Deviancy in early rabbinic literature : a collection of socio-anthropological essays /
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Deviancy in Early Rabbinic Literature deals with the status of those groups and individuals who, for various reasons, appear to have no place in mainstream Rabbinic Jewish society, or may be perceived by that society as posing a threat to its norms and to its very existence. The book examines the thoughts and attitudes of the Rabbis set forth in various sections of the Mishnah, Tosefta and Talmud. Deviant groups studied include witches, prostitutes, Gentiles, bastards, Nazirites, soldiers, Kutites, the disabled and the menstruous woman. Social anthropological methodologies are used to provide a unique perspective on the implicit message of the redactors of these Rabbinic texts, and to make these important texts equally accessible to both scholars and laymen interested in acquiring a deeper understanding of these important issues.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references (p. [213]-220) and index. :
9789047420187 :
1571-5000 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Central Problems of Medieval Jewish Philosophy /
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This book deals with central issues of medieval Jewish philosophy. Among the subjects treated are divine immanence, the intellect, miracles, and esoteric writing and its limits. The work provides a new perspective on the history of Jewish philosophy in the Middle Ages. Relying on many as yet unpublished manuscripts, which enable it to offer new insights relating to such thinkers as Judah Halevi, Maimonides, and Gersonides, it also presents a new and original perception of the dynamics of Jewish thought in general.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789047416845
9789004148055
Proximity to Power and Jewish Sectarian Groups of the Ancient Period : A Review of Lifestyle, Values, and Halakha in the Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, and Qumran /
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This book deals with the values, lifestyle and code of law of four Jewish sectarian groups in the Hellenistic and Roman (Second Temple) period, in the land of Israel. It reviews the groups according to their proximity to power, highlighting the fact that political involvement has a decisive impact on the life and development of these social groups. The groups under review, the Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes and Qumran, receive a new historical description, from the viewpoint of their proximity to power. The issue of what determines the course of a social group, whether normative or sectarian, is discussed, and the traditional terminology is re-examined. Original terminology is established. The first part of the book deals with the question of terminology, the available sources and the presentation of the different groups.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789047408352
9789004146990
Military Service and the Integration of Jews into the Roman Empire /
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"According to Raúl González Salinero, the plurality of religious expressions within Judaism prior to the predominance of the rabbinical current disproves the assumption according to which some Jewish customs and precepts (especially the Sabbath) prevented Jews from joining the Roman army without renouncing their ancestral culture. The military exemption occasionally granted to the Jews by the Roman authorities was compatible with their voluntary enlistment (as it was in the Hellenistic armies) in order to obtain Roman citizenship. As the sources attest, Judaism did not pose any insurmountable obstacle to integration of the Jews into the Roman world. They achieved a noteworthy presence in the Roman army by the fourth century CE, at which time the Church's influence over imperial power led to their exclusion from the militia armata"--
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004507258
9789004506756
Judaism and Christianity : new directions for dialogue and understanding /
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This volume treats the interrelationship between Judaism and Christianity from the first centuries and into modern times, paying particular attention to these faiths' social, cultural, and theological interactions. The issues covered range from the formation of Jewish and Christian ideology in the context of Roman paganism to the ways in which Christian culture and theology of the medieval and modern periods form a backdrop to the creation of Jewish identity. While the historical periods and issues discussed are diverse, the result is to suggest the importance of our recognizing the close development of Judaism and Christianity. Written by top scholars in Judaic and Christian studies, these essays reflect on how the two faiths related to and were shaped by each other as they evolved in shared historical and cultural contexts, even as each maintained its own distinctive ideologies and beliefs.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and indexes. :
9789047441731 :
1571-5000 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Ontological aspects of early Jewish anthropology : the malleable self and the presence of God /
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In Ontological Aspects of Early Jewish Anthropology , Tyson L. Putthoff explores early Jewish beliefs about how the human self reacts ontologically in God's presence. Combining contemporary theory with sound exegesis, Putthoff demonstrates that early Jews widely considered the self to be intrinsically malleable, such that it mimics the ontological state of the space it inhabits. In divine space, they believed, the self therefore shares in the ontological state of God himself. The book is critical for students and scholars alike. In putting forth a new framework for conceptualising early Jewish anthropology, it challenges scholars to rethink not only what early Jews believed about the self but how we approach the subject in the first place.
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"This book is a revision of my doctoral thesis, completed at Durham University"--Acknowledgements. :
1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004336414 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Bridging between sister religions : studies of Jewish and Christian scriptures offered in honor of Prof. John T. Townsend /
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This volume is a collection of fresh essays in honor of Professor John T. Townsend. It focuses on the interpretation of the common Jewish and Christian Scripture (the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament) and on its two off-shoots (Rabbinic Judaism and the New Testament), as well as on Jewish-Christian relations. The contributors, who are prominent scholars in their fields, include James L. Crenshaw, Göran Eidevall, Anne E. Gardner, Lawrence M. Wills, Cecilia Wassen, Robert L. Brawley, Joseph B. Tyson, Eldon J. Epp, Yaakov Elman, Rivka Ulmer, Andreas Lehnardt, Reuven Kimelman, Bruce Chilton, and Michael W. Duggan.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004324541 :
1571-5000 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
From Scrolls to Traditions : A Festschrift Honoring Lawrence H. Schiffman /
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This Festschrift in honor of Professor Lawrence H. Schiffman, a renowned authority on the Dead Sea Scrolls and Rabbinic Judaism, includes contributions by twenty of his former doctoral students, now colleagues. The volume is divided into two sections, the "Biblical and Second Temple Period" and "Rabbis, Other Jews, and Neighboring Cultures." The diverse topics covered and the wide range of interdisciplinary approaches employed reflect Professor Schiffman's success in cultivating a school of scholars who are making unique contributions to the study of the Jews and Judaism.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004443891
9789004443884
The temple complex at Horvat Omrit /
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Volume One of The Temple Complex at Horvat Omrit presents a detailed examination of the surviving architecture of the three Roman period temple phases at the newly excavated sanctuary at the archaeological site of Omrit in northern Israel. All three temples were built according to the Corinthian order and the author describes and illustrates the state of the remains, proposes reconstructions of each phase, and places each temple in the broader historical context.
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1 online resource (xxx, 386 pages) : illustrations, maps. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004290990 :
1571-5000 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
The gender challenge of Hebrew /
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The Gender Challenge of Hebrew is the first book to delve in depth into the problem of gender representation over the 3,000-year history of the Hebrew language. By analyzing and illustrating the grammatical characteristics of gender in Biblical, Mishnaic, Medieval and Modern Hebrew, Malka Muchnik reveals the social and cultural issues that they reflect. Gender discrimination in all periods of Hebrew is shown in sacred, liturgical and literary texts, as well as in the popular language spoken today. All of them testify to the problematic status of women, who were traditionally excluded from religious studies and public activities, and in recent decades have been struggling to change this practice. Malka Muchnik shows that linguistic change remains a challenging goal.
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1 online resource (x, 258 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004282711 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Binding fragments of Tractate Temurah and the problem of lishana 'aḥarina /
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Binding Fragments of Tractate Temurah and the Problem of Lishana 'Aḥarina offers a critical edition of an important Talmud manuscript of tractate Temurah discovered in the library of New York University. Addressing the unique Lishana 'Aḥarina ("alternative version") phenomenon present in this tractate, the present volume suggests a new approach for understanding the editing and transmission of tractate Temurah. This volume also includes a thorough discussion of the conservation and treatment of the manuscript fragments, a codicological and paleographical analysis of the fragments, and a synopsis of the entire first chapter of this tractate. The present work is relevant for study of the redaction and transmission of tractate Temurah and the Babylonian Talmud, as well as for the study of Hebrew binding fragments.
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1 online resource (xiv, 278 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004367135 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
For out of Babylonia shall come Torah and the word of the Lord from Nehar Peqod : the quest for Babylonian tannaitic traditions /
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In For Out of Babylonia Shall Come Torah and the Word of the Lord from Nehar Peqod , Barak S. Cohen reevaluates the evidence in Tannaitic and Amoraic literature of an independent "Babylonian Mishnah" which originated in the proto-talmudic period. The book focuses on an analysis of the most notable halakhic corpora that have been identified by scholars as originating in the Tannaitic period or at the outset of the amoraic. If indeed such an early corpus did exist, what are its characteristics and what, if any, connection does it have with the parallel Palestinian collections? Was this Babylonian Mishnah created in order to harmonize the Palestinian Mishnah with a corpus of rabbinic teachings already existent in Babylonia? Was this corpus one of the main contributors to the forced interpretations and resolutions found so frequently in the Bavli?
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1 online resource (viii, 295 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004347021 :
1571-5000 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Innovation and Tradition in Rabbinic Culture : A Reassessment Through a Linguistic Lens /
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Reading Talmudic Sources as Arguments: A New Interpretive Approach elucidates the unique characteristics of Talmudic discourse culture. Approaching Talmudic literature from a linguistic perspective, the book shows the extensive and hidden ways in which later rabbis used early formulations. Applying Quentin Skinner's interpretive question "What was the author doing in composing the text in this particular way?" to Talmudic literature reveals that Talmudic debate is not only about ideas, concepts and laws but also about the latter's connection to pre-existing formulations. These early traditions, rather than only being accepted or not, are used by later generations to build their own arguments. The book articulates the function of tradition at the time that Rabbinic Judaism was forged.
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1 online resource. :
9789004430044
9789004430037
The second Jewish revolt : the Bar Kokhba War, 132-136 CE /
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In The Second Jewish Revolt: The Bar Kokhba War, 132-136 C.E. , Menahem Mor offers a detailed account on the Bar Kokhba Revolt in an attempt to understand the second revolt against the Romans. Since the Bar Kokhba Revolt did not have a historian who devoted a comprehensive book to the event, Mor used a variety of historical materials including literary sources (Jewish, Christian, Greek and Latin) and archaeological sources (inscriptions, coins, military diplomas, hideouts, and refuge complexes). The book reviews the causes for the outbreak while explaining the complexity of the territorial expansion of the Revolt. Mor portrays the participants and opponents as well as the attitudes of the non-Jewish population in Palestine. He exposes the Roman Army's part in Judaea, the Jewish leadership and the implications of the Revolt.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and indexes. :
9789004314634 :
1571-5000 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Contextualizing Jewish Temples /
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"Jewish temples stood in Jerusalem for nearly one thousand years and were a dominant feature in the life of the ancient Judeans throughout antiquity. This volume strives to obtain a diachronic and topical cross-section of central features of the varied aspects of the Jewish temples that stood in Jerusalem, one that draws on and incorporates different disciplinary and methodological viewpoints. Ten contributions are included in this volume by: Gary A. Anderson; Simeon Chavel; Avraham Faust; Paul M. Joyce; Yuval Levavi; Risa Levitt; Eyal Regev; Lawrence H. Schiffman; Jeffrey Stackert; Caroline Waerzeggers, edited by Tova Ganzel and Shalom E. Holtz"--
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004444799
9789004444782
The new Babylonian diaspora : the rise and fall of the Jewish community in Iraq, 16th-20th centuries C.E. /
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The New Babylonian Diaspora: Rise and Fall of Jewish Community in Iraq, 16th-20th Centuries C.E. provides a historical survey of the Iraqi Jewish community's evolution from the apex of its golden age to its disappearance, emergence, rapid growth and annihilation. Making use of Judeo-Arabic newspapers and archives in London, Paris, Washington D.C. and other sources, Zvi Yehuda proves that from 1740 to 1914, Iraq became a lodestone for tens of thousands of Jewish immigrants from Kurdistan, Persia, the Mediterranean Basin, and Eastern and Central Europe. After these Jews had settled in Baghdad and Mesopotamia, they became "Babylonians" and 'forgot' their lands of origin, contrary to the social habit of Jews in other communities throughout history.
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"Published in partnership with The Babylonian Jewry Heritage Center (BJHC)." :
1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004354012 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Fighting over the Bible : Jewish interpretation, sectarianism and polemic from Temple to Talmud and beyond /
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Fighting over the Bible explores the bitter conflicts between main stream Jews and their internal and external opponents, especially between particular Jewish groups such as Pharisees, Sadducees, Qumranites, Samaritans, Rabbanites and Karaites, as well as with Christians and Muslims regarding their interpretations of Jewish Scripture. The Hebrew Bible/Old Testament is an important sacred text for all branches of the Abrahamic faiths, but it has more often divided than unified them. This volume explores and exemplifies the roots of these interpretive conflicts and controversies and traces the rich exegetical and theological approaches that grew out of them. Focusing on the Jewish sources from the late Second Temple period through the high Middle-Ages, it illustrates how the study of the Bible filled the vacuum left by the Temple's destruction, and became the foundation of Jewish life throughout its long conflicted history.
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1 online resource (xi, 341 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004339118 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Jews and Christians in Denmark : from the Middle Ages to recent times circa 1100-1948 /
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In Jews and Christians in Denmark: From the Middle Ages to Recent Times, circa 1100-1948 , Martin Schwarz Lausten investigates how the Church and society followed the European antijudaistic tradition using insults, adversities and attempted conversions during Catholic times from around 1100 and Protestant times starting around 1536. In spite of the tolerant policies of integration initiated by the government beginning in the 1800's, anti-Semitic movements arose among priests, professors and local authorities. However, during the German occupation (1940-1945) priests and many others assisted the 7,000 Danish Jews in their escape to Sweden. Based on Jewish and Christian sources, Jewish reactions to life in Denmark are also examined.
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Based on research previously published in the author's Kirke og synagoge (1992), De fromme og jøderne (2000), Oplysning i kirke og synagoge (2002), Frie jøder? (2005), Folkekirken og jøderne (2007), and Jødesympati og jødehad i folkekirken (2007), supplemented with references to newer literature at various points. :
1 online resource (xii, 296 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 273-286) and index. :
9789004304376 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Medieval Midrash : the house for inspired innovation /
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Medieval Midrash: The House for Inspired Innovation is the first book-length study of this under-examined genre of Jewish Literature. Mehlman and Limmer cover the history of scholarship of these curious texts and evaluate the origins, dating, and authors of Medieval Midrash. In addition to addressing such scholarly questions, Medieval Midrash illustrates its themes and judgments through the annotated translation of the six extant texts that revolve around the key figure of King Solomon. This book, whose underlying tropes speak to the continuing need for creative religious expression, will be of interest to scholars and non-academics alike.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004331334 :
1571-5000 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
The Prince and the Sufi : The Judeo-Persian Rendition of the Buddha Biographies /
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The Prince and the Sufi is the literary composition of the seventeenth-century Judeo-Persian poet Elisha ben Shmūel. In The Prince and the Sufi: The Judeo-Persian Rendition of the Buddha Biographies , Dalia Yasharpour provides a thorough analysis of this popular work to show how the Buddha's life story has undergone substantial transformation with the use of Jewish, Judeo-Persian and Persian-Islamic sources. The complete annotated edition of the text and the corresponding English translation are thorough and insightful. This scholarly study makes available to readers an important branch in the genealogical tree of the Buddha Biographies.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004442757
9789004442740