabbinic and biblical perspectives, and the fact that Hebrew (the language in which these laws originated) is a gendered language. We also recognize some of these perspectives might be in contradiction with one another and with some of NCJW’s approaches to the issues of reproductive health, rights, and justice. Background Family planning has been discussed in Judaism for several thousand years. From the earliest of the ‘sages’ until today, a range of opinions has existed — opinions which can be in tension with one another and are constantly evolving. Historically these discussions have assumed that sexual intimacy happens within the framework of heterosexual marriage. A few fundamental Jewish tenets underlie any discussion of Jewish views on reproductive realities. • Protecting an existing life is paramount, even when it means a Jew must violate the most sacred laws.1 • Judaism is decidedly ‘pro-natalist,’ and strongly encourages having children. The duty of procreation is based on one of the earliest and often repeated obligations of the Torah, ‘pru u’rvu’, 2 to be ‘fruitful and multiply.’ This fundamental obligation in the Jewish tradition is technically considered only to apply to males. Of course, Jewish attitudes toward procreation have not been shaped by Jewish law alone, but have been influenced by the historic communal trauma (such as the Holocaust) and the subsequent yearning of some Jews to rebuild community through Jewish population growth. -
On Telling the Truth and Avoiding Deception Rabbi Daniel S Alexander Rosh Hashanah Day II
On Telling the Truth and Avoiding Deception Rabbi Daniel S Alexander Rosh Hashanah Day II During the recent series of commemorations following the death of Senator John McCain, I relished reviewing the scene from that town hall meeting in Lakeville, MN back in October of 2008. It was a period when racist conspiracies about then Senator Obama were being circulated in some social media outlets. In the now famous scene, a woman wearing a red, McCain-Palin tee shirt takes the microphone and begins, “I can’t trust Obama. I have read about him, and he’s not, um, um….” At this point, McCain begins to nod his head up and down in apparent enjoyment of the support. The woman continues, “… he’s an Arab.” Without a moment’s hesitation, McCain removes the microphone from his erstwhile supporter and interjects: “No, ma’am. He’s a decent family man [and a] citizen that I just happen to have disagreements with on fundamental issues, and that’s what the campaign’s all about. He’s not [an Arab].” In that swift microphone removal and that unconsidered “No, ma’am …” McCain acted on what could only have been an instinct for integrity, a reflex to avoid deception and to speak truth. The rabbinic sages of our Jewish tradition have much to say about speaking truth and avoiding deception. Sometimes they teach in the language of law and sometimes in the language of story. Altogether, they present us with useful touchstones for a consideration of this timely topic, timely both as it pertains to the serious challenge posed ever more relentlessly in the contemporary political discourse to which we have been subjected in recent months and also because of the imperative on these Days of Awe to engage in a serious process of self judgment and self correction. -
The Humanity of the Talmud: Reading for Ethics in Bavli ʿavoda Zara By
The Humanity of the Talmud: Reading for Ethics in Bavli ʿAvoda Zara By Mira Beth Wasserman A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Joint Doctor of Philosophy with Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley in Jewish Studies in the Graduate Division of the University of California, Berkeley Committee in charge: Professor Daniel Boyarin, chair Professor Chana Kronfeld Professor Naomi Seidman Professor Kenneth Bamberger Spring 2014 Abstract The Humanity of the Talmud: Reading for Ethics in Bavli ʿAvoda Zara by Mira Beth Wasserman Joint Doctor of Philosophy with Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley University of California, Berkeley Professor Daniel Boyarin, chair In this dissertation, I argue that there is an ethical dimension to the Babylonian Talmud, and that literary analysis is the approach best suited to uncover it. Paying special attention to the discursive forms of the Talmud, I show how juxtapositions of narrative and legal dialectics cooperate in generating the Talmud's distinctive ethics, which I characterize as an attentiveness to the “exceptional particulars” of life. To demonstrate the features and rewards of a literary approach, I offer a sustained reading of a single tractate from the Babylonian Talmud, ʿAvoda Zara (AZ). AZ and other talmudic discussions about non-Jews offer a rich resource for considerations of ethics because they are centrally concerned with constituting social relationships and with examining aspects of human experience that exceed the domain of Jewish law. AZ investigates what distinguishes Jews from non-Jews, what Jews and non- Jews share in common, and what it means to be a human being. I read AZ as a cohesive literary work unified by the overarching project of examining the place of humanity in the cosmos. -
A Clergy Resource Guide
When Every Need is Special: NAVIGATING SPECIAL NEEDS IN A CONGREGATIONAL SETTING A Clergy Resource Guide For the best in child, family and senior services...Think JSSA Jewish Social Service Agency Rockville (Wood Hill Road), 301.838.4200 • Rockville (Montrose Road), 301.881.3700 • Fairfax, 703.204.9100 www.jssa.org - [email protected] WHEN EVERY NEED IS SPECIAL – NAVIGATING SPECIAL NEEDS IN A CONGREGATIONAL SETTING PREFACE This February, JSSA was privileged to welcome 17 rabbis and cantors to our Clergy Training Program – When Every Need is Special: Navigating Special Needs in the Synagogue Environment. Participants spanned the denominational spectrum, representing communities serving thousands throughout the Washington region. Recognizing that many area clergy who wished to attend were unable to do so, JSSA has made the accompanying Clergy Resource Guide available in a digital format. Inside you will find slides from the presentation made by JSSA social workers, lists of services and contacts selected for their relevance to local clergy, and tachlis items, like an ‘Inclusion Check‐list’, Jewish source material and divrei Torah on Special Needs and Disabilities. The feedback we have received indicates that this has been a valuable resource for all clergy. Please contact Rabbi James Kahn or Natalie Merkur Rose with any questions, comments or for additional resources. L’shalom, Rabbi James Q. Kahn, Director of Jewish Engagement & Chaplaincy Services Email [email protected]; Phone 301.610.8356 Natalie Merkur Rose, LCSW‐C, LICSW, Director of Jewish Community Outreach Email [email protected]; Phone 301.610.8319 WHEN EVERY NEED IS SPECIAL – NAVIGATING SPECIAL NEEDS IN A CONGREGATIONAL SETTING RESOURCE GUIDE: TABLE OF CONTENTS SECTION 1: SESSION MATERIALS FOR REVIEW PAGE Program Agenda ......................................................................................................... -
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. -
Vayechih 5764
d”sb HEVRAT PINTO O Under Aegis of N 89 Rabbi David Hanania Pinto a”eylw 11, rue du plateau - 75019 PARIS ohhj lrs Tel: (331) 48 03 53 89 • Fax (331) 42 08 50 85 BALAK 8 Morris Road - Spring Valley NY 10977 THE PATH 9 TAMUZ 5765 Tel: 1-845 426 1276 • Fax: 1-845 426 1149 www.hevratpinto.org TO FOLLOW JULY.16.2005 Responsable of publication Hanania Soussan “HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE YOUR TENTS, O JACOB, YOUR DWELLING PLACES, O ISRAEL!” (by Rabbi David Hanania Pinto a”eylw) oncerning Bilaam’s blessings, we have ing their Torah study, yet refrained from doing so. If seen that the word “tents” corresponds a Baal Teshuvah (who did not previously know G-d) to houses of prayer, and “dwelling is assured of the World to Come, a person who rec- places” corresponds to houses of ognizes his Creator can strengthen himself each day study. Rabbi Abba bar Kahana teaches and every hour by considering that he has just now, Cthat, except for these houses of study and prayer, all the on this very day, received the Torah on Mount Sinai blessings reverted to curses, which was Bilaam’s real (Rashi, Deuteronomy 26:16). intent (see Sanhedrin 105b). This demands a certain Nevertheless, one who chooses the good and desires amount of clarification. to take to the path of righteousness must exert a great 1. If the reason why Bilaam’s curses were not ful- deal of effort to arrive at the goal that he has set for filled is because he did not pronounce them sincerely himself, since the evil inclination lays traps for him and wholeheartedly, why was the blessing “How beau- everywhere. -
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. -
Tanya Sources.Pdf
The Way to the Tree of Life Jewish practice entails fulfilling many laws. Our diet is limited, our days to work are defined, and every aspect of life has governing directives. Is observance of all the laws easy? Is a perfectly righteous life close to our heart and near to our limbs? A righteous life seems to be an impossible goal! However, in the Torah, our great teacher Moshe, Moses, declared that perfect fulfillment of all religious law is very near and easy for each of us. Every word of the Torah rings true in every generation. Lesson one explores how the Tanya resolved these questions. It will shine a light on the infinite strength that is latent in each Jewish soul. When that unending holy desire emerges, observance becomes easy. Lesson One: The Infinite Strength of the Jewish Soul The title page of the Tanya states: A Collection of Teachings ספר PART ONE לקוטי אמרים חלק ראשון Titled הנקרא בשם The Book of the Beinonim ספר של בינונים Compiled from sacred books and Heavenly מלוקט מפי ספרים ומפי סופרים קדושי עליון נ״ע teachers, whose souls are in paradise; based מיוסד על פסוק כי קרוב אליך הדבר מאד בפיך ובלבבך לעשותו upon the verse, “For this matter is very near to לבאר היטב איך הוא קרוב מאד בדרך ארוכה וקצרה ”;you, it is in your mouth and heart to fulfill it בעזה״י and explaining clearly how, in both a long and short way, it is exceedingly near, with the aid of the Holy One, blessed be He. "1 of "393 The Way to the Tree of Life From the outset of his work therefore Rav Shneur Zalman made plain that the Tanya is a guide for those he called “beinonim.” Beinonim, derived from the Hebrew bein, which means “between,” are individuals who are in the middle, neither paragons of virtue, tzadikim, nor sinners, rishoim. -
The Nonverbal Language of Prayer
Texts and Studies in Ancient Judaism Texte und Studien zum Antiken Judentum Edited by Martin Hengel and Peter Schäfer 105 Uri Ehrlich The Nonverbal Language of Prayer A New Approach to Jewish Liturgy Translated by Dena Ordan Mohr Siebeck Uri Ehrlich: Born 1956; 1994 Ph.D. in Talmud and Jewish Philosophy, Hebrew University, Jerusalem; Senior lecturer, Department of Jewish Thought, Ben-Gurion University. ISBN 3-16-148150-X ISSN 0721-8753 (Texts and Studies in Ancient Judaism) Die Deutsche Bibliothek lists this publication in the Deutsche Nationalbibliographie; de- tailed bibliographic data is available on the Internet at http://dnb.ddb.de. © 2004 by Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, Germany. Authorised English translation of "n:-ßxn 'ra^a © 1999 by Hebrew University Magnes Press, Jerusalem. This book may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, in any form (beyond that permitted by copyright law) without the publisher's written permission. This applies particularly to reproductions, translations, microfilms and storage and processing in electronic systems. The book was printed by Guide-Druck in Tübingen on non-aging paper and bound by Buchbinderei Spinner in Ottersweier. Printed in Germany. In memory of my grandparents Martha and Arthur Dernburg Preface to the English Edition Prayer has many names: tefillah (petition), tehinah (beseeching), le'akah (shouting), ze'akah (cry), shavah (cry for help), renanah (cry of prayer), pegi'ah (plea), nefilah (falling down); amidah (standing). (Tanhuma, Va-ethanan 3) This midrash highlights the multidimensional nature of the Prayer and names a variety of expressive means alongside the Prayer's verbal aspect. It is this book's aim to portray the nonverbal components of the Prayer - physical gestures, attire, and vocality - and to demonstrate their impor- tance for, and integrality to, the prayer-act. -
Daf Ditty Pesachim 113: Kaldiyyim, Kalda'ei
Daf Ditty Pesachim 113: kaldiyyim, kalda'ei, The countries around Chaldea The fame of the Chaldeans was still solid at the time of Cicero (106–43 BC), who in one of his speeches mentions "Chaldean astrologers", and speaks of them more than once in his De divinatione. Other classical Latin writers who speak of them as distinguished for their knowledge of astronomy and astrology are Pliny, Valerius Maximus, Aulus Gellius, Cato, Lucretius, Juvenal. Horace in his Carpe diem ode speaks of the "Babylonian calculations" (Babylonii numeri), the horoscopes of astrologers consulted regarding the future. In the late antiquity, a variant of Aramaic language that was used in some books of the Bible was misnamed as Chaldean by Jerome of Stridon. That usage continued down the centuries, and it was still customary during the nineteenth century, until the misnomer was corrected by the scholars. 1 Rabbi Yoḥanan further said: The Holy One, blessed be He, proclaims about the goodness of three kinds of people every day, as exceptional and noteworthy individuals: About a bachelor who lives in a city and does not sin with women; about a poor person who returns a lost object to its owners despite his poverty; and about a wealthy person who tithes his produce in private, without publicizing his behavior. The Gemara reports: Rav Safra was a bachelor living in a city. 2 When the tanna taught this baraita before Rava and Rav Safra, Rav Safra’s face lit up with joy, as he was listed among those praised by God. Rava said to him: This does not refer to someone like the Master.