Jewish Concepts of Scripture: A Comparative Introduction PDF
Preview Jewish Concepts of Scripture: A Comparative Introduction
Jewish Concepts of Scripture This page intentionally left blank Jewish Concepts of Scripture A Comparative Introduction Edited by Benjamin D. Sommer a New York University Press New York and London NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS New York and London www.nyupress.org © 2012 by New York University All rights reserved References to Internet websites (URLs) were accurate at the time of writing. Neither the author nor New York University Press is responsible for URLs that may have expired or changed since the manuscript was prepared. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Jewish concepts of Scripture : a comparative introduction / edited by Benjamin D. Sommer. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-8147-4062-0 (cl : alk. paper) ISBN 978-0-8147-6002-4 (pb : alk. paper) ISBN 978-0-8147-2479-8 (ebook) ISBN 978-0-8147-2460-6 (ebook) 1. Bible. O.T. — Criticism, interpretation, etc., Jewish. I. Sommer, Benjamin D., 1964 – BS1186.J474 2012 221.1 — dc23 2012015882 New York University Press books are printed on acid-free paper, and their binding materials are chosen for strength and durability. We strive to use environmentally responsible suppliers and materials to the greatest extent possible in publishing our books. Manufactured in the United States of America c 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 p 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 ,תִי בַּ לַ רבֶ עֵ מֵ ,םשָׁ ,קפֶֹאבָּ םימִ לְּ אִ הָ םהֶ יֵ יּחַ תאֶ םיִיּחַ םיטִ וֹעהָ ,םיפִּ שְׁ ִנּהַ םירִהָ הֶ ,רֹפאָ ףיעִ צָ בְּ םדָ וֹס תאֶ תִי בַּ הַ תפַּ צְ רִלְ תחַ תַּ מִ וּ ,םירִימִ טְּ הַ ויָיּחַ תאֶ יחַ ,םידִ חָ ֻימְ הַ ויָיּחַ תאֶ ,רפָ עָ הֶ וֹכוֹתבְּ ןוּמטָּ שֶׁ המַ לכָ וְ . . . תוֹנָיעְ מַ ,םישִׁ רָשָׁ ,םיעִ רְָז . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . הכָ וּפשְׁ תוּימִ תָ סְ לשֶׁ תשֶׁ רֶאֲ — תוֹהכֵּ הַ ויָנבָ אֲ יֵנפְּ לעַ .ןוֹחטָּ בִּ טעַ מְ כִּ הֶז ירֵהֲ וְ “ן שיה תיבה” ,הדלז — Th ere, beyond the house, on the horizon, the loft y mountains, wearing their secret as a gray veil, live their mute lives, and beneath the fl oor of the house the dust lives its hidden life, its unique and solitary life, along with all that is hidden in it — seeds, roots, springs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . An expression — u ncertainty, just so — i s poured over the surface of its dark stones — and aft er all, that is almost faith. — Z eldah, “Th e Old House,” in Shirei Zeldah (Tel Aviv: Haqqibbutz Hame’uchad, 1985), 9 Translation by Benjamin D. Sommer This page intentionally left blank Contents Acknowledgments ix 1 Introduction: Scriptures in Jewish Tradition, and Traditions as Jewish Scripture 1 Benjamin D. Sommer 2 Concepts of Scripture in the Synagogue Service 15 Elsie Stern 3 Concepts of Scripture in Rabbinic Judaism: Oral Torah and Written Torah 31 Steven D. Fraade 4 Concepts of Scripture in the Schools of Rabbi Akiva and Rabbi Ishmael 47 Azzan Yadin-Israel 5 Concepts of Scriptural Language in Midrash 64 Benjamin D. Sommer 6 Concepts of Scripture among the Jews of the Medieval Islamic World 80 Meira Polliack 7 Concepts of Scripture in the School of Rashi 102 Robert A. Harris 8 Concepts of Scripture in Maimonides 123 James A. Diamond 9 Concepts of Scripture in Nahmanides 139 Aaron W. Hughes 10 Concepts of Scripture in Jewish Mysticism 157 Moshe Idel vii viii Contents 11 Concepts of Scripture in Martin Buber and Franz Rosenzweig 179 Jonathan Cohen 12 Th e Pentateuch as Scripture and the Challenge of Biblical Criticism: Responses among Modern Jewish Th inkers and Scholars 203 Baruch J. Schwartz 13 Concepts of Scripture in Yehezkel Kaufmann 230 Job Y. Jindo 14 Concepts of Scripture in Moshe Greenberg 247 Marc Zvi Brettler 15 Concepts of Scripture in Mordechai Breuer 267 Shalom Carmy 16 Scripture and Modern Israeli Literature 280 Yael S. Feldman 17 Scripture and Israeli Secular Culture 299 Yair Zakovitch Glossary 317 About the Contributors 321 Index 325 Acknowledgments I am grateful to Jennifer Hammer from New York University Press for sug- gesting that I edit this volume and for her patience. I worked on the vol- ume during sabbaticals at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and the Tikvah Center for Law and Jewish Civilization at New York University School of Law and also while serving as a faculty member at Northwestern University and the Jewish Th eologi- cal Seminary. All these places provide settings that nurture rigorous and engaged scholarship, and I am privileged to be associated with each of them. Funding for producing the indices and proofreading was provided by the Lucius N. Littauer Foundation. I am, always, very grateful to their support for research in Jewish Studies. My friend Richard Tupper gave me consistently excellent advice on matters of writing, conceptualization, and style. Andrew Katz did a fi ne job of editing the manuscript and preparing it for publication. Leslie Rubin did a masterful job preparing the index and aiding me with the proofs. It was a pleasure working with her. My family — Jennifer, Avraham Ayyal, Sarah Gilah, and Eliana Shlomit — create the perfect mix of respect and love, sometimes letting me sit in my offi ce to study and work, and sometimes coming in and thus reminding me it’s time to play. הכרבה לע םלכ ודמעי. Benjamin D. Sommer ב״עשת רופכ םוי ברע October 7, 2011 Teaneck, NJ ix
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