Levirate Marriage and Halitzah in the Mishnah
TL;DR: The Mishnah's presentation suggests that such marriages were less likely to occur than one might suppose from reading Deut. 25 :510 as mentioned in this paper, and the Mishnah often restrict levirate marriage, detailing instances in which Levirate Marriage is forbidden.
Abstract: stances in which levirate marriage should or should not-or may or may not-be performed The sages of the Mishnah often restrict levirate marriage, detailing instances in which levirate marriage is forbidden. While there are rulings that promote levirate marriage, overall, the Mishnah's presentation suggests that such marriages were less likely to occur than one might suppose from reading Deut. 25 :510.
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09 Jan 2020TL;DR: Ephrem, one of the earliest Syriac Christian writers, lived on the eastern outskirts of the Roman Empire during the fourth century as mentioned in this paper, and his writings are also replete with parallels with Jewish traditions.
Abstract: Ephrem, one of the earliest Syriac Christian writers, lived on the eastern outskirts of the Roman Empire during the fourth century. Although he wrote polemical works against Jews and pagans, and identified with post-Nicene Christianity, his writings are also replete with parallels with Jewish traditions and he is the leading figure in an ongoing debate about the Jewish character of Syriac Christianity. This book focuses on early ideas about betrothal, marriage, and sexual relations, including their theological and legal implications, and positions Ephrem at a precise intersection between his Semitic origin and his Christian commitment. Alongside his adoption of customs and legal stances drawn from his Greco-Roman and Christian surroundings, Ephrem sometimes reveals unique legal concepts which are closer to early Palestinian, sectarian positions than to the Roman or Jewish worlds. The book therefore explains naturalistic legal thought in Christian literature and sheds light on the rise of Syriac Christianity.
63 citations
TL;DR: The Hebrew Bible contains little information about the practice of levirate marriage in ancient Israel as mentioned in this paper, and the passages that touch on Levirate marriages offer conflicting descriptions of the institution.
Abstract: The Hebrew Bible contains little information about the practice of levirate marriage in ancient Israel. The passages that touch on levirate marriage offer conflicting descriptions of the institution. This article explores those passages and argues that what connects all of them is a sense of discomfort with levirate marriage, particularly on the part of men. This discomfort may relate to concerns about paternity or the preservation of property. It does not apparently extend to women, whom the Hebrew Bible portrays as willing, and even eager, to promote levirate unions. This sense of discomfort or anxiety suggests a concern for the desires of the living that supersedes obligations to the dead. The discomfort displayed in the Hebrew Bible may influence later Jewish responses to and constructions of levirate marriage.
23 citations
Book•
16 May 2019TL;DR: Bar-Asher Siegal as mentioned in this paper focuses on heretic narratives of the Babylonian Talmud that share a common literary structure, strong polemical language and the formula, "Fool, look to the end of the verse".
Abstract: Stories portraying heretics ('minim') in rabbinic literature are a central site of rabbinic engagement with the 'other'. These stories typically involve a conflict over the interpretation of a biblical verse in which the rabbinic figure emerges victorious in the face of a challenge presented by the heretic. In this book, Michal Bar-Asher Siegal focuses on heretic narratives of the Babylonian Talmud that share a common literary structure, strong polemical language and the formula, 'Fool, look to the end of the verse'. She marshals previously untapped Christian materials to arrive at new interpretations of familiar texts and illuminate the complex relationship between Jews and Christians in Late Antiquity. Bar-Asher Siegal argues that these Talmudic literary creations must be seen as part of a boundary-creating discourse that clearly distinguishes the rabbinic position from that of contemporaneous Christians and adds to a growing understanding of the rabbinic authors' familiarity with Christian traditions.
13 citations