Law Books - Page 2

Women and Jewish Law: The Essential Texts, Their History, and Their Relevance for Today

Rachel Biale

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Seeing Women's Issues from all sides 5 out of 5 stars.
15 of 16 people found this review helpful.

Ms. Biale's book, not only explains relevent laws and how they effect Jewish women (marriage, divorce, abortion, niddah)... she also takes the time to cite the teachings of the great Rabbis, allowing all sides- from right to middle to left- to be heard. This presentation is a fascinating read and allows you to consider all of the evidence and create your own, informed opinions.

Well researched 5 out of 5 stars.
9 of 9 people found this review helpful.

I much enjoyed this book. It is well-researched and argues its case equally well. The author points out how so many of the halakhic decisions were originally made to protect women from aggressive males within the patriarchal system of those times. It ends, however, with the cry for those rulings to be reconsidered in light of the "fact" that women no longer need or want to be protected.

The Unfolding Tradition: Jewish Law After Sinai

Elliot N. Dorff

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

First guide to understanding a systematic view of Jewish law 5 out of 5 stars.
26 of 26 people found this review helpful.

What is halakha (loosely translated as "Jewish law".) This book systematically discusses questions such as: Where does it come from? Are Jews obligated to obey it? If so, why? What does it mean to be obligated? How does one decide questions of Jewish law?

Unfortunately, most Orthodox authors do not study philosophy, and make no attempt to systematically describe their approach of halakha. On the other extreme, Reform authors do not view halakha as authoritative in any way. They have produced no systematic view of Jewish law, and wildly disagree themselves over whether any part of should be normative at all.

In contrast, it is Jews affiliated with Conservative, Traditional and Masorti Judaism who have thus produced the most intelligble and systematic writings on this subject. Not only does Rabbi Dorff systematically present his own philosophy in regards to the above questions, but he presents the views of many other Jewish thinkers, both inside Conservative Judaism, as well as Reform and Orthodoxy.

Dorff presents a serious philosophical critique of every theory of law discussed: What are the strengths of each position, and what are the weaknesses. No partisan polemicist, he is equally critical of his own theory of law as he is of other people's theories. Why should anyone care about this subject? Rabbi Dorff writes:

"A theory of law describes how the author understands the nature of human beings and human society, the role of law for people and societies construed in that way, the sources of authority of the law, the ways in which the law can retain authority and yet change over time to remain relevant to current circumstances, and the relationship between law and morality, religion, and custom. The reason why one should care about such matters is because the way you understand such matters has a critical effect on how you understand yourself and your community, the role of law in your life and that of your community, and the ways in which law can and should remain the same or change over time."

This book includes readings by Zachariah Frankel, Solomon Schechter, Mordecai Kaplan, Robert Gordis, Jacob Agus, Abraham Joshua Heschel, David M. Gordis, Louis Jacobs, Joel Roth, Neil Gillman, Edward Feld, Alana Suskin, Raymond Scheindlin and Gordon Tucker, as well as theorists on the right and the left of the Conservative movement. The book also compares Jewish and American law, and asks questions about the nature of legal systems, the relationship between law and religion, and the evolution of law.

Editorial Review:

This volume analyzes the biblical and rabbinic roots of Jewish law, as interpreted by leading rabbis of the Conservative movement and beyond. This long-awaited work is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand the roots, development and interpretation of Jewish law in general, and for those who wish to know how Conservative Judaism evolved and what it represents.

Compassion for Humanity in the Jewish Tradition

David Sears

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Important and timely analysis 5 out of 5 stars.
7 of 7 people found this review helpful.

One of the main reasons the world faces so many crises today is that the ways of society are generally contrary to fundamental Torah values. Even many people who are committed to Judaism often stress ritual observance but fail to place sufficient emphasis on Judaism's powerful universal concerns.
In his very well researched, organized, and written book, Compassion for Humanity in the Jewish Tradition, David Sears takes a major step to correct this situation. The book is a compilation of translations from classic texts of Jewish thought, from Scripture through the Talmud and up to contemporary rabbinic leaders, on Judaism's teachings on how Jews should relate to other people. The book also includes a number of essays that serve as general overviews and prefaces to the translations, discussing and analyzing the source material.
Among the themes that the quotations superbly amplify are: the Jewish mandates to be a "light onto the nations" and to work for tikkun olam (the healing, repair, and perfecting of the world); the mitzvot to pursue justice and righteousness and to emulate God in His attribute of compassion; the implications of such mitzvot as "love thy neighbor as thyself", "be kind to the stranger for you were strangers in the land of Egypt", and "seek peace and pursue it"; Jewish business ethics; treatment of converts; how the ultimate goal of Jewish particularism is to benefit all of humanity and all of creation; and the ramifications of the Jewish "Messianic Vision."
David's background in both secular and Jewish areas gives him unique qualifications to write this trend setting book on Jewish obligations to humanity. His initial education was in the liberal arts and in the fine arts and music, and for a time he taught at the college level. Later, he studied at several Chassidic yeshivas. He has written several books on Chassidic leaders and teachings, including The Path of the Baal Shem Tov: Early Chassidic Teachings and Customs (Jason Aronson, 1997) as well as several books for Jewish young people, including Tales From Reb Nachman (Artscroll/Mesorah. 1987). He has illustrated a number of books, including The Artscroll Youth Haggadah (Artscroll/Mesorah, 1987), as well as over 20 "kosher comic books". He has also made substantial contributions to various phases of Jewish music, has had exhibits of his paintings and photography, and has contributed a wide variety of articles to Jewish publications.
I hope that this book will be widely read in the Jewish community (and in other communities), because it has the potential to have a major impact on the future of both Judaism and our imperiled planet. Since this review is for a vegetarian publication, I will indicate one example of a quote from the book that can be tremendously helpful in efforts to put the treatment of animals on the Jewish agenda:
Love of all creatures is also love of God, for whoever loves the One (God) loves all the works that He has made. When one loves God, it is impossible not to love His creatures. The opposite is also true. If one hates the creatures, it is impossible to love God Who created them. (Maharal of Prague, Nesivos Olam, Ahavas haRe'i, 1)
If aware of such a teaching, how could committed Jews square it with the cruel treatment of over 9 billion animals annually on factory farms prior to their slaughter for a diet that also has such negative health and environmental effects. Of course the fact that over 70% of the grain produced in the U. S. and 40% produced worldwide is fed to animals destined for slaughter while an estimated 20 million people worldwide die every year from hunger and its effects is also sharply at variance with many of the quotations in the book.
What God must think of the widespread mistreatment of animals today is indicated in another of the book's quotes:
This may be likened to an expert goldsmith who fashions a vessel with great skill, but when he displays his work, one of the people begins to mock and scorn it. How angry that goldsmith would be; for by disparaging his handiwork, one disparages his wisdom. Similarly, it is evil in the sight of the Holy One, blessed be He, if any of His creatures is despised. (Rabbi Moshe Cordovero, Tomer Devorah, Chapter 2).
The very thorough and sensitive job that David Sears has done in this book makes it imperative that he obtain the financial means to complete another work in progress: a companion volume on "Compassion for Animals in the Jewish Tradition." For David has the background, wisdom, sensitivity, compassion, and commitment to animal rights to effectively challenge Jews to apply Jewish teachings on animals. As a Breslav Chassid, his commitment to Jewish law and tradition cannot be challenged. No one could claim that he is just one more animal rights advocate who doesn't care about Judaism and religion, in general, and is not concerned about human problems. Also. his knowledge of Hebrew and Kabbalistic, Chassidic, and other Jewish sources enables him to find teachings that are not commonly known. His authentic and powerful quotations would be a respectful but powerful challenge to the Jewish community that it would not be able to easily ignore.

Editorial Review:

For many Jews and non-Jews, the Torah, the Talmud and other rabbinic writings have long been interpreted as saying that the Jews alone are God's chosen people. According to Sears, such readings have led to a struggle among Jews between assimilation--losing their particular Jewish identity--and withdrawal--preserving their particular Jewish identity and surviving as a people. In order to demonstrate the depth from which Judaism speaks in a universalistic voice, Sears collects a wide range of sources from a number of periods in Jewish history. Sears's extensive sourcebook is a rich collection of primary writings on the role of compassion in the Jewish tradition.

Eat and Be Satisfied: A Social History of Jewish Food

John Cooper

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Editorial Review:

Eat and Be Satisfied is the first comprehensive and critical history of Jewish food from biblical times until the present. John Cooper explores the traditional foods the everyday diets as well as the specialties for the Sabbath and festivals of both the Ashkenazic and Sephardic cuisines. He discusses the often debated question of what makes certain foods Jewish and details the evolution of such traditional dishes as cholent and gefilte fish.

The Kabbalah of Money: Insights on Livelihood, Business, and All Forms of Economic Behavior

Rabbi Nilton Bonder

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Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Time Management and Ethics in the Marketplace 5 out of 5 stars.
16 of 16 people found this review helpful.

In many ways THE KABBALAH OF MONEY is more about time management than it is about money. A theme that weaves its way through the book is that the optimal use of one's time is to devote it to study and learning - not just any studying, however, but the study of the Torah. In Jewish tradition, time is to be divided between study, work, and physiological needs (eating, sleeping, elimination, and leisure). All of our free time, once our work and physiological needs have been met should be devoted to study.

In this book, Rabbi Bonder brings together his knowledge of the working of the "marketplace" with Jewish ethical teachings, Talmudic Interpretations, teachings of the Hasidic Masters, Jewish Mysticism, and logical analysis. Here, marketplace is variously described as: a market of exchanges and interactions which represents "the infinite quantity of small and great businesses that take place in the universe at any given minute" and as a place where "each individual's fitness to survive is in accordance with his or her own perception of what survival is."

In keeping with the time theme, one of the problems to be faced has to do with devoting one's time to amassing wealth. In other words, how much is too much? Time that is spent with the objective of accumulating wealth (beyond that which meets our own needs and is beneficial to others) represents a two pronged loss. First of all, the creation of this type of wealth creates an offsetting scarcity. Secondly it involves wasting time that could, and should, be better spent in study. In contemporary terms, the accumulation of excess wealth is not ecologically sound.

Another area of discussion is the relationship of God to the marketplace. Rabbi Bonder states that "when a person prays only for material gains his pleas and efforts are wasted. This is because a curtain is brought down between himself and God as a result of material things having been brought into the domain of the spirit.

This book has had an impact on the way I conduct my life. Before reading it, my standard reaction to anyone asking for a handout was a knee-jerk reaction that he'll probably just use it to get drunk. After reading Bonder's section on dealing with beggars and how these dealings affect the marketplace, I came to 2 realizations:

1. So what if he does use it for drink. He probably needs the drink more than I need the dollar.

and

2. Who am I to judge anyway.

I highly recommend this book. In spite of its brevity it's not an easy read. I have barely touched the surface of a few of the concepts of what the dust jacket refers to as "a broad and ethical view of economic behavior including all forms of exchange and human interaction, from how we spend our money to how we fulfill our role as responsible human beings in a global ecological framework."

Editorial Review:

     This book challenges us to take a broad and ethical view of economic behavior, which includes all forms of exchange and human interaction, from how we spend our money to how we fulfill our role as responsible human beings in a global ecological framework. Drawing on Jewish ethical teachings, mystical lore, and tales of the Hasidic masters, the author examines a wide range of subjects, including competition, partnerships, and contracts, loans and interest, the laws of fair exchange, and tips and presents.
      The Kabbalistic teachings in this book not only impart wisdom about the world of money, but also lead us to self-understanding and the magic of knowing who we are, what we really want, and how to receive it.
     

The Tosefta: Translated from the Hebrew Sixth Division Tohorot (The Order of Purities) (Third Division: Nashim)

Jacob Neusner

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Defending the Human Spirit

Warren Goldstein

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 3.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

For over three thousand years, Jewish law has been defending the human spirit from abuse by the powerful. This book's wide-ranging approach looks at Jewish law's proud record on a number of major human rights issues, from political tyranny to oppression of women to crime and poverty, demonstrating unique Torah insights for Western law and the modern world. Written by the new chief rabbi of South Africa, Rabbi Warren Goldstein, Ph.D., Defending the Human Spirit discusses Jewish law's vision for a moral society in the context of real cases and not merely as abstract principles. Western law systems, specifically those of England, the United States and South Africa, are compared and contrasted with the Jewish legal system, showing that Divine and Divinely based Jewish law- Halachah- has always been ahead of its time in the arena of human rights- with Western law systems only just catching up in modern times. Readers will see how Jewish law weaves together the minuiae of detailed laws and the broader principles on which they are based to form a magnificent tapestry, through whcich society is transformed. Lawyers, law students, and all interested readers will discover the uniqueness of Judaism's approach to both law and ethics- how they are blended together to form the best possible system within which the human race can fully develop into the image of God.

Renewing the Covenant: A Kabbalistic Guide to Jewish Spirituality

Leonora Leet

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 3 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

For Expert Eyes Only ! 2 out of 5 stars.
1 of 2 people found this review helpful.

This is a book for Jews. I found a great deal of it incomprehensible, as the author assumes a knowledge in the reader that I doubt many non-Jews would have. Having said that, even though I did not understand much of the book, and gave up two thirds of the way through, I could see that this is a work of deep scholarship. Leonora Leet wrote this book, and the other three in the series, as a labour of love. The culmination of a lifetime's work. The quality of the writing is incredible and serious students of Judaism and Kabbalah are bound to gain from its perusal. I myself learned a great deal about Judaism from it, but the majority of it remained a mystery to me. For someone who is from a Jewish background I am sure that there will be many insights to be gained from this book. I think it is destined to become a classic.

Editorial Review:

The first in a four-book project, Renewing the Covenant delivers on its promise of a new approach to Jewish ritual practice in tune with the spiritual attitudes of the 21st century. Leet synthesizes historical, textual, and linguistic analysis with kabbalistic meditation and Judaic tradition in this scholarly address of Jewish spiritual advancement. Focusing on the covenant between God and Israel as set forth in the Bible, Leet distills the essence of the most basic Jewish customs--Sabbath observance and ritual prayer--and recovers early Jewish meditative practices, which she then melds with kabbalistic meditative techniques. One might think that Renewing the Covenant decrees revolutionary change, but in reality it offers an accessible return path to the very foundations of sacred Jewish traditions and a revitalization of Jewish spirituality. --Brian Patterson

The Theology of the Oral Torah: Revealing the Justice of God (Mcgill-Queen's Studies in the History of Religion)

Jacob Neusner

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Editorial Review:

Demonstrates the cogency and inner rationality of the classical statement of Judaism in the Oral Torah, bringing together a theological assessment to bear on the whole of rabbinic literature. The author shows how the proposition that God is One and all-powerful but also merciful and just, defines the system and structure of rabbinic Judaism. He argues that in working this proposition out in detail, the classical texts generate the central rabbinic problem: how can the conflicting traits inherent in the proposition be resolved?

What Do You Mean, You Can't Eat in My Home?: A Guide to How Newly Observant Jews and Their Less Observant Relatives Can Still Get Along

Azriela Jaffe

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Total reviews: 6 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Here is a book of workable, sensible solutions to the everyday problems faced by newly observant Jews as they try to explain the parameters of their new lives to the people who love them—but think they’ve gone around the bend.

For the formerly nonobservant Jew who has decided to live an observant life, the most daunting task can be dealing with less-observant loved ones. How can you explain to them what you now feel and believe? How can you continue to be part of the lives of your parents, your siblings and their families, and your in-laws, given how differently you now live your life? In this book, Azriela Jaffe—the observant daughter of less-observant parents—answers these and other pressing questions.

Jaffe discusses how to eat kosher and observe the Sabbath and Jewish holidays in the home of a non-observant relative, and how to host nonobservant relatives in your own home; how to explain the laws of modesty and courtship practices; how to attend family life-cycle events—or explain why you sometimes can’t; and how to help your relatives understand the decision to put secular education temporarily aside to attend yeshivah and further your knowledge of Jewish law, rituals, and customs.

Eminently insightful, helpful, and readable, What Do You Mean, You Can’t Eat in My Home? will be an invaluable tool in the lives of an ever-increasing number of Jewish families.