The Jewish legal system is a traditional system based on a process of ongoing interpretation and ... more The Jewish legal system is a traditional system based on a process of ongoing interpretation and reinterpretation of classical Jewish sources. Although the development of Jewish law began within the context of a sovereign Jewish nation living in its own land, much of the development took place in a state of exile. As a result, for approximately two thousand years, the Jewish legal system focused on internal matters and ceased its deliberation of issues that related to the functions of state. The Zionist movement, and the subsequent rebirth of Jewish sovereignty with the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, challenged Jewish legal authorities to deal with issues that had not been addressed for centuries. The lack of continued deliberation challenges the interpreter significantly, as he is required to overcome a lacuna of hundreds of years of relevant sources and deliberations. In response to this challenge, some jurists have relied on traditional exegetical methods while oth...
It is claimed that one important reason for the parting of the ways between Judaism and Christian... more It is claimed that one important reason for the parting of the ways between Judaism and Christianity in the first centuries of the Common Era was the fact that the Christians ‘outsourced’ their legal system to their host country (e.g. Rome). At the same time, the Jews created their own ‘civil and criminal’ law-code and strictly adhered to it, inter alia, by founding their own law-courts. Their legal autonomy led to the idea of political sovereignty on the one hand, yet contributed to their speration from the gentile environment on the other. This development may also be one of the reasons that many of the Rabbis and their constituencies moved eastward to the Parthian Empire, which was—due to its feudal system—quite tolerant towards Jewish legal thought and practice. In contradistinction, Christianity was not bound by its own particularistic legal sovereignty and thus could more easily integrate in the Roman Empire. Its sovereignty was perceived as theological and not political.
Jewish population centers and their synagogues served, as is known, as anchors for apostles who t... more Jewish population centers and their synagogues served, as is known, as anchors for apostles who traveled to spread the message of Christianity. The travels of Paul, as described in the Acts of the Apostles and the Pauline Epistles, provide us with valuable information about the Jewish Diaspora during this period. In this article, we will try to demonstrate that an essentially different picture of the Jewish Diaspora emerges from the Jewish sources from this and subsequent periods. The Jewish centers that are focal points of the travels of the apostles are practically nonexistent in descriptions of rabbinic travels and the dissemination of their teachings during the same period. This new perception of the period sheds light on many key issues of New Testament methodological approaches. After dealing with this fascinating fact in its own right, we will attempt to provide insights into its meaning. We will examine the growing estrangement between the rabbinic center in the land of Isra...
The Jewish legal system is a traditional system based on a process of ongoing interpretation and ... more The Jewish legal system is a traditional system based on a process of ongoing interpretation and reinterpretation of classical Jewish sources. Although the development of Jewish law began within the context of a sovereign Jewish nation living in its own land, much of the development took place in a state of exile. As a result, for approximately two thousand years, the Jewish legal system focused on internal matters and ceased its deliberation of issues that related to the functions of state. The Zionist movement, and the subsequent rebirth of Jewish sovereignty with the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, challenged Jewish legal authorities to deal with issues that had not been addressed for centuries. The lack of continued deliberation challenges the interpreter significantly, as he is required to overcome a lacuna of hundreds of years of relevant sources and deliberations. In response to this challenge, some jurists have relied on traditional exegetical methods while oth...
It is claimed that one important reason for the parting of the ways between Judaism and Christian... more It is claimed that one important reason for the parting of the ways between Judaism and Christianity in the first centuries of the Common Era was the fact that the Christians ‘outsourced’ their legal system to their host country (e.g. Rome). At the same time, the Jews created their own ‘civil and criminal’ law-code and strictly adhered to it, inter alia, by founding their own law-courts. Their legal autonomy led to the idea of political sovereignty on the one hand, yet contributed to their speration from the gentile environment on the other. This development may also be one of the reasons that many of the Rabbis and their constituencies moved eastward to the Parthian Empire, which was—due to its feudal system—quite tolerant towards Jewish legal thought and practice. In contradistinction, Christianity was not bound by its own particularistic legal sovereignty and thus could more easily integrate in the Roman Empire. Its sovereignty was perceived as theological and not political.
Jewish population centers and their synagogues served, as is known, as anchors for apostles who t... more Jewish population centers and their synagogues served, as is known, as anchors for apostles who traveled to spread the message of Christianity. The travels of Paul, as described in the Acts of the Apostles and the Pauline Epistles, provide us with valuable information about the Jewish Diaspora during this period. In this article, we will try to demonstrate that an essentially different picture of the Jewish Diaspora emerges from the Jewish sources from this and subsequent periods. The Jewish centers that are focal points of the travels of the apostles are practically nonexistent in descriptions of rabbinic travels and the dissemination of their teachings during the same period. This new perception of the period sheds light on many key issues of New Testament methodological approaches. After dealing with this fascinating fact in its own right, we will attempt to provide insights into its meaning. We will examine the growing estrangement between the rabbinic center in the land of Isra...
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