Rabbinic Authority and Personal Autonomy

Rabbinic Authority and Personal Autonomy PDF Author: Moshe Sokol
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Autonomy (Psychology)
Languages : en
Pages : 250

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Book Description
Does traditional Jewish life encourage or discourage personal autonomy? To what extent are decisions of Jewish law influenced by subjective factors? Does rabbinic authority extend to all areas of life or does it confine itself to a narrower field of influence? What freedom does a rabbinic authority have to make innovations, and are there grounds for pluralism within the system of Jewish law? These questions cut to the core of Jewish life in the modern world. With the advent of modernity, great emphasis has been placed on the value of personal autonomy. Yet traditional Judaism has historically emphasized the authority of the rabbinic decision maker. The essays in this volume are concerned with exploring the tension between these two poles. Experts from such diverse fields as history, sociology, philosophy, and Jewish law explore the questions raised above. Their analyses are informed not only by their academic expertise but by their deep understanding of the Jewish legal system and Jewish life and their abiding concern for what it means to live that life in the modern world. The contributors to this volume were participants in the Orthodox Forum, an annual gathering of scholars who meet to consider major issues of concern to the Jewish community.

Rabbinic Authority and Personal Autonomy

Rabbinic Authority and Personal Autonomy PDF Author: Moshe Sokol
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Autonomy (Psychology)
Languages : en
Pages : 250

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Book Description
Does traditional Jewish life encourage or discourage personal autonomy? To what extent are decisions of Jewish law influenced by subjective factors? Does rabbinic authority extend to all areas of life or does it confine itself to a narrower field of influence? What freedom does a rabbinic authority have to make innovations, and are there grounds for pluralism within the system of Jewish law? These questions cut to the core of Jewish life in the modern world. With the advent of modernity, great emphasis has been placed on the value of personal autonomy. Yet traditional Judaism has historically emphasized the authority of the rabbinic decision maker. The essays in this volume are concerned with exploring the tension between these two poles. Experts from such diverse fields as history, sociology, philosophy, and Jewish law explore the questions raised above. Their analyses are informed not only by their academic expertise but by their deep understanding of the Jewish legal system and Jewish life and their abiding concern for what it means to live that life in the modern world. The contributors to this volume were participants in the Orthodox Forum, an annual gathering of scholars who meet to consider major issues of concern to the Jewish community.

Rabbinic Authority and Personal Autonomy

Rabbinic Authority and Personal Autonomy PDF Author: Moshe Sokol
Publisher: Jason Aronson
ISBN: 9780876685815
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 250

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Book Description
Does traditional Jewish life encourage or discourage personal autonomy? To what extent are decisions of Jewish law influenced by subjective factors? Does rabbinic authority extend to all areas of life or does it confine itself to a narrower field of influence? What freedom does a rabbinic authority have to make innovations, and are there grounds for pluralism within the system of Jewish law? These questions cut to the core of Jewish life in the modern world. With the advent of modernity, great emphasis has been placed on the value of personal autonomy. Yet traditional Judaism has historically emphasized the authority of the rabbinic decision maker. The essays in this volume are concerned with exploring the tension between these two poles. Experts from such diverse fields as history, sociology, philosophy, and Jewish law explore the questions raised above. Their analyses are informed not only by their academic expertise but by their deep understanding of the Jewish legal system and Jewish life and their abiding concern for what it means to live that life in the modern world. The contributors to this volume were participants in the Orthodox Forum, an annual gathering of scholars who meet to consider major issues of concern to the Jewish community.

Rabbinic Authority

Rabbinic Authority PDF Author: Elliot Stevens
Publisher: CCAR Press
ISBN: 9780916694883
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 138

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Book Description
Prominent rabbis from both the pulpit and academia examine how the rabbinate is affected by halacha, personal charisma, semichah, Reform minhag and the rabbi's own religious views.

Rabbinic Authority

Rabbinic Authority PDF Author: Michael S. Berger
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0195352718
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 241

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Book Description
The Rabbis of the first five centuries of the Common Era loom large in the Jewish tradition. Until the modern period, Jews viewed the Rabbinic traditions as the authoritative contents of their covenant with God, and scholars debated the meanings of these ancient Sages words. Even after the eighteenth century, when varied denominations emerged within Judaism, each with its own approach to the tradition, the literary legacy of the talmudic Sages continued to be consulted. In this book, Michael S. Berger analyzes the notion of Rabbinic authority from a philosophical standpoint. He sets out a typology of theories that can be used to understand the authority of these Sages, showing the coherence of each, its strengths and weaknesses, and what aspects of the Rabbinic enterprise it covers. His careful and thorough analysis reveals that owing to the multifaceted character of the Rabbinic enterprise, no single theory is adequate to fully ground Rabbinic authority as traditionally understood. The final section of the book argues that the notion of Rabbinic authority may indeed have been transformed over time, even as it retained the original name. Drawing on the debates about legal hermeneutics between Ronald Dworkin and Stanley Fish, Berger introduces the idea that Rabbinic authority is not a strict consequence of a preexisting theory, but rather is embedded in a form of life that includes text, interpretation, and practices. Rabbinic authority is shown to be a nuanced concept unique to Judaism, in that it is taken to justify those sorts of activities which in turn actually deepen the authority itself. Students of Judaism and philosophers of religion in general will be intrigued by this philosophical examination of a central issue of Judaism, conducted with unprecedented rigor and refreshing creative insight.

Rabbinic and Lay Communal Authority

Rabbinic and Lay Communal Authority PDF Author: Suzanne Last Stone
Publisher: KTAV Publishing House, Inc.
ISBN: 9780881259537
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 206

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Book Description


Autonomy and Judaism

Autonomy and Judaism PDF Author: Daniel H. Frank
Publisher: State University of New York Press
ISBN: 1438403178
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 244

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Book Description
This volume brings together leading philosophers of Judaism on the issue of autonomy in the Jewish tradition. Addressing themselves to the relationship of the individual Jew to the Jewish community and to the world at large, some selections are systematic in scope, while others are more historically focused. The authors address issues ranging from the earliest expressions of individual human fulfillment in the Bible and medieval Jewish discussions of the human good to modern discussions of the necessity for the Jew to maintain both a Jewish sensibility as well as an active engagement in the modern pluralistic state. Contributors include Eugene Borowitz, Elliot N. Dorff, Daniel H. Frank, Robert Gibbs, Lenn E. Goodman, Ze'ev Levy, Kenneth Seeskin, and Martin D. Yaffe.

Autonomy in Jewish Philosophy

Autonomy in Jewish Philosophy PDF Author: Kenneth Seeskin
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1139430432
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 269

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Book Description
Autonomy in Jewish Philosophy examines an important theme in Jewish thought from the Book of Genesis to the present day. Although it is customary to view Judaism as a legalistic faith leaving little room for free thought or individual expression, Kenneth Seeskin argues that this view is wrong. Where some see the essence of the religion as strict obedience to divine commands, Seeskin claims that God does not just command but forms a partnership with humans requiring the consent of both parties. Looking at classic texts from Biblical, Rabbinic, and philosophical literature, Seeskin shows that Judaism has always respected freedom of conscience and assigned an important role to the power of human reason. The book considers both existing arguments and presents its own ideas about the role of autonomy in Judaism. Clear and concise, it offers a refreshing alternative to the mysticism and dogmatism prevalent in much of the literature.

Between Authority and Autonomy

Between Authority and Autonomy PDF Author: Susan Grossman
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 463

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Book Description


Handbook of Decision Making

Handbook of Decision Making PDF Author: Goktug Morcol
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1420016911
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 663

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Book Description
Handbook of Decision Making includes the wisdom of the long theological and philosophical traditions of human society, as well as a systematic exploration of the implications of contemporary evolutionary theories. Common patterns in decision making styles are identified as well as the common variations that different contexts may generate. The text covers the multiplicity of mainstream decision making styles such as cost-benefit analysis, and linear programming. It also explains alternative and emerging methods such as geographic information systems, Q-methodology, and narrative policy analysis. Practical applications are discussed using decision making practices in budgeting, public administration and governance, drug trafficking, and information systems.

The Jewish Family

The Jewish Family PDF Author: Norman Linzer
Publisher: New York, N.Y. : Human Sciences Press
ISBN:
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 232

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Book Description
The author explores a central issue confronting the Jewish family.