When Law Meets Life: JTS Scholar-in-Residence Weekend

Date: Nov 03, 2017 - Nov 05, 2017

Sponsor: JTS Learning in Your Community

Location: St. Louis

Category: JTS in Your Community

When Law Meets Life

In partnership with Kol Rinah and Congregation B’nai Amoona

With Dr. Judith Hauptman, E. Billi Ivry Professor Emerita of Talmud and Rabbinic Culture, JTS

November 3–5, 2017

Friday, November 3
“Law and Narrative in the Talmud”
Services at 6:00 p.m.

Shabbat dinner at 7:00 p.m.

The Talmud often follows a statement of the law with an anecdote describing how one particular rabbi carried it out. Many commentators suggest that the anecdote indicates how pious and law-abiding that rabbi is. Through a close reading of the text, we will see how the anecdote, when carefully analyzed, shows how the rabbi modified the law to adapt it to real life circumstances. 

Saturday, November 4
Women’s Voices in the Talmud”
Dr. Hauptman will speak during Shabbat morning services and again after kiddush.

In general, only men issue halakhic statements in the Talmud. However, women appear often in anecdotes about how the law was carried out. A close reading of some short anecdotes reveals that women took the law into their own hands and made changes in it for personal reasons. By reading some of these anecdotes, we will see the kinds of changes women made in the law as well as the reasons for these changes. 

Sunday, November 5, 10:15 a.m. (following Shaharit service)
“How One Rabbi’s Criticism of Another Leads to Halakhic Innovation”

Many anecdotes in the Talmud begin by saying, “when Rabbi X visited Rabbi Y, the following happened. . . .” It is quite surprising to learn that in anecdotes of this sort either the host rabbi criticized the halakhic behavior of the guest rabbi or vice versa.  The rabbi who is criticized then defends himself and in the process modifies the law, usually adapting it to meet his own needs or that of his community. Together we will study some of these passages and learn about the implications they have for Jewish life today. 

Shabbat programming will take place at Kol Rinah, 829 N Hanley Rd, St. Louis
Advance reservations for the Friday night dinner are required.  To RSVP, please visit www.KolRinahStl.org or contact Nancy Greene at nancy@kolrinahstl.org or (314) 727-1747.

Sunday morning’s session will take place at B’nai Amoona, 324 S Mason Rd, Creve Coeur
Please contact Amy Maupin for additional information at amy@bnaiamoona.com or (314) 576-9990 x131.

This program is sponsored in part by the Hereld Institute for Jewish Studies of JTS and the Rabbi Bernard Lipnick Foundation for Conservative Judaism.