%

The Y ou ng Men s Hebrew A s s oci ation of Ph iladelphi a , ,

o ff ered a prize o f Fi fty D oll ar s for th e best essa y on

%
TH E S C I E N CE O F TH E T A L M U D .

The competition cl osed o n A pri l I ,

1 8 94 . Th e j ud ges o f th e
es s ay s w e r e :

Rev Dr M A R C U S JA STRO W P h il adelph i a

. .
, .

Rev Dr G UST A V E G O T T H E I L New Y ork

. .
, .

Rev Dr B E NJ A M I N F E LS ENTH AL Ch icago

. .
, .

The prize was awarded to M r C H A R L ES . B O E R M A N th e ,

a uthor o f thi s e ss ay an d th e j udges r e com m en ded h is pap e r

,

for publ ication .

UNIVERS ITY
 C O N T EN TS .

C H A PTER I .

S tate o f th e n a t i on at the begi n nin g o f an d d uri n g th e Tal

m u d i c epoch.

C H A P TE R I I .

Scop e an d pl an o f th e Tal m ud .

C H A PTE R I I I .

L aw an d l e gen d :th e rst the ch i e f subj ect the secon d an

,

i nciden tal episode o f th e Tal m ud .

C H A P TE R I V .

The science of th e Tal mud i n i ts rel ation to compara tive

j urispru dence .

L O Q l % 8
 C H A PTE R I .

ST A T E OF TH E N A TIO N A T TH E B E G I N N I N G OF A N D DU R I N G TH E
T AL M U D I C E P O C H .

Th e people of Israel completed th e m ost importan t cycle o f

th eir n ation al e x isten ce lon g before th e corn erston e wa s lai d of
th at stup en dous ed ice k n own as th e Tal m ud S even teen c e n
, .

t u r i e s h ad passed sin ce th e Hebrew tr i bes wan derin g r s t i n ,

Ch aldea then soj ourn in g i n Egypt had con quered th e lan d o f

, ,

C an aan an d h ad t here beco m e a n ation For n early four cen turie s .

th e people l ive d u n der n o xed form o f govern m en t s ubm ittin g ,

th eir disp u tes to th e S h o p h e t or j udge gen eral ly a m an respecte d ,

for h i s w isdom an d i ntegrity an d wh en occasi on required choos

, , ,

in g fro m their m idst a m il i tary leader renown ed for h is stren gth

a n d braver y B u t being surroun de d by h ostile an d w arlik e tribes
.

an d petty n ation s by who m they were constan tl y threatened w i th

,

i nvasion an d spol iation the peopl e o f Israel i n order to better con

, ,

solidate th e i r forces resolved to choose a k i n g to be ch arged w i th

, ,

the repulse of these warlike attacks o f th eir n ei g hbors an d with th e

defence o f their territory Three kin gs onl y govern ed th e wh ol e
.

peopl e of Israel an d aft er an e xisten c e of a l i ttl e more th an a cen

, ,

tu ry the k i n gdom w as ren t by a war of secession an d t h e n orth ern

,

tribes separated fro m th e south e rn The n orthern ki n g dom after .

,

three cen turi e s and a h al f succumbed to th e power of A ssy ria th e

, ,

sou thern k ingdo m l astin g about a cen tu ry an d a h al f lon ger bu t ,

bein g n ally overthrown by Nebuch adn ezz ar k in g of B abylon ,

.

A s the policy o f th e A ssy ri a n an d B aby lon i an ki ngs was to n ot

onl y con quer bu t destroy an d devastate th e coun trie s wi th wh ich
they waged w ar an d to carry i nto cap tivity the g reater part of
,

the popu lation i t was d i f cul t for a con quered people ever to
,

regain con trol o f t hei r coun try .

B ut aft er th e empire of B abyl on fel l u n der th e h an ds of th e

Persia ns Cyrus K in g o f Persia i n au gurated a m i lder an d m ore
, , ,

human e pol icy towards th e n ation s comprisi n g h is vast em p i re .

He granted leave to the Jews wh o re maine d in J erusalem a n d ,

to those e xiles wh o wished to return to their fatherland t o ,

rebuil d the tem ple wh ich h ad been destroy e d by Nebuchadn ezzar

, .

The templ e was consi dered by th e J ews the cen tre o f th e i r n ation a l
li fe %i t was th e gre at obj ect o f thei r a ff ection s and h ol y tradition s ,

rem i nd in g th em of th e d ays gon e by when the y were a n ation ,

a mon g n ation s Th e fai th ful I srael ites gathered arou n d thei r

.
 6

Be t h H a m i k d a s h ( Temple ) %they again started th ei r peaceful pur

-

s u i ts so cruelly in t errupted by t he con quest an d captivity

,
an d ,

Pales t i n e became for t h e s eco n d t i m e a ouri sh in g coun try .

A l t hough a g ricul ture rem ain ed the ch ief occupati on of the peopl e ,

i ndustry an d com merce very soon a dva nced w ith l arge s trides ,

an d the e cono mic con d i tion of th e people improved rapidly owin g ,

to t hei r closer i n tercourse w ith the oth er co mponen t p art s of th e

Persian Empire .

U nder the Seleucidea n k in gs o f Syri a i n to wh ose h an ds ,

Pal e stin e fel l after th e death of A l exand er of M acedon th e Jews , ,

bein g cruelly oppressed an d h in dered i n th eir religious ri tes an d

services rose i n revol t u n der th e M accabees an d re g a ined th ei r
,

in dependen ce bu t alas %onl y for a short ti m e Jerus a lem was

, , .

sh or t ly taken by Rom an arms under Pom pey an d Ju dea wa s s oon ,

afterward red uced to a Roman province S evera l atte m pts were .

made by th e brave Jews to sh ake off th e y oke of t h e Roman s bu t ,

it was i mpossibl e for them to w i thstan d th e m ost powerful empire

t h at ever ex isted So th e tem ple was destroyed by Titus an d J eru
.
,

salem lai d waste an d n ally the popu l ation was decim ated ex i led
, ,

and taken i nto cap tivi ty u nder the E mperor H adrian .

During all these vicissi tud es an d ch an ge s o f fortun e wh ich

befel l Israel fro m th e tim e o f t h e birth o f th e n ation th e m oral an d ,

rel i gious l i fe of th e people gre w slowly bu t s tead ily i n stren g th ,

dep t h an d bread th The l a w wh ich accord in g to tr a dition was

.
, ,

proclai med to th e peopl e o f Israel fro m Mou n t S in ai rema in ed ,

for a lon g tim e a dea d l etter the peopl e preferrin g the im age of
,

th e gol den cal f an d the brazen serpent an d th e service of B aal

, , ,

M oloch an d A shtoreth to the abstract idea o f an un seen u nkn ow

, ,

able in n ite an d everlastin g Suprem e B ein g A l l th rou gh th e

, .

period o f t h e J u dges an d d urin g th e g reater portion of the reign

o f t h e K i n gs t he people con ti nued to serve heathen god s an d to
,

sacrice to t hem B u t g radu all y dawn broke upon them an d the

.

l i gh t of a truer rel i gion open e d their eyes an d wi th th e more ,

enl i gh tened belief came also pu rer id eas of moral i ty an d j ustice .

The great prophets appeared i n th e aren a Isai ah w i th his gran d .

,

moral perception s h i s clear reli g ious i deas h i s d ivin e gi ft of el o

, ,

q u e n c e spoke word s wh ich could n o t fai l to p ie rce th e hearts of

,

t he feel i n g so th at all i n Israel wh o h ad eye s saw t h e l igh t an d

, ,

al l wh o h ad ears heard th e word s o f truth J ere mi ah in Jeru .

sale m an d Ezek iel in Babylon and especi al ly th e grea t u n known

,

prophet whose d ivin e speech e s are attach ed to th ose o f Isa i ah

, ,

cont i n ued th e work of teach in g the peopl e tr ue religion an d pure

morals .
 A n d so i t h appened th at th e J ews after return i n g from ex ile ,

an d captivity professed m ore ferven tly an d w i th greater ardor th e

,

religion bequeathed b y their fathers th an d i d th e fath ers them ,

%
selves . A n d the glory of the secon d temple cam e to be greater

tha n th e glory o f th e rst Soon after th e return the b ook s
.
,

were searched rewri tten an d corrected an d th e tradition s were

, ,

reviv e d an d sanctio n e d by th e Soph erim or Scribes A ft erward s .

th ere was h el d a grea t Coun ci l o f th e learned a parl i amen t o f ,

the n otables i n Israel ( th e K e n e s e th H a g d o l a ) to revise the l aw s

a n d to deliberate concern in g the i n tern al s t ate o f the n ation an d
the necessa ry i mprovem ents and i nsti tu tions adapted to th e w an t s
o f the peopl e Sch ools of learn in g were n ow started where th e
.
,

l aw was studie d an d expounded an d th e s acred and l egal l itera

,

ture an d s cience were assi duously cultivated .

Bu t th e th irst for k nowledge once aroused cou ld n o t be easil y

q uench ed Teach ers an d seekers a fter tru th arose with d iverse
.

theorie s o f th e un iverse wi th d i ff eren t s ystem s con cern in g th e

,

s alvation of th e sou l a n d w ith a grea t variety o f i n terpretation s

,

of the an cien t revealed law A t th e ti me o f the destruction o f th e

.

templ e by Ti tu s ( abou t 7 0 C E ) there was a m ul tipl ici ty of

. .

sects i n I srael The most n u merou s an d i mportan t were th e

.

P e r us h i m or Ph arisees th e adheren ts of th e orth odo x or trad ition al

,

i n terpretation of th e l aw To th is sect bel on ged the great body o f

.

th e people an d th ose l earn ed in the l aw Th e n ext i n im portan ce .

were th e Z e d u k i m or S add ucee s who profe s sed m ore liberal an d

,

ph ilosoph ical tene t s an d h ad a con s ti tu en cy ch ie y amon g th e

,

ari stocracy of Israel an d th ose who enj oyed a m ore worl dl y an d

l iberal education Th e Essen es Th erapeut ae an d o ther s ects o f
.
,

a more asceti c n ature h a d b u t a s m a l l followin g .

B esides th e variance i n their i deas o f th e resurrection a futu re ,

state an d th e ex isten ce o f an gels th e great d i ff erence between th e

,

Pharisees an d Sa dducees was b ased upon th e acceptance or rej e c

t ion of those l aws i nterpretation s an d co m mentaries whi ch were
, ,

n ot writ t en but delivered by traditio n from m ou th to m outh an d

, ,

from generati on to gen eration .

Th e S adducees acknowl edged the written l aw on ly an d den ied

the authori ty of oral tradi tion Th e two tablets o f th e coven an t
.

o r testimony in trusted to th e custody of th e H igh Priest were th e

onl y wri t t en l aws kn own to th e H ebrews in earl y ti mes A fter .

wards when th e Pen tateuch was compiled th e laws th en ex tan t

, ,

were inserted an d i ncorpora ted i n i t B u t these written laws were .

terse and l acon ic an d th e m ean in g an d bearin g o f m any of them

,

were not clear en ough an d n eed e d i nte rp retation an d construction .

 8

Besides there arose n ew custom s an d m an y n e w l aws came i n to

, ,

ex istence a fter th e ti me o f th e au thors of th e Pen tateuch These .

l aws a n d interpretatio ns were tran sm i tted oral l y from g en erati on

to generation by the Scribes an d th e head s o f the schools of learn
i n g From the ti me of Si meon the J u st wh o l ived abou t 3 00
. ,

B C E these were kn own as T a n a i m or t each er s M ost of these

. . .
,
.

T a n a i m l led th e o f ce ei ther o f Na s s i ( Ch ie f ) or A h B eth D in - -

( Presi dent o f t he Tri bun al ) They were a ccorded a u th ority i n .

I srael by v irtu e of th eir h igh o f ce an d excell ence i n learn in g .

The last bu t n ot the l eas t amon g these T a n a i m wa s Rabb i J eh u

dah H a n a s si who seek ing to check the sp read o f S adducism an d
, , ,

fearin g th at the frequen t persecutio n s of th e teacher s an d school s

o f learn i ng i n Israel by the Rom an s migh t i n terrupt th e trad i %

tion o f the l aw resol ved th at th e t i me h ad co m e wh en th e pro

,

hi b i ti o n aga i nst wri tin g down the trad i tion al p art o f the l aw
should be repealed H e made a co mpilati on of al l th e laws ver
.
,

s ions an d in terpretations w hy f h becam e authori tative an d w a s , ,

accepted by al l th e late r gen erat ion s o f th e peopl e o f Israel wh o ,

even at th at ti me were d isper s ed an d scattered as far as Persi a an d

Egyp t an d wh o i n later day s were d e stin ed to live i n al l th e
,

corn ers o f th e globe .

CHAP T E R I I .

SCO P E A N D P LA N OF TH E T AL M U D .

The code o f Rabb i Jeh u dah H a n a s s i called M ishn a ( Tra d i ,

t i o n a l L earn ing ) bei ng on ly a compen diu m con tai n ing th e pri n

, ,

c i p a l h eads an d gen eral pri ncipl es o f the law of Israel becam e i n ,

i t s turn th e n ucleu s of tha t larger an d m ore comprehensive work ,

cal led Tal mud ( L earn in g ) Th e Tal m ud con si s t s of th e M ishn a .

a s a tex t an d th e Gemara ( Complemen t ) an d con tai n s a ll th e l aw s , ,

ordin ance s decree s an d precep t s respon s es di s sertat ion s an d

, , ,

exposition s decision s i n terpretation s an d constru ction s of th e

, ,

l aw commen ts expl an ations an d glos s e s upon th e H oly Script

, ,

ure s w i th an ex tract o f th e argu men t s d i s putes an d debate s o f

, ,

the doctor s of l a w an d religion i n Isra e l wh o l ived from 300 ,

B C E to 500 o f the Christian Era A s th e Doctor s o f th e

. . . .

M i s h n a were called T a n a i m s o th e Doctor s o f the Gem ara are ,

kn own a s the A mora i m ( D ebaters ) There are two Gem aras i n .

exi sten ce one o f wh ich was compiled i n Tiberi as th e seat of

, ,

th e Jewish Patriarch i n P alestin e abou t 3 8 0 C E by Rabbi , . .

,

Joh anan of Jerusalem an d contains the l earn in g o f th e s chool s

,

of Palestine %th e o ther is supposed to have bee n compiled b y

Rabbi A shi an d Rabi n a i n B aby lon during the fth cen tury an d , , ,
 9

con tain s th e l earni n g o f th e Baby lon i an Sch ools of Surah Neha r ,

D eah P u m b e d i t h a a n d M e l i u s a
,
We h ave there fore two ver .
, ,

sions of the Tal m ud respectivel y called J e r u s h a l m i (Jerusalem )

, ,

an d B abl i ( Baby lon i an ) The n al redact i on of th e l atter was

.

completed by M ar bar rab A sh i an d M e re i m a r bar Rabin a th e ,

l ast of the school o f th e A m ora i m an d t h e rst a mon g th e S abu

ra im or expound ers .

D urin g these eigh t cen turi e s o f activi ty i n the schools an d ,

con temporary w i th th e Talmu d there w ere compiled m an y o t her ,

treatises wh ich h owever d i d n ot receive th e sam e san ction o f

, , ,

th e great D octors an d o f th e peopl e a s th e Tal mud These .

treati ses are kn ow n un d er the n ames o f B e ra i t h a ( Extern al ) ,

T o s e f ta ( A dden da ) M e k h i l t a ( Roll ) S ifra ( Book ) an d S i fre

, , ,

( Book s ) an d contai n teach in gs o f rabbi s wh i ch were n o t

, ,

a u th enticated or n o t accepted They are o ften cited an d com .

m e n te d upon i n th e Gem ara i n th e course o f th e argum en t .

Th e l an gu a g e i n wh ich the Talm ud is wr i tten is n ot h om o

g e n e o u s as woul d n aturally b e expecte d o f a work co mp il ed d ur
,
'
i n g cen turies an d i n d i e r e n t coun trie s Th e M ishn a co m pil ed . ,

a t an e arl i er ti m e wh en th e peopl e h ad n ot as y et forgotten th e

,

l an guag e of th ei r fathers i s wri t te n i n a pur e an d forcibl e ,

Hebrew %th e Jeru s alem Gemara is wri tten i n a H e brew Syri ac -

i diom th en i n u se amon g th e Jews o f P alestin e an d th e B a b y l o

, ,

n ia n Gem ara i s an Eastern A ram aic di alect w i th an abun dan t -

sprink l in g o f Persi an Greek an d L a tin words term s an d expre s

, ,

sion s A separate study of the s e composi te l an guages i s n ecessary

.

to enable the studen t to m as t er t h e scien ce o f the Tal mud j u st ,

as i t requ ire s th e stu dy of Norm an French to m aster th e early

En glish law an d th ere are i n existenc e sev e ral d iction aries an d
,

gram m ars to h el p th e stu den t .

Th e Tal m ud i s d ivi ded i nto si x Sed ari m ( Orders ) Each .

S ed er i s subdivided i n to treatise s called M a s e k h t o th ( Tex ture ) ,

each M a s e k h t a i n to Perak i m ( Secti ons ) an d each Perek i n to para ,

g raphs wh i ch bear th e appell ation o f th e head word of th e text

,

of the M ish n a .

Th e rst Seder con ta i n s ei gh t treatises an d i s call ed S e r a i m

( Seeds ) I t treats rst o f the grace to be said a t the partak in g o f
.

an y products o f the soil an d i n ci den tall y o f pray ers i n g en eral

, .

Then i t trea ts of ti th es rst fruits free g ifts to th e p riests levite s

, , ,

a n d th e poor o f th e frui ts of the garden an d eld o f th e pro

, ,

hi b i t e d in term ix ture of di ff eren t variet i es o f seeds an d of th e lyin g

fallow of th e soi l durin g th e S abbatical y ear .

The secon d Seder M oed ( Fest ival s ) treats in elev en treatises o f

, ,
 I O

th e Sabbath o f t h e Passover of th e feast of Tabern acles of th e

, , ,

New Y ear s Day th e D ay of A ton emen t th e feast o f H am an o f

%
, , ,

th e fast d ays and of th e rest to be observed on the s e d ay s an d

,

t he ri tes an d ceremoni e s to be performed .

The th ird Seder Nash i m ( Wo men ) con si st s of s e ven treati s e s

, , ,

an d treats o f m arria g e an d di vorce an d th eir i ncidents o f th e ,

in stitution of th e L evirate ( or the d u ty d evolv in g on a per s on to

m arry a deceased broth er s widow i f h e d ied with ou t i ssu e ) o f %
,

adul tery an d al so o f vows of m arried an d u n marr ied fem ales an d

, ,

l astl y of abst i n en ts .

Th e fourth S eder con tai n s eigh t treatises an d bears th e ti tl e

N e s i k i n ( Inj uri es ) I t treats o f th e civi l an d cri m in al l aws an d
.

methods of procedu re o f pl eadin g an d evi den ce of th e t ribun al s

, , ,

m ode s o f p un ish men t an d th e incidents o f trial I t al so con tain s .

th e F irke A b o th ( S ay in gs of th e Fath er s ) a selection of th e ,

moral precepts an d ethi cal teach in gs o f th e cel ebrated T a n a i m .

The fth Seder K o d o s h i m ( Sacred Th in g s ) i n n in e treatises

, , ,

treats of th e sacrices i n th e temple of th e rs t born an imals o f ,

-
,

forbidden foo d an d th e prescribed m ode o f s l au gh teri n g a n im al s ,

an d also con tains a detailed descrip tion of th e H erod i an Tem ple .

Th e si xth Seder T a h a r ot h ( P u r i c a t i on s ) con s ist s o f n in e

, ,

treatises a n d treats of d isqu al ication for religious services an d

,

comm un ion th ro u gh certai n diseases an d i mpu ri ties an d o f th e ,

modes o f cleansi n g requ ired i n such case s .

I t wil l read i ly be con ced ed tha t th e scope o f th e Tal m u d is

very l arge I t re ects th e wh ole civil religiou s m oral and social
.
'

, ,

l i fe o f th e peopl e Th e area w i thi n i ts reach i s far wi der an d o f

.

much greater ex ten t th a n th at wh ich i s covered by th a t gre a t

work to wh i ch i t 1 11 so m an y p ar t i culars bears resembl an ce th e
o O O 0

, ,
c o

Corpus J ur i s C 1V 1l l S
o o

C H A PT ER I I I .

LA%
V A N D L E G E N D : ON E TH E C H I E F SU B J E CT TH E OTH E R A N ,

I NC I D E NT AL E P ISOD E O F TH E T AL M UD .

I f we o p en on e of the m any books of th e Gem ara an d start

read in g a few o f i ts p ages we w il l very soo n di scern two com ,

pon en t parts formin g the en tire body of th e Tal mu d wh i c h , ,

thou g h i n terwoven an d i n t erm in gled bear each o f them a , , ,

thoroughly d istin ct character : th e H al akh a a n d th e H agad a .

The H al akh a ( norma rul e ) is that part wh ich treats o f th e ,

rel igious an d c ivi l l aws th e cases on wh ich th ey bear th e , ,

ar g u men t s by wh ich th ey are add uced an d appl ied i n practice .

Th e H a g ada ( le g end saga ) consis t s ch ie y o f a con glom era t ion

,
 I I

o f legends anecdotes b o n mot s parables gno mes proverbs

, , , , , ,

ep i g rams arabesques apol ogu es hyperbole an d extravaganz a

, , ,
.

I t con tain s sy mbol ic tales a n d speci ous l ittl e observations som e ,

ti mes cau stic someti mes grotesque but o ft en s u pe ri m a g i n a ti v e

, ,

an d e xaggerated .

I t deals i n a llegory mystery my th an d trad i t ion no t very

, , ,

careful ly si fted an d ex ami ned as to thei r source an d worth I t .

d oes n ot con n e itsel f with i n an y l i m i ts and is i n its ch aracter , , ,

so metimes ethical so meti mes m etaph ysical an d mostly exegetical %

,

b ut th e exegesis i s n ot very strict an d serves m ore to il lustrate ,

th e opin ions of the debater th an to i n terpret th e B ible The .

H agad a is n ever to be taken verbat i m or seriously an d l i teral ly ,

j ust as a droll l ittle story tol d by L i ncol n coul d scarcel y be co n

s t r u e d as an exposi tio n o f h is pol itical ten ets It is j u s t t old i n ci .

dentally i n t h e co urse o f the argumen t for d ivers i o n o f m in ds

overburd en ed wi th serious th ou g ht I t is the em an ation of h u mor .

an d in ten d ed for pl easan try I t is th e small talk of grea t men

. .

Neverth eless the H a g ad a o ff ers to the d iscern i ng studen t a

,

el d fro m whi ch a ri ch h arvest can be gathere d o f grea t an d

sm all facts an d in ciden ts of t he l i fe o f th e ancie n t Hebrews B ab y ,

l on ians Persian s Sy r i an s Egyp t ians an d Roman s i n a word of al l

, , , ,

those n ations s cattered a mon g wh ich Israel l ive d at th at ti me

,
.

Their my tholo g y a n d ph ilosophy rel ig ion an d m oral s are co m ,

m e n t e d upon their virtues an d v ices h el d up for praise or scorn .

M atters of i n t erest fo r the arch aeologist a n d gl ean i ngs for th e

ph ilolog ist are sca ttered pro fusely .

I n order to avoid grave errors an d a tota l m i su n derstand in g o f

th e Tal mud th e episodical an d excu rsion ary ch aracter o f the H a
,

gada must be a lways kept i n m in d by th e studen t o f the Gemara .

I ts rel ation to th e ch ief subj ect o f th e Tal m ud is o n ly i n ciden t al .

I ts place i n a proper critical edi t ion o f th e Tal mu d wou l d be n ot i n

th e tex t fro m wh ich i t sh oul d b e el i m in ated but par t ly i n foot
, ,

n o t e s an d ch ie y in append ices relegated to the rear o f th e book

, ,

a nd separated from the ch ie f top ic of t h e Tal m ud the H alakha , ,

wh ich a lon e can be properly cal led the science o f th e Tal mud ,

a n d which shal l no w b e con s i dered by u s .

The H al akh a embraces the civ il an d reli g iou s l e g isl ation of

-

I srael I n t h e eyes of a m odern c o di e r o r l egi sl ator the civi l

.
,

an d pol i t ical l aws alon e are o f i mportan ce i n asm uch as religious ,

l aws h ave been al m ost el im i n ated fro m our codes sin ce th e d ivision
between Church an d S tate h as become more an d more m arked .

Not s o wi th t he an c i en t an d especial ly t h e Oriental n ation s .

Th e Orien tals considered th e l i fe o f m an a religious service from

 12

th e beg inn i n g t o the en d wholly devoted to God ,

For thi s .

reaso n we n d so l ar g e a pl ace accorded i n th e Ta l m ud to th e

religio us laws They em brace every s t ep i n l i fe from the cradl e
.
,

t o t h e g rave from the rites to be observed at th e birth o f a ch i l d

,

t o the cerem onies o f m ourn in g for th e dead Pray ers an d sacr i .

c e s feasts an d fasts lo t i on s an d l i bati on s cerem on ie s an d rite s

, , ,

for l aym a n an d priest furn ish a l ar g e el d for casu istry Th e

, .

Orien tal Hebrew wa s j u st as m uch concer n ed i n t h e e f cacy of h i s

sacri ce or fas t as i n the re cover y o f a debt or th e establish m e n t
of h i s righ t of property There fore these th ings were n ot i dl e
.
,

talk wi th t h e Doctors of th e Tal m ud h ow ever un i mportan t th ey ,

m ay appear i n ou r own eyes an d i n ou r day So me o f th ese l aw s .

,

osten sibly of a relig iou s ten den cy h ave a great beari n g upon t h e ,

a f fa irs o f civi l l i fe su ch as l aws rel atin g to ti th e s dona tion s t o

, ,

%
th e priests levites an d th e poor th e seven th year s rest of th e
, ,

soi l th e proh ibition o f am al gam ati n g diver se k i nd s of seed or

, ,

crossin g th e breed o f d i ff eren t species o f an i mal s an d h ygien i c ,

laws for men an d women A l l these laws ar e treated w i th grea t

.

care an d accurac y s h ow in g th e deep con cern wh ich th e people o f

,

th at time fel t i n th ese m atter s .

B u t of m ore i n tere s t t o t he studen t are th ose m atters wh ich

are i n ci den tal ly referre d to i n th e d iscu s sio n of t h ese law s I n .

the d eter m i n in g of such question s referen ce is consta n tl y m ad e t o ,

th e n atural scien ce s an d m ath em ati c s a s far as they were know n ,

to th e learn ed rabbi s o f those gen era tion s Th ey h a d recour s e .

to b otan y i n treatin g of th e seed s an d to zoology i n speak in g o f ,

un clean an i m al s Th ey needed geometry to d eterm in e th e d i s

.

tance l im i ted for travel o n th e S abbath an d a s tron om y to pr e ,

pare t he calend ar o f the feast an d fast d ay s of the n ew y ear an d ,

th e n ew m on th They referred to physi ology and m edi ci n e wh il e

.

treat i n g o f th e men se s an d o th er hygi en ic laws % an d to m ech an ic s

a n d arch itecture wh il e d escribin g th e temple an d i ts con stru ction .

I n shor t an at t en ti ve studen t w i l l n d i n these treatises h in ts an d

,

proofs o f t h e s t ate o f n atural s ci e nce i n al l i ts bran ches at th a t

time .

B ut th e scien ce pa r excel l e n ce o f the Tal mu d is th e scien ce o f %

law C ivil law i s treated exh au stivel y A ll rel ation s betwee n

. .

m a n an d m an are in clu ded i n t h e s cope o f it s research es Th e .

status of person s o f m aster an d servan t h usban d an d w i fe

, , ,

fa t her an d ch i ld g uard ian an d ward a re discu ss ed Th e l aw o f

, ,
.

property real an d p erson al corporea l an d i n corpore al e a s em en ts

, , ,

an d servi t udes mortgages an d hypothecation s are i nvestigated i n

, ,

d etail %so also the l aw s of i nheri tance testate an d i ntestate Th e ,

.
 1 3

l aw o f ba i lmen ts is most i nterest i n gl y com m ented upon Co n .

tracts an d torts cri mes and pu n ish men ts plead i n g an d eviden ce

, ,

i n a word the whole ran ge o f l aw is treated m i nu tely

,
We can .

safely say t h at e xcept i n g th e Corpus J uri s C ivi li s there i s n o

, , ,

code o f a nc i en t t i mes in e xisten ce fro m which the comparative ,

j urist can learn so m u ch as fro m th at part of th e Hal akh a

whi ch is devoted to civil and crim in al l aw and proced ure .

C H A PTE R I V .

T H E SCI EN C E O F T H E T AL M UD I N I T S R E LA TI O N T O CO M P A R A

TI V E J U R IS P RUD E N C E .

The s cien ce o f law is n ot n ow an d by its n atur e nev e r w i ll ,

be complete I t is a scien ce th at grows a n d develops w i th th e

,
.

centu ries o f h uman h istory I ts be g inn in gs are l ost i n the d i m

.

m ist of the ages i n th e obscure custom s of h u ntin g or p astoral

,

tr i bes . I t advan ces w i t h th e progress o f civil i z ation I ts ideal .

,

which i s j u s t i c e h as never been an d scarcely wil l ever be realized

, , , ,

bu t i ts pro g ress consists i n advan ced step s towards th i s fai r ideal .

The sp iri t o f th e laws o f a n atio n depen ds a s M on tesqu ie u
has demonstrated i n h is Spirit of L aws upon th e in tel lectu al
%
,

moral an d soci al state of th e n ation an d pri m aril y upon th e physi ,

cal cond i tion o f th e co un t ry wh ich is i nhab ited by i t The cl i ,

.

m ate l an dscape shape of th e groun d l atitude an d al titude

, , , ,

mounds an d h il ls g len s a nd d a les river an d l ak e forest and

, , ,

prairie garden an d desert bosky verdure an d b arren rock all go

,

,

to make up fa s hio n an d sh ape the ch arac t er o f a n ation U pon

,
.

al l this pri marily rests the foun dati on of th e man n ers h ab i t s an d ,

customs as well a s of th e rel igion an d m oral s of a people Their

, .

moral code i n i ts turn wi ll u n doub tedly n d ex pressi on i n th eir

code of laws Their soci al relatio ns w i ll be m irrored i n th eir legi s
.

l ative acts % an d the ir in tellectual developmen t their progress i n ,

mech an ical art s a n d mercan tile p ursu i t s w ill sh ape t h eir l aws ,
.

These will advance i n sub tlety an d grow i n bu lk w i th th e growth

of indus t ry an d com merce un ti l th e si mpl e Ten Com man dments
,

or Twelve Tables g ro w throu gh cen tu ri es o f progress i nto vo l

u mes of Tal m ud or Ro man code .

Thus i n a critica l co nsidera tion o f a code of l aws we m u st

, ,

u nceasin gly bear i n m in d th e ti me o f i ts e n actmen t a n d the con

d i ti o n s u nder wh ich th e p eople for who m i t was desti ned were l iv
ing at tha t ti me .

We h ave seen i n a form er chapter that after the r e turn fro m

ex ile an d durin g the cen t u rie s p receding th e Tal mud i c epoch an d ,

at th e co mm en cem en t of th e same th e H ebrews m ade considerabl e ,

 I 4

civic progress Palesti ne bein g now a part o f a great empir e

.
, ,

al though s u e r i n g at t i mes from th e oppre s sion o f despoti c k in g s

of Persi a or Sy ri a was n ever theless much better o ff th an durin g
, , ,

th e ti me o f i ts i n depen den ce wh en i t was surrou nd ed by petty

,

k in gdoms an d constantly i n war w ith them Th e i n tercour s e b e .

tween th e compon en t part s of a great empire i s i n comparably

more extensive than th at wh ich warrin g n ei gh bori n g cou n tri es
can h ave w ith each o th er .

A l thou g h ch ie y an agricu ltu ral peop l e th e J e w s a t th at ,

ti m e com men ced to en gage i n mech an i cal arts i n d ustri al pu r ,

su i ts an d practical trades Th ey also carri e d on an e xtensive

.

comm erce by l an d an d sea w i th n eighb orin g n ati on s Th is o f .

,

cou rse g ave an i mpetus to the d evel op men t o f th ei r l aw i n scop e

, ,

as wel l as i n acuten ess whi ch was u nprecedent e d i n th eir h istory

, .

Com pared w ith th e si m ple law s of th e M osai c code wh ich ,

w ere in force i n e arli er times th e l a w o f th e Tal mu d therefore, , ,

shows grea t progres s M ore th an th at : it i n d icate s a r e v o l u

.

t ion or th at g reat c h an g e i n its ch aracter wh ich th e acute co m

, ,

%
p a r a t i v e j urist S ir H en ry M aine i n h i s
,
A n cien t L aw prove d , ,

to be th e n atural course of all s y stem s o f la w i n their tran s i tio n

fro m the an ci en t custo m s o f prim it ive society to the advan ced
l aws o f i n dustri al s ociety n am ely th e decaden ce of t he l aw of
, ,

status an d the growth o f the l a w of co n tract s Th e l aw o f th e .

fam ily relation s an d of m aster an d serv an t cam e to a stan dstil l i n

i ts devel opmen t an d a n ew bran ch of th e l aw al most u nk nown t o
, ,

the Mosai c code steppe d to th e foregro un d Th is wa s th e com

,
.

m e rc i a l law th e l aw of partn ersh ip an d o f bai lmen t s of cred i t

, , ,

n otes lo an s an d i n terest th e l aw o f sales rent in g an d h iring an d

, , ,

the lik e transaction s arisin g n ot from th e scal con dition or stat u s

,

o f th e c iti zen bu t h avi n g their sou rce i n the free m u tu al con sen t
,

an d sp iri t of en terprise o f m en stan d in g i n equ al rel ation s to each

other an d dea l in g on an equal basis Th e l aw o f status d id n o t .

d ie out al to g ether at th at tim e but th e birth o f i n dustrial s ociety

,

i s ann ounced i n th e i mportan ce g ive n to the law of contract s

by th e Rabbi s of th e Tal mu d .

I t is n ot our purpose to gi ve a n exh au stive statem en t o f

th e civi l and cri m in al law o f th e Tal m ud % thi s would requ i re
vol um es an d coul d n o t b e don e wi thin th e lim ited space allotted
to an essay l ike the presen t We wil l therefore merely cite .
, ,

a few c h aracteris t ic e xamples to sho w h ow the Tal m udic l e g

i s l a t i o n i mproved upon the M o s aic law to su i t th e n ew circu m
stances o f l ife an d to satisfy th e demand s o f a n ew gen eration
a course pursued by al l sy s tem s o f law i n their developm e nt .
 15

It i s well k now n th at th e Mosaic l a w proh ibited no t on ly ,

usury bu t a l l i n t erest on loan s betwee n the people o f Israel

, ,

an d wen t even so far as to enj oi n th e credi tor who took a ch attel ,

i n pledge for h is loan to surren der th e pledge be fore th e su nse t

,

o f h e sam e day Th is law ethical as i t i s i n i ts character an d

t
.
,

generous i n s piri t was practicabl e an d acceptable onl y i n a

,

society composed o f si mple peasan ts wh o tilled thei r ow n soi l , ,

raised th ei r own cattle an d spun thei r ow n cloth % a society

i n which an y com mercial deal ings were o f a very pri m itive ki nd ,

as for i nstance when a few su rpl u s prod uct s o f th e soi l were

, ,

exch anged for some prod ucts o f a n eighbor I n s uch a society .

t he idea o f co m merci al cred i t w as not so m uch a s guessed a t .

B ut a l aw of th is k in d m ust becom e obsolete i n a more advan ced

phase of soci al l i fe wh e n triba l bon ds were l oosened an d when
,

m oney has becom e a u n iversa l measure o f value an d a m eans

of exchange B ut as th e l aw of M oses written i n th e Pen ta
.
,

teuch was considered sacred an d i nviolate an d could n ot be

, ,

repealed the l earn ed Rabbis of th e Tal m u d proceeded i n the

,

sam e way a s the Engl ish j u dges chose to proceed a thousan d

y ears later Not h avin g the co n sti tu tional ri g h t to l eg islate or to
.

al ter th e laws bu t onl y to expoun d th em the j udges when a n ew

, , ,

case wa s presen ted to th em grow ing ou t of n ew social co n d ition s , ,

e ither ex ten ded th e pri n cipl e lai d d o wn i n th e o ld cases so far a s

to cover by construc t ion the questions i nvolved i n th e n ew case ,

o r as was oft en don e i n the earl ier English la w i n ven ted s o me

, ,

l egal ction wh ich wa s not to be d isputed a n d i n this way

, ,

brou g h t t he n ew case for mal l y wi t h i n th e ol d l aw Th e Rabbis .

resorted to a ction o f th is kin d wh en they i nven ted the S tar

Isk a ( B ill of Deal ing ) wh ich presum es the creditor to h ave ,

becom e th e own er of a sh are of th e prots of th e com merci al

en terprise o f the d e b tor e q u a l to th e am oun t o f th e i n terest ch arged
, .

Th ro ugh th is ctio n th e l aw o f M oses w a s n ot v iol a ted i n i ts

letter an d th e legal ch an ge requi red by the n ew co n d i tion o f
,

t h ings an d dictated by co mm erc i al i n tercourse was eff ected

, , .

A nother ex ampl e of th e i mportan t rol e o f ction i n th e

development o f law is the Erub ( Co mbin ation ) On S abbath an d .

feast days the H ebrews were enj o i ned from travel l in g furth er
th an two thousan d cubits from t heir dom icil e In order to avoi d .

this inj unction i n u rgen t cases th e law agai n m ade u se of a c

tion B y preparin g or tak in g a meal at any place w i th i n the two
.

thousan d cub i t s on e coul d establish a dom ici le at th at pl ace an d

acqu ire a righ t to travel two thousan d cubi ts further cou n tin g from ,

the n ew domicil e .
 16

A nother featu re wh ich we m eet with al m ost u n i versally i n

,

the ancien t systems o f law i s symbolis m This fea ture expl ain s a
, .

g reat m any o f th e l aws of to day as derived from som e earl ier

,

sy mbol ic cus t oms K in i an S ud ar or del ivery o f a piece o f clo th

.
, ,

was necessary by th e laws of the Tal mu d to m ake a s al e val id .

This law origin ated i n the former custom o f tak in g o a sh oe an d
p utti n g i t over th e property acqu i red to i n d icate own ershi p .

The tra nsition fro m the form er tribal or com m u nal own ersh ip
of property an d th e j ubilee year i ns t i tu tion ( when al l property h ad
to be ret urn ed to th e fam i ly th at origi n all y owned i t ) to th e
system of in dividual an d absolute propert y n ecessitated s trict an d ,

el aborate de n i tion s of the ri gh t o f property an d the establ ish

m en t o f a law o f li m itat i on th at i s of a ti me after wh ich th e ri gh t
, , ,

of property could n o more be disp uted i n the own er H a s a k a i s a .

ti tle to property acqu ir e d b y u n in terrup te d po s session or wh at is ,

called i n En gl ish l a w prescrip tion

,
a presumptive righ t of
,

property i n th e o ne who h as h ad u n in terrup ted ac t u al p ossession .

P r os b ol or a protest aga in st th e l o ss o f ri g h t to recover deb t s an d

,

C l ai ms b y l im itat ion a fter th e s even th y ear w as an inn ova tion ,

i n troduced by H illel the Eld e r I t wa s s i mi lar to th e Rom an

.

D eclaration i ntroduced by Emperor Justin ian an d wa s in ten d ed ,

as a rebu ttal of th e l egal presu mption th at a m an aban done d h i s

cla i m after the l apse o f s even y ear s .

B ut the i mprove men ts of the Tal m u d upon the M osaic cod e

are n owh ere so paten t as i n th at most i mportan t bran ch o f civi l
law th e law of b ai lmen t The ch apter of the Corpus J uris C ivil i s
,
.

tre ating of th e l aw o f b ail men t i s con si dered on e of th e most

gloriou s chapters o f th e Rom an code % yet centuries before th e ,

ti me of Justin i an th e Tal m u d pr e sen ted m ost elaborate trea tise s

,

o n this bran ch o f the l a w A ll the d i ff eren t case s o f bail men t are

.

dened an d d isti nguish ed i n the Tal mu d D eposi tu m or deposi t ,

M andatu m or c o m mi s s i o n Co mm o d a t u m or loan P i gn u s or pl edg e

, , ,

and L oca tio Con ductio or h i rin g fo r use or work Th is part i s .

treated as u su al i n the Talm u d wi th great in gen ui ty and i s h igh l y

, ,

i n terestin g .

The penal code o f th e Tal m u d is un iqu e I t surpas s es th e .

l atest con stitu tions of ou r civil ized S tates i n the l iberal i ty s hown
to the accu s ed an d i n precautions against con dem n in g th e in n o
,

cent I n th e a dmin istr ation of cri mi n al law an d i n th e h u m an e

.
,

regard for th e acc used th e Tal mu d co mpare s favorably w i th m an y

,

of our m odern systems o f l aw The lex tal i on is of the M osai c

.

code had totally d isappeared at the ti me o f the Talm u d Wh i le .

in civi l cases the court consisted o f any three learned m en selected

 18

( 5) d ayO n W h at
o f t h e week ?

( )6 A t wh at hour o f th e d a y P

(7 ) A t wh at place ?

Th e B ed ik a was u nl im i ted as to th e n u mber o f questions ,

an d extend ed to al l the m aterial facts an d corroboratin g c ircum

stan ces .

The testi mon y of a t least two w i tne s ses was requ ired an d ,

the y h ad to agree i n all th e m ateri al poin ts otherw ise conviction ,

coul d n o t b e b a d .

B ut th e m ost rem ark abl e an d w e m ay s ay un iqu e b u t h ighl y ,

co mm en dabl e piece of legi sl at ion w as th a t wh ich provided tha t ,

n o convictio n coul d be h ad before i t was absolu tely and d i rectly

establ ish ed th at th e accused wa s not ign oran t of th e l aw or t h a t ,

h e was w arn ed that th e a c t h e w a s goin g to comm it was cri m in al .

While i n our system s o f l aw i t i s a m ax i m th at th e ign oran ce o f

th e la w is no excu se the Tal m u d di d n ot presu m e th at wh ich i s
,

n ot t rue even n ow i n th e m ost ci vi lized cou n trie s th at i s th at , ,

everybody i s acqu ain te d w i th th e l a ws of th e l an d .

The accused bein g guarded by s uch an abun dan ce of gu ar

a n te e s th e co nvictio n of a n i nn ocen t perso n cou l d rarel y occu r
, .

B ut the R abbis deemed i t n ece s sary to tak e further precau tion s ,

an d aft er sen ten ce was pronou nced an d the cul pri t led to th e
place o f execu t i on p i ck et s were pl aced on horseback alon g th e
,

route fro m the tribu n al to the place o f ex ecution so th a t th ey ,

m igh t stop th e execu tion i n case an y n ew eviden ce was discovered

.

i n favor of the culpri t or an y n ew circum s tan ces arose to ch a n ge

the sentence of death Th e d ay o f an ex ecution was a d ay o f
.

m ourn in g for th e com m un i ty for th e l oss o f on e o f its breth ren .

The h uman e s pirit th a t pervade d th e tri bu nal s o f Isr a el a t th e

t i me o f the Talmu d i s wel l i llus t rated by th e fact th a t a Sy n e
drion wh ich prono unced a sen ten ce of d ea t h m ore t h an on ce
,

wi th i n seven ty y ears acqu ired th e sobriqu e t : K a tl a n i th th at is

, , ,

the m an k i ll in g t ribun al
-
.

S uch is th e l aw of th e Tal m u d I t n eeds n o a pology B e

. .

hold i t study i t a nd after perusin g i t wi t h a n u n prej udiced m in d

, , ,

an d u nbiased j udgm en t y o u will n d th at i t ri gh tfully occu pie s

,

on e o f th e most d istin g u i sh ed places a mon g the m on u m en ts of th e

past I t is th e onl y cod e o f l aws o f such el aborate ch aracter
.

d iscernin g m in u ten ess an d e x ten ded scope i n h eri ted fro m s u ch ,

a remote age ol d er by cen tu ries th an t h e Rom an co d e I t

, .

off ers rich op portun ities for th e studen t o f comparative j u r i s pr u d

ence wh ich c an not be y a l ue d
, bu t wh i ch h ave been
bu t l i ttl er g ar ed p tostdi e ipres e n t : ti me
i
e d g u .