Image of the Non-Jew in Judaism: A Historical and Constructive Study of the Noahide Laws PDF
Preview Image of the Non-Jew in Judaism: A Historical and Constructive Study of the Noahide Laws
the image of the non-jew in judaism THE LITTMAN LIBRARY OF JEWISH CIVILIZATION Dedicated to the memory of Louis Thomas Sidney Littman who founded the Littman Library for the love of God and as an act of charity in memory of his father Joseph Aaron Littman and to the memory of Robert Joseph Littman who continued what his father Louis had begun ‘Get wisdom, get understanding: Forsake her not and she shall preserve thee’ prov. 4:5 The Littman Library of Jewish Civilization is a registered UK charity Registered charity no.1000784 THE IMAGE OF THE NON-JEW IN JUDAISM ◆ The Idea of Noahide Law DAVID NOVAK second edition Edited by matthew l agrone The Littman Library of Jewish Civilization in association with Liverpool University Press The Littman Library of Jewish Civilization in association with Liverpool University Press 4 Cambridge Street, Liverpooll69 7zu, uk www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/littman Managing Editor: Connie Webber Distributed in North America by Oxford University Press Inc., 198 Madison Avenue, New York, ny 10016, usa First published by the Edwin Mellen Press 1983 Second, revised, edition published by the Littman Library of Jewish Civilization 2011 © David Novak 1983, 2011 Afterword © Matthew LaGrone 2011 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of The Littman Library of Jewish Civilization This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser Catalogue records for this book are available from the British Library and the Library of Congress ISBN 978–1–906764–07–4 Publishing co-ordinator: Janet Moth Proof reading: Bonnie Blackburn Index: Matthew LaGrone Production: John Saunders Designed and typeset by Pete Russell, Faringdon, Oxon. Printed in Great Britain on acid-free paper by the MPG Group, Bodmin and King’s Lynn from david novak Tothememoryofmyteacher, RabbiAbrahamJoshuaHeschel (cid:2) from matthew lagrone Tomywife,Danielle,andmychildren, AlyceandShira, fortheirpatienceandencouragement PREFACE This book isanattempttounderstandtheroletheimageofthenon-Jew hasplayedinthehistoryofJudaism.Theimageofthenon-Jewisonethathas had a profound influence on the way Jews have interacted with actual non- Jews they have encountered at various points in their history. It has also shapedthewaytheyhaveunderstoodtheirownidentityindeterminingjust whatdistinguishesthemfromthenon-Jewsaroundthem.Theimageofthe non-JewinJudaism,therefore,shouldbeofinteresttothoseconcernedwith thehistoryofJudaismitself,aswellasthoseconcernedwithJewish–Christian andJewish–Muslimrelations,comparativereligion,thedevelopmentofJew- ishlawandphilosophicaldeliberationonJudaism. Astudysuchasthiswouldbelikelytohavearatherepisodiccharacterwere itnotforacrucialfactor.Sincerabbinictimestheconceptofshevamitzvotbnei Noah—thesevencommandmentsofthesonsofNoah—whatwecallNoahide law,hasprovidedtheconceptualframeworkforjustabouteveryseriousJew- ishtreatmentoftheimageofthenon-Jew.Forthisreasonastudyoftheuseof this concept in both Jewish law and theology gives historical continuity to a treatment of the image of the non-Jew in Judaism. Furthermore, it enables onetolaythefoundationforasystematicphilosophicalreflectiononJudaism becauseaphilosophyofareligioninvolvesattheoutsetanideaofthehuman personforwhomthatreligionistobeinstructiveandnormative.Astudyof thecrucialconceptofNoahidelaw,then,enablesaphilosophyofJudaismto behistoricallyrootedwithoutbeingonlyatreatmentofthingspast,thatis,a constructive enterprise emerging out of the very object of its interest and understanding. Themostpersistentcharacteristicofthisconceptthroughoutitsdevelop- mentisthatishasadoublereference.Ontheonehand,itreferstothatbodyof lawthattherabbisandsubsequentJewishthinkersbelievedpertainedtoall humankind,asdistinguishedfromthe613commandmentsoftheTorahthat wereandaretheobligationsofJewsalone.Ontheotherhand,itreferstothat bodyoflawtowhichtheJewishpeoplethemselveswereconsideredobligated priortoSinai.Itappearedtomethatthisdoublereferencewasinthemindof virtuallyallthoseJewishthinkerswhodealtwiththisconcept.Thismeansthat thegentileworldthatconfrontedtheminthepresentwasparalleledtothepre- Sinaiticworld,andthatworldbecameamodelfornegotiatingwiththecon- temporary gentile world. The former reference played a significant role in Jewishtheology—thatis,ifrevelationmadetheJewswhattheyarenow,what viii preface doesrevelationpresuppose?Thelatterreferenceplayedasignificantrolein Jewishlaw—thatis,itprovidedascaleofvaluestodeterminethemoralcom- monalitybetweenJewsanddifferentgentilegroups. Thehistoricalworkhasbeenthemostdifficult,foritrequiredtheanalysis of a vast amount of material and the supposition of a line of development, especially in rabbinic literature. Thus the first chapter attempts to assign a pointofgenesisforthisconcept.Thisrequiredcarefulanalysisofbiblical,rab- binicandHellenistictextsinordertosortoutantecedentsandconsequents.It demanded,furthermore,polemicwithseveralscholarswhoproposeddiffer- entpointsoforigin.Severalofthesescholarsweremyteachers. My approach in the following chapters is best described as a “history of ideas”method.AlthoughIhavetriedtobecognizantofmodernphilosophi- cal, literary and historical treatments of specific classical texts, as the notes surely suggest, I have been principally occupied with the development of a concept.Forthisreason,Idevotedminimalspacetotheconstructionoftexts and their transmission. Indeed, the concept of Noahide law appears in so manytextsinsomanydifferentexpressionsthatIhadtolookforanunderly- ingframeofreference.Onemightdescribethisapproachas“topical”rather than “situational.” My primary concern has been to show the recurrence of thisconceptwithacertainsetofrecurrentquestions.However,thissynthesis doesnotintendtosmoothawaydifferencesamongindividualthinkers:ques- tionsconcerningmeaningare,ofcourse,tobeanswered. The first seven chapters deal with the Noahide laws individually. I have attemptedtoaccomplishtwogoals:first,toshowthehalakhicdevelopmentof eachlawasitwasdiscussedintherabbinicsources,inthecodesandinthe responsaliterature;second,toshowhowtheconceptofNoahidelawandits attendantquestionsseemtobeconceptuallyifnotliterallyinvolvedinspecu- lativediscussionsofwhathalakhahpertainedpriortoSinai,andpracticaldis- cussions of what halakha pertains to non-Jews and Jewish relations with non-Jews. Becausemyfirstconcerniswiththehistoryofthisconcept,primarydis- cussionhasreliedheavilyontheanalysisoftheclassicalrabbinictextsbytra- ditionalcommentators.Other,non-traditional,commentatorshavebeencited anddiscussed,butthetraditionalistshavetheadvantage,conceptuallyspeak- ing,inthattheyhaveattemptedtodealwiththelivingissuesintherabbinic worldasequallylivingissuesintheirownworld.Assuch,theyaretheprimary developers of that tradition. This appeared to me to be of great significance philosophicallyinthatphilosopherscanonlyreflectonthosequestionsthey themselvesaskoutoftheirownimmediateconcern. The second part of this study, beginning with chapter 9, deals with the preface ix “theory” of Noahide law. Chapter 9 considers the role of aggadah in the rabbinicspeculationregardingthetransitionofJewsfrombneiNoahtobnei Yisrael,emphasizingrevelationastheproximatecauseoftransition. The final chapters—tracing the arc of the Noahide from Maimonides to Cohen—wereeasiertowritebecausethesethinkersnegotiatedtheNoahide systematicallyintheirwork.Inthelastchapter,Ioutlinethemajorpointsthat emerge from this study. I conclude with a discussion on why Noahide law mightbeanappropriatestartingpointforJewishphilosophytoday. d.n. IamhonoredthatProfessorNovakpermittedmetheopportunitytoeditthe secondeditionofTheImageoftheNon-JewinJudaism.Ashisdoctoralstudent attheUniversityofToronto,Iurgedhimtoconsiderpublishinganewedition of this work. The rationale behind this edition is not so difficult to detect. “The number of Jews in the world,” Milton Himmelfarb famously wrote, “issmallerthanasmallstatisticalerrorintheChinesecensus.”Consequently, how a minority religion uses its sacred literature and frames its moral and philosophical narratives to navigate and negotiate the often knotty relation- shipswithothercommunitiesisperenniallyrelevant,andallthemoresoina globalizedworld.Thecontentofthebookdidnotrequiremassivereworking; itlargelystandsasitdidin1983.Styleandsyntaxweresmoothedout,anda newAfterwordwasadded. We are grateful to everyone at the Littman Library for recognizing the significanceofthisbookandbringingittotheattentionofawidercircleof readers.InparticularweextendourthankstoConnieWebberandJanetMoth, whoshepherdedthiseditionexpertlydespiteworkingwithafrightfullyinex- periencededitor. UniversityofDelaware m.l.g. 22AdarII5771
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