How Does Jewish Law Work?

How Does Jewish Law Work?
Author: J. Simcha Cohen
Publisher: Jason Aronson
Total Pages: 388
Release: 1993
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9780765760906

Does Jewish law permit heart transplants? Do we have a responsibility to try to prevent or report a crime? Is it permissible to pray while barefoot? Can a Jewish man who has married a non-Jew be counted in a minyan? In How Does Jewish Law Work, Vol. 2, Rabbi J. Simcha Cohen continues his remarkable research by responding to more questions of contemporary interest or concern to modern Jews who are committed to a life consistent with traditional Jewish law. As in his previously published and highly praised books, Timely Jewish Ques-tions: Timeless Rabbinic Answers and How Does Jewish Law Work?, Rabbi Cohen does not merely provide quick answers to the questions he raises. On the contrary, he invites his readers to listen in on his logic, his research, and his insights as he illustrates the process of Jewish law as it has been applied to new questions throughout the centuries. According to Rabbi Cohen, Halachah, the distinctly unique Jewish legal system, crystallizes the guidelines of Judaism. It makes us into Jews and marks us as Jewish. As such, an understanding of the halachic process provides insight into the inner soul of Jewish life itself. In this book, Rabbi Cohen clearly presents each question and carefully details the process of finding its answer. Through explication of verses from the Torah, talmudic passages, and many other sources, the reader receives the answer to the question and is also given the necessary background information to see how a rabbi arrives at the halachic decision. There are many books that provide answers to questions of Jewish observance and thought. How Does Jewish Law Work, Vol. 2 differs from others in that it places the answers in their proper contexts. For the person seeking to understand Jewish law, this book offers the opportunity to learn why Jews do certain things as they do. For those already familiar with halachah, this book will serve as a springboard for deeper study. All readers will come away with a sense of the complex system that is

An Introduction to the History and Sources of Jewish Law

An Introduction to the History and Sources of Jewish Law
Author: Neil S. Hecht
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Total Pages: 496
Release: 1996
Genre: History
ISBN:

Jewish law has a history stretching from the early period to the modern State of Israel, encompassing the Talmud, Geonic and later codifications, the Spanish Golden Age, medieval and modern response, the Holocaust and modern reforms. Fifteen distinct periods are separately studied in this volume, each one by a leading specialist, and the emphasis throughout is on the development of the institutions and sources of the law, providing teachers with the essential background material from which a variety of sources, from many different perspectives, may be taught. Most chapters are written to a common plan, with treatment of the political background of the period and the nature of Jewish judicial autonomy, the character (literary and legal) of the sources, the legal practice of the period, its principal authorities, and examples of characteristic features of the substantive law (especially in family law).

How Does Jewish Law Work?

How Does Jewish Law Work?
Author: J. Simcha Cohen
Publisher:
Total Pages: 334
Release: 1993
Genre: Religion
ISBN:

Addresses issues surrounding charity, Jewish communal concerns, repentance and rebuke, marriage and family life, and others.

An Introduction to Jewish Law

An Introduction to Jewish Law
Author: François-Xavier Licari
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 179
Release: 2019-03-28
Genre: Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN: 1108421970

This is the first book to present a systematic and synthetic introduction to Jewish law.

The Myth of the Cultural Jew

The Myth of the Cultural Jew
Author: Roberta Rosenthal Kwall
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 352
Release: 2015-01-22
Genre: Law
ISBN: 0190238097

A myth exists that Jews can embrace the cultural components of Judaism without appreciating the legal aspects of the Jewish tradition. This myth suggests that law and culture are independent of one another. In reality, however, much of Jewish culture has a basis in Jewish law. Similarly, Jewish law produces Jewish culture. A cultural analysis paradigm provides a useful way of understanding the Jewish tradition as the product of both legal precepts and cultural elements. This paradigm sees law and culture as inextricably intertwined and historically specific. This perspective also emphasizes the human element of law's composition and the role of existing power dynamics in shaping Jewish law. In light of this inevitable intersection between culture and law, The Myth of the Cultural Jew: Culture and Law in Jewish Tradition argues that Jewish culture is shallow unless it is grounded in Jewish law. Roberta Rosenthal Kwall develops and applies a cultural analysis paradigm to the Jewish tradition that departs from the understanding of Jewish law solely as the embodiment of Divine command. Her paradigm explains why both law and culture must matter to those interested in forging meaningful Jewish identity and transmitting the tradition.

Wrestling with God and Men

Wrestling with God and Men
Author: Steven Greenberg
Publisher: Univ of Wisconsin Press
Total Pages: 329
Release: 2004-02-23
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0299190935

For millennia, two biblical verses have been understood to condemn sex between men as an act so abhorrent that it is punishable by death. Traditionally Orthodox Jews, believing the scripture to be the word of God, have rejected homosexuality in accordance with this interpretation. In 1999, Rabbi Steven Greenberg challenged this tradition when he became the first Orthodox rabbi ever to openly declare his homosexuality. Wrestling with God and Men is the product of Rabbi Greenberg’s ten-year struggle to reconcile his two warring identities. In this compelling and groundbreaking work, Greenberg challenges long held assumptions of scriptural interpretation and religious identity as he marks a path that is both responsible to human realities and deeply committed to God and Torah. Employing traditional rabbinic resources, Greenberg presents readers with surprising biblical interpretations of the creation story, the love of David and Jonathan, the destruction of Sodom, and the condemning verses of Leviticus. But Greenberg goes beyond the question of whether homosexuality is biblically acceptable to ask how such relationships can be sacred. In so doing, he draws on a wide array of nonscriptural texts to introduce readers to occasions of same-sex love in Talmudic narratives, medieval Jewish poetry and prose, and traditional Jewish case law literature. Ultimately, Greenberg argues that Orthodox communities must open up debate, dialogue, and discussion—precisely the foundation upon which Jewish law rests—to truly deal with the issue of homosexual love. This book will appeal not only to members of the Orthodox faith but to all religious people struggling to resolve their belief in the scriptures with a desire to make their communities more open and accepting to gay and lesbian members. 2005 Finalist for the Lambda Literary Awards, for Religion/Spirituality

Encyclopedia of Applied Ethics

Encyclopedia of Applied Ethics
Author:
Publisher: Academic Press
Total Pages: 3467
Release: 2012-01-10
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0123739322

The Encyclopedia of Applied Ethics, Second Edition, Four Volume Set addresses both the physiological and the psychological aspects of human behavior. Carefully crafted, well written, and thoroughly indexed, the encyclopedia helps users - whether they are students just beginning formal study of the broad field or specialists in a branch of psychology - understand the field and how and why humans behave as we do. The work is an all-encompassing reference providing a comprehensive and definitive review of the field. A broad and inclusive table of contents ensures detailed investigation of historical and theoretical material as well as in-depth analysis of current issues. Several disciplines may be involved in applied ethics: one branch of applied ethics, for example, bioethics, is commonly explicated in terms of ethical, legal, social, and philosophical issues. Editor-in-Chief Ruth Chadwick has put together a group of leading contributors ranging from philosophers to practitioners in the particular fields in question, to academics from disciplines such as law and economics. The 376 chapters are divided into 4 volumes, each chapter falling into a subject category including Applied Ethics; Bioethics; Computers and Information Management; Economics/Business; Environmental Ethics; Ethics and Politics; Legal; Medical Ethics; Philosophy/Theories; Social; and Social/Media. Concise entries (ten pages on average) provide foundational knowledge of the field Each article will features suggested readings pointing readers to additional sources for more information, a list of related websites, a 5-10 word glossary and a definition paragraph, and cross-references to related articles in the encyclopedia Newly expanded editorial board and a host of international contributors from the US, Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Japan, Sweden, and the United Kingdom The 376 chapters are divided into 4 volumes, each chapter falling into a subject category including Applied Ethics; Bioethics; Computers and Information Management; Economics/Business; Environmental Ethics; Ethics and Politics; Legal; Medical Ethics; Philosophy/Theories; Social; and Social/Media