Bøker av Jacob Neusner

First published in 1993, Israel and Zion in American Judaism: The Zionist Fulfillment is a collection of 24 essays exploring the concept of who or what is "Israel" following the establishment of the Jewish State in 1948 and the subsequent crisis of self-definition in American Jewry.

In this book Jacob Neusner analyzes the text of Sifra, a commentary on the book of Leviticus, arguing that Sifra should be understood as successfully relating the Mishnah, the authoritative writing down of the Oral Torah, to Jewish Scripture, or the written Torah. Neusner shows how Sifra's authors adopted a mediating position between the written Torah and the Mishnah, reconstructing large tracts of the Mishnah according to the logic and program of the written Torah of Leviticus.

The crisis in Palestine is a manifestation of Israel's historical significance to the Jewish people. Jacob Neusner examines the crucial role of the definition of Israel in the history of Judaic thought. He argues that Judaic sages have constructed various metaphoric images of Israel - as family, as chosen people, as a nation - in order to express changing theological concerns as the religion evolved. The history of the definition of Israel is revealed as the reflection of the history of Judaism itself. This is a bold and original interpretation of the way in which Jews, as well as other peoples, define themselves.

""While every history of ancient Judaism and Christianity gives a detailed picture of the Pharisees, none systematically and critically analyzes the traits and tendencies of the discrete sources combined to form such an account. Consequently, we have many theories but few facts, sophisticated theologies but uncritical, naive histories of Pharisaism which yield heated arguments unillumined by disciplined, reasoned understanding. Progress in the study of the growth of Pharisaic Judaism before 70 A.D. will depend upon the accumulation of detailed knowledge and a determined effort to cease theorizing about the age. We must honestly attempt to understand not only what was going on in the first century, but also - and most crucially - how and whether we know anything at all about what was going on.""Here you are invited to share the painful task of assessing difficult sources and criticizing the nature of extant information about the Pharisees before 70 A.D.. At the outset, you may learn more than you wanted to know about the Pharisees, but the real reward of your labor ought to be mature skepticism about the nature of historical knowledge.""from the Preface

Over a period of fifty years Jacob Neusner has made significant, insightful and challenging contributions to the study of Rabbinic Judaism, particularly in the disciplines covered in the three volumes which make up Neusner on Judaism: the study of history (volume 1), literature (volume 2), and religion and theology (volume 3).

Most Jews, Muslims, and Christians are devoted and faithful. Still, on any given day, it's difficult to avoid the vigorous and heated disputes between them, whether over the ';Ground Zero' mosque, lobbying state legislatures against Sharia law, sharing worship space, dissecting the fallout of the Arab Spring, protecting civil rights, or challenging the authority of sacred texts. With so much rancor, can there be any common ground? Do they even worship the same God? And can religion, which often is so divisive, be any help at all?Four internationally known scholars set out to tackle these deceptively simple questions in an accessible way. Some scholars argue that while beliefs about God may differ, the object of worship is ultimately the same. However, these authors take a more pragmatic view. While they may disagree, they nevertheless assert that whatever they answers to these questions, the three faiths must find the will (politically, socially, and personally) to tolerate differences.Perhaps what can help us move forward as pluralistic people is ia focus on the goal peace with justice for all.

An invaluable collection of sources of Jewish and Islamic law, this book provides unique analysis of the similarities and the differences between the two faiths.

The editor hopes that these papers, on themes of interest to Morton Smith, will contribute to the critical discussion of some problems of concern to him. Since Smith is one of the great scholarly masters of this generation, it is through scholarship, and not through encomia, that the editor and his colleagues choose to pay their tribute. The facts about the man, his writings, his critical judgment, intelligence, erudition and wit, his labor as selfless teacher and objective, profound critic speak for themselves and require no embellishment.... I hope that the quality of what follows will impress my teacher, Professor Morton Smith, and those scholars who care to read these volumes, as having been worth the immense efforts of all concerned.From the Foreword by Jacob Neusner

Over a period of fifty years Jacob Neusner has made significant, insightful and challenging contributions to the study of Rabbinic Judaism, particularly in the disciplines covered in the three volumes which make up Neusner on Judaism: the study of history (volume 1), literature (volume 2), and religion and theology (volume 3).

Each author presents a story on each of the seven virtues--faith, hope, charity, justice, temperance, fortitude, and prudence--and then offers a story on each of the seven deadly sins--pride, covetousness, lust, anger, sloth, and gluttony. This highly accessible book is inspired by scripture and oral tradition.

In this book, Jacob Neusner gives an introductory, systematic, and holistic account of the theology and practice of Rabbinic Judaism, which emerged, along with Christianity, from antiquity and formed the classical statement of Judaism to the present day. He offers a description of beliefs and practices, theology as expressed in mythic...

This introductory textbook on the history of Judaism, written by one of the foremost scholars in the field, is ideal for college freshmen and high school seniors. The book includes chapters on the Pentateuch and the definition of Israel, the Torah and the Mishnah and Judaism's way of life, the Talmud and Judaism's worldview, and the definition...

In order to understand the faith of Judaism, according to Jacob Neusner, one must look at the very foundation of that faith: the Torah. To believers, this act of studying the Torah provides a direct and immediate link to the living God and forms the very basis of a faithful Jewish life. In this book, Jacob Neusner introduces the reader to...

Judaism is an ancient religion, practiced through most of recorded history and having profound influence on both Christianity and Islam. It is a modern religion, too, still transforming the lives of many people. In this book, Jacob Neusner brings together these two aspects of the study of Judaism. He describes how Judaism is practiced in a...

What do we know about the history, literature, and religion of Judaism in its formative age? How do we know it, and why does it matter? In Studying Classical Judaism, renowned scholar and author Jacob Neusner addresses these and other important questions. Applying many of the same methods Christian scholars use to study Christianity, Neusner...

Shows that in its generative theology, Rabbinic Judaism in its formative age invoked the perpetual presence of God overseeing all that Israelites said and did. This title states that it conceived of Israel to transcend the movement of history and to live in a perpetual present tense, and that Israel located itself in a Land like no other.

This study of the inclusion of biographical narratives examines sage-stories, anecdotes about the life and deeds of Rabbinic sages, in components of the unfolding canon of Rabbinic Judaism during the formative age. These documents, from the first six centuries C.E., are exclusive of the two Talmuds.

The documentary hypothesis of the Rabbinic canon of late antiquity maintains that complete documents form the smallest whole building blocks of the Rabbinic system. These two volumes compare the rhetorical/formal and exegetical traits of two entire, kindred documents. What makes it surprising is the result: they have nothing in common.