A Mirror of Rabbinic Hermeneutics

318 Pages·2015·1.082 MB·English

by  Giuseppe Veltri

GiuseppeVeltri
AMirrorofRabbinicHermeneutics
Studia Judaica
Forschungen zur Wissenschaft des Judentums
Begründet von
Ernst Ludwig Ehrlich
Herausgegeben von
Günter Stemberger, Charlotte Fonrobert
und Alexander Samely
Band 82
Giuseppe Veltri
A Mirror of
Rabbinic
Hermeneutics
Studies in Religion, Magic and Language Theory
in Ancient Judaism
DE GRUYTER
ISBN978-3-11-036837-6
e-ISBN(PDF)978-3-11-036641-9
e-ISBN(EPUB)978-3-11-043778-2
ISSN0585-5306
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BibliographicinformationpublishedbytheDeutscheNationalbibliothek
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To my daughter
Livia Filomena Ina

Thecraftofthewordcreatedtheuniverse
ταύτῃ καὶ ὁ τῶν Ἰουδαίων θεσμοθέτης, οὐχ ὁ
τυχὼνἀνήρ,ἐπειδὴτὴντοῦθείουδύναμινκατὰ
τὴν ἀξίαν ἐχώρησε κἀξέφηνεν, εὐθὺς ἐν τῇ
εἰσβολῇ γράψας τῶν νόμων “εἶπεν ὁ Θεός”,
φησί,–τί;“γενέσθωφῶς,καὶἐγένετο·γενέσθω
γῆ,καὶἐγένετο.”
(Ps-Longinus,Perìhýpsous8:9).
Amissinglettercandestroytheentireworld
ךתכאלמש ךתכאלמב ריהז יוה ינב יל רמא
וא תחא תוא רסחמ התא אמש איה םימש תכאלמ
םלועה לכ תא בירחמ תאצמנ תחא תוא רתיימ
ולוכ
(BabylonianTalmudEruvin13a)
Theintelligentwordisuniversal
םלועה תומואב 'יפא המכח ירבד רמואה לכ
םכח ארקנ
(BabylonianTalmudMegillah16a)

Contents
Introduction 1
Documentationstyle,transliterationandreferences 11
Part I: Officina rabbinica
1 ImpertinentStudentsvs.SagaciousRabbis:TheArtof
Learning 15
1.1 TheStudent 18
1.2 HeWhoAlwaysAsks 20
1.3 ImpertinenceistheBeginningofWisdom 21
2 Ezraas“Reformer”inClassicalJewishLiterature 25
2.1 TheReformationinthe16thcentury 25
2.2 EzratheReformer 29
2.3 Conclusion 38
Part II: Reflecting Roman Religion
3 RomanReligionatthePeripheryoftheEmpire 43
3.1 ReligiousCustoms:TheRhetoricofEthics 47
3.1.1 “Roman”Sourcesforthe“Rabbinic”Romans 47
3.1.2 PoliticalandPopular“Religiosity”orCulture:Theatreandthe
Circenses 49
3.1.3 TheRhetoricofEthics 64
3.2 Holidays:Religion,Politics,andSocialLife 64
3.2.1 OntheHistoryofResearch 65
3.2.2 TheCalendar 66
3.2.3 TheTypologyoftheFestivals 68
3.2.4 DayofRest,pollutio,andPermissionsofCommerce 69
3.2.5 TheDayofRain:AJudeo-RomanFestival? 73
3.2.6 Kalendae 75
3.2.7 Elements:WishesandPresents 77
3.2.8 TheRabbinicExplanationsoftheOriginoftheKalendae 79
3.2.8.1 Topos1:YanubrisandtheCalendar 82
3.2.8.2 Topos2:ABlackDay 82
x Contents
3.2.8.3 Topos3:TheVoluntaryDeathofaKing 83
3.2.8.4 TheKalendae:ADetail? 84
3.2.9 SaturnaliaandSigillaria 85
3.2.10 Κϱάτησις 89
3.2.11 FeriaeImperatoris 91
3.2.12 BirthdayandDayofDeath 91
3.2.13 Apotheosis 92
3.3 Conclusion 94
Part III: Performing the Craft of Science & Magic
4 TheScience(s)and“GreekWisdom” 99
4.1 GreekWisdomandEverydaySciences 101
4.2 EmpiricalScience:Medicine 106
4.3 TheoreticalScience:Astrology 110
4.4 Conclusion 114
5 OnMagic:PastandPresentResearch 115
5.1 MagicinPastandPresentScholarship 115
5.1.1 ThePolemic-ApologeticApproach 115
5.1.2 ArchaeologicalandPhilologicalResearch 118
5.1.3 FolkloreandFolkLifeStudies 121
5.1.4 Mysticism,Kabbalah,andJewishMagic 121
5.1.5 TheHalakhic-TheologicalApproach 123
5.2 MagicandMethodsinStudyingMagic 124
6 “WaysoftheAmorite”andHellenisminJewishPalestine 129
6.1 Thedarkheha-emori 132
6.2 HalakhicAttitudestoMagicandScience 144
6.2.1 GoodManners 146
6.2.2 CommonSense 146
6.2.3 EstablishedandDeep-RootedConvictions 147
6.2.4 EmpiricalObservation 147
6.3 Plinyandthe“Foreign”CustomsoftheMagi 148
Appendix:AComparisonbetweenPlinyandTosefta
Shabbat 154
7 TheMagician/MagushinRabbinicJudaism 159
7.1 Magus&Physician 160