A Living Tree: The Roots and Growth of Jewish Law

Portada
This book examines biblical and rabbinic law as a coherent, continuing legal tradition. It explains the relationship between religion and law and the interaction between law and morality. Abundant selections from primary Jewish sources, many newly translated, enable the reader to address the tradition directly as a living body of law with emphasis on the concerns that are primary for lawyers, legislators, and judges. Through an in-depth examination of personal injury law and marriage and divorce law, the book explores jurisprudential issues important for any legal system and displays the primary characteristics of Jewish law.

A Living Tree will be of special interest to students of law and to Jews curious about the legal dimensions of their tradition. The authors provide sufficient explanations of the sources and their significance to make it unnecessary for the reader to have a background in either Jewish studies or law.
 

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Contenido

INTRODUCTION
2
B The Structure and Methods of This Book
4
C Who Are the Jews?
6
D Common Misconceptions About Jewish Law
13
Biblical Law
16
B Fundamentalist and Historical Approaches to the Bible
20
C The Structure and Contents of the Bible
21
D The Biblical Law Codes
25
The Responsa Literature
303
FrancoGermany and SpainNorth Africa
319
The Aharonim of the Eastern Mediterranean and Eastern Europe
327
America Four Movements Four Conceptions of Jewish Law
337
Israel
363
Codes
366
B The Literature of Jewish Codification
369
C Pros and Cons of Codification
376

The Biblical Law of Injury
38
B The Code of Hammurabi
44
C The Hittite Laws
46
Biblical Jurisprudence
49
B Biblical Methods of Resolving Disputes
54
The Covenant
82
D Reasons for Obeying the Law
93
The Relationship Between Moral Norms and Gods Word
110
Adapting Divine Law to New Circumstances
123
Rabbinic Law of Injuries
133
A An Overview of the History and Literature of the Second Temple and Rabbinic Periods
134
B Midrash Halakhah
145
C Mishnah
152
D California Jury Instructions
160
E Gemara on Injuries
165
F Sectarian Laws of Injuries
179
The Oral Torah Rabbinic Exegesis and Oral Traditions
185
Exegesis and its Justification
187
The Methods and Use of Exegesis
198
Tradition
213
D Continuity and Change
223
Opposition Movements in Jewish Legal History
227
The Authority and Morality of the Tradition
246
B Law and Morality
249
Rabbinic Court Procedures
258
B Systems of Proof and Rules of Evidence
275
C Problems with Using Courts
286
D Alternatives to Courts
293
Maimonides on Personal Injuries
395
Legislation Takkanot
402
Mishneh Torah Laws of Rebels Mamrim
407
C Takkanot of Rabbenu Tam R Jacob B Meir
414
Custom Minhag
421
B The Interactions Between Custom and Law
425
C Justifying the Authority of Custom
429
The Interaction Between Jewish Law and Common Law
435
Marriage
439
The Nature of Marriage in Jewish and American Law
442
B The Contractual Element of Marriage in Civil Law
454
C The Social Element in Jewish Marriage
467
D The Sacred Element in Jewish Marriage
492
Conflicts and Choice of Law I Jewish Recognition of Civil Marriage and Divorce
512
B Rabbinic Choice of Law
514
C Dina DeMalkhuta Dina and the Traditional Refusal to Recognize Civil Divorce
515
D The Operation of Jewish Marital Law Within the Context of Binding Civil Marital Law
523
Conflicts and Choice of Law II Civil Recognition of Jewish Marriage and Divorce
546
Epilogue The Future of Jewish Law
564
B The United States
566
C Limits on Jewish Law
567
TimeLine on Jewish Law
571
Books of the Hebrew Bible
573
The Structure of the Mishnah
575
INDEX OF SUBJECTS
579
INDEX OF SOURCES
595
Derechos de autor

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Acerca del autor (1988)

Elliot N. Dorff is Provost and Professor of Philosophy at the University of Judaism.

Arthur Rosett is Professor of Law at the University of California at Los Angeles.

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