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Wikipedia; Derekh Eretz Rabbah: Derek Eretz Rabbah: Derech Eretz Rabbah

Derekh Eretz Rabbah

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Rabbinical Eras

Derekh Eretz Rabbah (Hebrew: דרך ארץ רבה) is one of the minor tractates (מסכתות קטנות) of the Talmud. In the editions of the latter the tractate Derek Ereẓ consists of three divisions:

  1. Derek Ereẓ Rabbah ("Large Derek Ereẓ")
  2. Derek Ereẓ Zuṭa ("Small Derek Ereẓ")
  3. Pereḳ ha-Shalom ("Section on Peace")

This division is correct in that there are really three different works, but the designations "Rabbah" and "Zuṭa" are misleading, since the divisions so designated are not longer and shorter divisions of one work, but are, in spite of their relationship, independent of each other. The ancient authorities, who have different designations for this treatise, know nothing of the division into "Rabbah" and "Zuṭa"; the Halakot Gedolot (ed. A. Hildesheimer, p. 647) even includes a large part of the Derek Ereẓ Zuṭa under the title "Rabbah."

Contents

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[edit] Summary of Contents

According to the usual division, Derek Ereẓ R. consists of 11 sections ("peraḳim"). It begins with a halakic section on forbidden marriages ("arayot"), to which are appended some ethical maxims on marriage. The second section consists of two entirely different parts, the first of which contains reflections on 24 classes of people—12 bad and 12 good—with an appropriate Bible verse for each class; the second enumerates the sins that bring about eclipses of the sun and moon, as well as other misfortunes, the whole ending with some mystic remarks concerning God and the 390 heavens.

The section "Ben Azzai," as the ancients called the third pereḳ, contains some moral reflections on the origin and destiny of man. Sections iv. and v., each beginning with the word "Le'olam" (Forever), contain rules of conduct for sages and their disciples, the respective rules being illustrated by Biblical events and occurrences of the time of the Tannaim. Sections vi. and vii., which seem to have been originally one section, illustrate, by means of several stories, the correctness of the rule of conduct, never, in society or at table, to act differently from others that are present. Sections viii. and ix. also treat of rules of conduct during eating and drinking, especially in society; and it must be noted that sections vi. and viii. begin with the same word "Ha-niknas." Section x., on correct behavior in the bath, also begins with the same word, showing that all these sections, although they differ in content, were composed after one pattern. The last section begins with the enumeration of different things that are dangerous to life, and continues with the enumeration of actions and customs that are very dangerous to the soul.

This short summary of the contents shows that the work is of very diverse origin and that each section has its own history. It is clear that the first section cannot, in view of its halakic content, belong with the rest of the treatise, which deals exclusively with morals and customs. Elijah of Wilna was therefore undoubtedly right in assigning this section to the treatise Kallah, which precedes the Derek Ereẓ, and deals entirely with marriage and the rules connected with it. The whole section is merely a later compilation, although some of its passages cannot be traced back to the Talmudim and the Midrashim, as, for instance, the interesting parody on the hermeneutic rule of "kal ve-chomer" (compare Joseph ben Tadai).

[edit] Composition and Component Parts

Entirely different in origin is the first part of the second section, drawn undoubtedly from an old tannaitic source. Four sentences of this section are cited in the Talmud as being taken from a Baraita (B. B. 90b; Sanh. 76b; Shab. 88b), and one in the name of Abba Arika (Sanh. l.c.), who often quoted old sentences and maxims (Er. 54a). The composition shows that this section is not taken from the Talmud, for the division into 12 good and 12 bad classes of men is not found in the latter. The other half of this section, however, is probably a later interpolation, belonging properly to the third section. For this section begins with a saying of Ben Azzai concerning four things the contemplation of which would keep men from sin: hence the four classes of four things each that are enumerated in the second section.

Ben Azzai mentioned four things in connection with the four sayings. They are drawn from the Talmud (Suk. 29). The third section seems to have been in ancient times the beginning of Derek Ereẓ R. (Rashi on Ber. 22a; Pes. 86b; Tosef. 'Er. 53b), for which reason the old writers called the whole treatise "Perek ben Azzai." Yet it is difficult to understand how this section came to be taken as the introduction to the treatise, which otherwise, beginning with the fourth section, forms a connected whole, and has totally different contents from the Pereḳ ben Azzai.

[edit] Date of Composition

Therefore, as regards date and composition, only sections iv.-xi. need be considered, since the first three sections were not originally integral parts of the treatise. Sections iv.-xi. are not only similar in content, in that both set forth rules of behavior for different walks of life, and illustrate their meaning by examples from history, but their whole arrangement and composition also show the hand of the same author. Although the name of this author is not known, his date can be fixed approximately. Among the 16 authorities quoted in the part which has been designated above as the treatise Derek Ereẓ R. proper, there is not one who belongs to a later time than Rebbi, the redactor of the Mishnah. The Yerushalmi quotes a sentence, found in the Derek Ereẓ, R., with the formula "Tene be-Derek ha-Ereẓ" (Shab. vi. p. 8a, bottom); from this it appears that in the time of the Amoraim a tannaitic collection of the name "Derek Ereẓ," was known, and there is absolutely no reason for considering the present as a different treatise from the Derek Ereẓ quoted in Yerushalmi. Nor is there any cogent reason for not considering this treatise as the source of the many quotations from Baraitas in Talmud Babli, which are found in Derek Ereẓ. R. also (compare Isaiah Berlin's glosses to the treatise), although it must be admitted that a great many of the quotations existed in different collections of Baraitas, and that the Talmud drew sometimes from one source and sometimes from another.

A contemporary of Rebbi, therefore (about 160-220)—hardly Rebbi himself—may have been the author of the Derek Ereẓ, R., the first three sections being added much later. A collection known as Hilkot Derek Ereẓ existed even in the school of Akiba (Ber. 22a); but, as the term "Hilkot" indicates, it was composed entirely of short sentences and rules of behavior and custom, without any references to Jewish Scripture and tradition. It is even highly probable that the treatise was based on the older collection, and that the work of the later editors consisted merely in the addition to the old rules of illustrations from the Bible and from history. For example, in the old collection there was a rule, "No one must enter the house of another without due announcement." This sentence was amplified by a later editor, who added: "This rule of behavior is taught out of the mouth of God Himself, who stood at the gate of paradise and called to Adam, 'Where art thou?'" (Gen. iii. 9); and to this is added the story of a journey of Jewish scholars to Ancient Rome, and how they comported themselves there (section v.).

[edit] Stories

It is characteristic of this treatise that in order to emphasize its rules, it relates many stories of the private life of the Tannaim. A most interesting one is the following, which is used as an illustration to the rule, always to be friendly and obliging:

Once Simon ben Eleazar [probably more correctly Eleazar ben Simon; compare Ta'an 20a] met a very ugly man, and could not help exclaiming: "How ugly are the children of our father Abraham!" The man answered: "What can I do about it? Will you go and tell the Master who has created me?" Then Simon ben Eleazar fell down at the man's feet, asking his forgiveness. But the latter said: "I will not forgive you until you have gone to the Master who has created me, and have said to Him, 'How ugly is the creature which you have created!'" Only after much beseeching would the man forgive him; and on the same day Simon pronounced these words in the schoolhouse: "Be always pliable as the reed, and not hard as the cedar. Although the reed bends to the gentlest wind, it resists the fiercest storm; but the cedar, at first proud and inflexible, in the end yields to the wind, and is uprooted."

Stories of this nature lend a peculiar charm to the Derek Ereẓ. Rabbah. The version of the treatise found in the Maḥzor Vitry (pp. 724 et seq.) is different from that in the editions of the Talmud. Instead of the first part of the second section, there is in the former version a collection of sentences and reflections on various subjects, arranged according to numbers. The version of the treatise Kallah, in Coronel's Ḥamishah Ḳunṭresim, Vienna, 1864, contains the greater portion of the Derek Ereẓ R.; namely, the whole of sections iii., iv., v., and parts of the following sections. Aside from the variants found here, Coronel's version has also a kind of "Gemara" to the text. This Gemara, however, is of very late origin, being in all probability a product of the 10th century, although it contains matter of great value and of very ancient (Essene or Ḥasidean) origin. The Gemara, which is quoted by Isaac Aboab in Menorat ha-Ma'or, is printed in the Wilna edition of the Talmud (Romm, 1889).

[edit] Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography

  • The treatise Derek Ereẓ R. was printed for the first time in the third Venetian edition of the Talmud (1546–1551); see also Goldberg, Der Talmud. Tractat Derek Ereẓ Rabbah, Breslau, 1888, which contains a critical edition and a German translation
  • Segal, Arthur, A Modern Commentary to Talmud Bavli Tractates Derek Eretz Zuta and Rabbah : The Path and Wisdom for Living at Peace with Others, in four volumes, Rabbi Arthur Segal, (2012, Amazon Press).
  • Krauss, in Rev. Etudes Juives, xxxvi. 27-46, 205-221; xxxvii. 45-64;
  • Weiss, Dor Dor we-Dorshaw, ii. 249-250:
  • Zunz, Gottesdienstliche Vorträge der Juden, 2d ed., pp. 116–118.

[edit] External links

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Rabbi Arthur Segal www.jewishspiritualrenewal.org
Jewish Renewal www.jewishrenewal.info
Jewish Spiritual Renewal http://rabbiarthursegal.blogspot.com
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Posted by Rabbi Arthur Segal at 1:05 PM

Wikipedia; Derekh Eretz Zutta : Derek Eretz Zuta: Derech Eretz Zuta

Derekh Eretz Zutta:

Derek Eretz Zuta:

Derech Eretz Zuta

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Rabbinical Eras

Derekh Eretz Zutta (Hebrew: מסכת דרך ארץ זוטא) is a non-canonical tractate of the Babylonian Talmud. The name is misleading in more than one respect; the word "zuṭa" (small) would seem to indicate that it is a shorter version of the treatise "Derek Ereẓ Rabbah," which is not the case, the two having little in common. "Derek Ereẓ," moreover, is a very unsuitable name for a collection of ethical teachings such as form the substance of the treatise. Even Rashi, however (Ber. 4a), knows the treatise under this name, calling it "Masseket Derek Ereẓ," while the Tosafists likewise call it "Hilkot Derek Ereẓ" (Bek. 44b). The designation "zuṭa" is probably of later origin.

Contents

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[edit] Versions

In the Talmud editions the treatise consists of nine sections ("peraḳim"), to which the Section on Peace ("Pereḳ ha-Shalom") is added as a supplement. The Halakot Gedolot (ed. A. Hildesheimer, pp. 644–652) gives another version; here the same material is in two parts—(1) "Derek Ereẓ Zuṭa," corresponding to sections v.-viii., and (2) "Derek Ereẓ Rabbah," containing sections i.-iv. and ix. There are two manuscript copies with this division in the Bodleian (Nos. 120 and 380 in A. Neubauer's catalogue), as well as a genizah fragment (Jew. Quart. Rev. x. 660); but in the latter the first four sections are under the title "Yir'at Ḥeṭ." The Karaite Ḳirḳisani (10th century) cites a passage from the fourth section under that title (Jew. Quart. Rev. vii. 698). A third version is that in the Maḥzor Vitry (ed. Horwitz, pp. 721–723), where the first part of the eighth and the whole of the ninth section are given under the title "Hilkot Darkan shel Talmide Ḥakamim." It is noteworthy that in the Talmud editions sections iv.-viii. are marked as having been taken from the Maḥzor Vitry. It should also be mentioned that the Siddur Rab Amram (Amram ben Sheshna) gives only the first and fourth sections, which is probably because the second and third were not included in the ritual.

[edit] Summary of Contents

Apart from this external evidence, a closer examination shows that the work consists of three different collections: (1) i.-iv., (2) v.-viii., (3) ix., though it has a certain unity in that it consists almost exclusively of exhortations to self-examination and meekness and of rules of conduct, and urges temperance, resignation, gentleness, patience, respect for age, readiness to forgive, and, finally, the moral and social duties of a "disciple of the wise" (talmid ḥakam). It is written in the form of separate, short maxims arranged as in the Abot, but differing in that they are anonymous. The compiler attempted to arrange the maxims according to external characteristics, the order followed being determined by the initial word, and by the number of maxims. Several precepts which begin with the same word are put together even when they are not at all related in subject-matter (compare The Wisdom of Ben Sira, ed. S. Schechter, vi. 1-20, where twenty sayings begin with אל); especially are they thus combined into groups of four, five, or seven maxims, numbers which serve to aid in memorizing the passages. How far the compiler was able to carry out his principle can not be judged from the text in its present condition; and to ascertain the original form of the treatise it is necessary critically to reconstruct the text. The following analysis of contents is based on such a reconstruction.

The first section begins with introductory remarks on the duties and proper conduct of a "disciple of the wise"; then follow seven sentences, each a precept in four parts, which, however, are often confused in the text as it now exists. The order is:

  1. הוי
  2. אל – which sentence is to be read according to Ab. R. N., ed. S. Schechter, xxvi. 83
  3. אם
  4. אל (the following saying, beginning with אם, belongs to No. 3, while the next אל sentence is the fourth part of No. 4)
  5. העבר (the two missing parts to be supplied from Abot ii. 4)
  6. אהוב and its opposite הרחק
  7. אל – originally four sentences as shown by the Vatican MSS. in Goldberg and Coronel's version and as confirmed by the parallels in Ab. R. N., ed. S. Schechter, xxvi. 82, xxxiii. 36; the concluding הרחק sentence belongs to No. 6. The three haggadic utterances which form the conclusion of the first section are a later addition.

The second section begins like the first, emphasizing particularly the duties of the "disciple of the wise." After a series of admonitions concerning only the student, there follow, to the end of the section, maxims of a general nature for people in the most varied walks of life. These are also arranged in seven sentences, each beginning with the word הוי, which word also comes before למוד להיות גומל בטובה (compare Ab. R. N. xli.). Then follow seven beginning with אל, and seven with אם.

In the third section the regular arrangement can be recognized beginning with the maxim אם רפית. There are three sentences each with אם and הוי; and as many with תחלת and אם. The following sentences probably belong to section four, and concern only the conduct of the student. The paragraph beginning with the words אל תאמר איש, which, as is to be seen from the Siddur Rab Amram, consists of four parts, concludes the fourth section, which is the end of the "Yir'at ḤeṬ."

From the fourth section to the eighth is a collection of maxims arranged on the same plan. The eighth section contains eight maxims beginning with כל, but the initial and concluding maxims are not relevant to the proper matter of section. The ninth section is a well-ordered collection of twenty-eight maxims arranged in four paragraphs; seven of these maxims begin with אהוב, seven with הוי, and fourteen with אם.

[edit] Date of Composition

The date of composition can only be conjectured. It is almost certain that sections v.-viii. are the work of one editor, who lived after the completion of the Babylonian Talmud. One needs only to compare the maxim לעולם (v. 2) with Sanh. 23a and Mek. Mishpaṭim 20 to see that the compiler had the Talmud before him. The next maxim is a combination of Er. 65b and Ab. R. N., ed. כל המתנבל S. Schechter, xxxii. 68. Ab. R. N. viii., (ed. Schechter, xxii. 46), Midr. Mishle ix. 9. Pesiḳ. viii., כל זמן (ed. S. Buber, 44b), and probably Derek Ereẓ Rabbah were also used.

As already mentioned, the Spanish version of the Halakot Gedolot, probably made about 1000, adopted these four sections as a complete treatise; hence one would not be far wrong in setting the 9th century as the date of composition. The first four sections date from a much earlier period. From their contents they may even have been an independent collection already in existence at the time of the Tannaim. At any rate this collection contains much that is old, even if it can not be proved that the Megillat Ḥasidim, which is cited in Abot de-Rabbi Natan (ed. Schechter, xxvi. 52), is identical with the treatise under discussion.

The ninth section, originally, perhaps, a small collection of maxims, is more modern than the first and older than the second part of the treatise. The conclusion of the ninth chapter, which treats of peace, caused the insertion in the Talmud of a Section on Peace ("Pereḳ ha-Shalom"), in which various sayings concerning peace, taken from different Midrashim, especially from the Midrash to Num. vi. 26, are placed together. This tenth (supplementary) section is comparatively a very late product, and is not found in Maḥzor Vitry, in Halakot Gedolot, nor in the MSS.

[edit] Importance of the Treatise

The Abot excepted, this treatise is the only collection of precepts from the period of the Talmud and the Midrashim, and is therefore of great importance in any estimate of the earliest ethical views of the old rabbis. Zunz appropriately characterizes the treatise: "The Derek Ereẓ, Zuṭa, which is meant to be a mirror for scholars, is full of high moral teachings and pithy worldly wisdom which philosophers of to-day could study to advantage." The treatise deals mainly with man's relation to man, and is moral rather than religious in nature. A few quotations from it will illustrate its character:

  • "If others speak evil of thee let the greatest thing seem unimportant in thy eyes; but if thou hast spoken evil of others, let the least word seem important."
  • "If thou hast done much good let it seem little in thy eyes, and say: 'Not of mine own have I done this, but of that good which has come to me through others'; but let a small kindness done to thee appear great."

The treatise was much read, and the fact that it went through so many hands partly accounts for the chaotic condition of the text. Scholars of the 18th century did much, by means of their glosses and commentaries, toward making possible an understanding of the text, but a critical edition is still needed (as of 1906). A commentary to Derek Eretz Zuta and well as Rabbah is available : A Modern Commentary to Talmud Bavli Tractates Derek Eretz Zuta and Rabbah : The Path and Wisdom for Living at Peace with Others, in four volumes, Rabbi Arthur Segal, (2012, Amazon Press).

[edit] Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography

  • Azulai, Kikkar la-Aden, Leghorn, 1801;
  • W. Bacher, in Jew. Quart. Rev. vii. 697-698;
  • Harburger, Massechet Derech Erez Sutta, German transl., Bayreuth, 1839;
  • Elijah of Wilna, critical glosses in the ed. of Sklow, 1804 (reprinted several times);
  • Lüpshütz, Regel Yesharah, Dyhernfurth, 1776;
  • Naumburg, Naḥelat Ya'aḳob, Fürth, 1793;
  • Krauss, in Rev. Et. Juives, xxxvi.-xxxvii.;
  • idem, Talmudi 'Eletszabólyok, Hungarian transl., Budapest, 1896;
  • Tawrogi, Derech Erez Sutta, nach Handschriften und Seltenen Ausgaben, Königsberg, 1885.

[edit] External links

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain:  Jewish Encyclopedia. 1901–1906. 

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Posted by Rabbi Arthur Segal at 12:57 PM

Wikipedia: Jewish Ethics: Reading on Jewish Ethics: Jewish Ethical books

Jewish ethics

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Jewish ethics stands at the intersection of Judaism and the Western philosophical tradition of ethics. Like other types of religious ethics, the diverse literature of Jewish ethics primarily aims to answer a broad range of moral questions and, hence, may be classified as a normative ethics. For two millennia, Jewish thought has also grappled with the dynamic interplay between law and ethics. The tradition of rabbinic religious law (known as halakhah) addresses numerous problems often associated with ethics, including its semi-permeable relation with duties that are usually not punished under law.

Contents

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[edit] Jewish ethical literature

[edit] Biblical and rabbinic ethical literature

Jewish ethics may be said to originate with the Hebrew Bible, its broad legal injunctions, wisdom narratives and prophetic teachings. Most subsequent Jewish ethical claims may be traced back to the texts, themes and teachings of the written Torah.

In early rabbinic Judaism, the oral Torah both interprets the Hebrew Bible and delves afresh into many other ethical topics. Ethics is a key aspet of legal literature, known as the literature of halakhah.

The best known rabbinic text associated with ethics is the non-legal Mishnah tractate of Avot ("forefathers"), popularly translated as "Ethics of the Fathers". Similar ethical teachings are interspersed throughout the more legally-oriented portions of the Mishnah, Talmud and other rabbinic literature. Generally, ethics is a key aspect of non-legal rabbinic literature, known as aggadah. This early Rabbinic ethics shows signs of cross-fertilization and polemical exchange with the Greek (Western philosophical) ethical tradition.

[edit] Medieval ethical literature

In the medieval period, direct Jewish responses to Greek ethics may be seen in major rabbinic writings. Notably, Maimonides offers a Jewish interpretation of Aristotle (e.g., Nicomachean Ethics), who enters into Jewish discourse through Islamic writings. Maimonides, in turn, influences Thomas Aquinas, a dominant figure in Christian ethics and the natural law tradition of moral theology. The relevance of natural law to medieval Jewish philosophy is a matter of dispute among scholars.

Medieval and early modern rabbis also created a pietistic tradition of Jewish ethics. This ethical tradition was given expression through musar literature, which presents virtues and vices in a didactic, methodical way. The Hebrew term musar, while literally derived from a word meaning "discipline" or "correction," is usually translated as ethics or morals. Examples of medieval Musar literature include:

Halakhic (legal) writings of the Middle Ages are also important texts for Jewish ethics. Important sources of Jewish ethical law include Maimonides' Mishneh Torah (12th c.) and Joseph Karo and Moses Isserles's Shulkhan Arukh (16th c.), especially the section of that code titled "Choshen Mishpat." A wide array of topics on ethics are also discussed in medieval responsa literature.

[edit] Modern ethical literature

In the modern period, Jewish ethics sprouted many offshoots, partly due to developments in modern ethics and partly due to the formation of Jewish denominations. Trends in modern Jewish normative ethics include:

  • The musar tradition was revived by the Jewish ethics education movement known as the Mussar Movement that developed in the 19th century Orthodox Jewish European (Ashkenazi) community.
  • Other modern Jewish philosophers have pursued a range of ethical approaches, with varying degrees of reliance upon traditional Jewish sources. Notably, Hermann Cohen authored Religion of Reason in the tradition of Kantian ethics. Martin Buber wrote on various ethical and social topics, including the dialogical ethics of his I and Thou. Hans Jonas, a student of Martin Heidegger, draws upon phenomenology in his writings on bioethics, technology and responsibility. Emmanuel Levinas sought to distinguish his philosophical and Jewish writings; nevertheless, some scholars are constructing Jewish ethics around his innovative and deeply-Jewish approach. Inspired by both Maimonides and the success of Catholic ethics, David Novak has promoted a natural law approach to Jewish social ethics. While Jewish feminists are not prominent in ethics per se, the principles of feminist ethics arguably play a pivotal role in the ebb and flow of Jewish denominational politics and identity-formation.

Academic scholars of Judaism have also engaged in descriptive Jewish ethics, the study of Jewish moral practices and theory, which is situated more in the disciplines of history and the social sciences than in ethics proper (see Newman 1998).

In 2003, the Society of Jewish Ethics was founded as the academic organization "dedicated to the promotion of scholarly work in the field of Jewish ethics." The Society promotes both normative research (the field of ethics proper) and descriptive (historical/social scientific) research.

[edit] Central virtues and principles in Jewish ethics

[edit] Major themes in biblical ethics

The Biblical prophets exhort all people to lead a righteous life. Kindness to the needy, benevolence, faith, compassion for the suffering, a peace-loving disposition, and a truly humble and contrite spirit, are the virtues which the Prophets hold up for emulation. Civic loyalty, even to a foreign ruler, is urged as a duty (Jer. 29:7). "Learn to do good" is the keynote of the prophetic appeal (Isa. 1:17); thus the end-time will be one of peace and righteousness; war will be no more (Isa. 2:2 et seq.).

[edit] Summaries of classical rabbinic ethics

Hillel the Elder the elder formulated the Golden rule of Jewish ethics: "What is hateful to you, do not do unto others." (Talmud, tracate Shabbat 31a; Midrash Avot de Rabbi Natan.) Akiva, a second century c.e. Rabbi, states "Whatever you hate to have done unto you, do not do to your neighbor; wherefore do not hurt him; do not speak ill of him; do not reveal his secrets to others; let his honor and his property be as dear to thee as thine own" (Midrash Avot deRabbi Natan.)

Akiva also declared the commandment "thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself" (Lev. xix.18) to be the greatest fundamental commandment of the Jewish doctrine (compare to Great Commandment); Ben Azzai, in reference to this, said that a still greater principle was found in the Scriptural verse, "This is the book of the generations of Adam [origin of man]. In the day that God created man [Adam], in the likeness of God made he him" (Gen. v.1; Sifra, Ḳedoshim, iv; Yer. Ned. ix.41c; Gen. R. xxiv).

Rabbi Simlai taught "Six hundred and thirteen commandments were given to Moses; then David came and reduced them to eleven in Psalm 15.; Isaiah (33:15), to six; Micah (6:8), to three: 'To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God'; Isaiah again (56:1), to two: 'Maintain justice, and do what is right'; and Habakkuk (2:4), to one: 'The righteous person lives by his faithfulness'."

[edit] Justice, truth, and peace

Rabbi Simeon ben Gamaliel taught: "The world rests on three things: justice, truth, and peace" (Avot 1:18).

Justice ("din" corresponding to the Biblical "mishpat") being God's must be vindicated, whether the object be of great or small value (Sanh. 8a). "Let justice pierce the mountain" is the characteristic maxim attributed to Moses (Sanh. 6b). Stealing and oppression, even if only in holding back overnight the hired man's earnings, are forbidden.

Falsehood, flattery, perjury and false swearing are also forbidden. The reputation of a fellow man is sacred (Ex. 21:1). Tale-bearing and unkind insinuations are proscribed, as is hatred of one's brother in one's heart (Lev. 19:17). A revengeful, relentless disposition is unethical; reverence for old age is inculcated; justice shall be done; right weight and just measure are demanded; poverty and riches shall not be regarded by the judge (Lev. 19:15, 18, 32, 36; Ex. 23:3).

Shalom ("peace"), is one of the underlying principles of the Torah, as "her ways are pleasant ways and all her paths are shalom ('peace')."Proverbs 3:17 The Talmud explains, "The entire Torah is for the sake of the ways of shalom".[2] Maimonides comments in his Mishneh Torah: "Great is peace, as the whole Torah was given in order to promote peace in the world, as it is stated, 'Her ways are pleasant ways and all her paths are peace.'" [3]

[edit] Loving-kindness and compassion

Main articles: Chesed and Jewish views on love

Simon the Just taught: "The world rests upon three things: Torah, service to God, and showing loving-kindness (chesed)" (Pirkei Avot 1:2). Loving-kindness is here the core ethical virtue.

Loving-kindness is closely linked with compassion in the tradition. Lack of compassion marks a people as cruel (Jer. vi. 23). The repeated injunctions of the Law and the Prophets that the widow, the orphan and the stranger should be protected show how deeply, it is argued, the feeling of compassion was rooted in the hearts of the righteous in ancient Israel.[4]

Friendship is also highly prized in the Talmud; the very word for "associate" is "friend" ("chaver"). "Get thyself a companion" (Abot i. 6). "Companionship or death" (Ta'an. 23a).

Respect for one's fellow creatures is of such importance that Biblical prohibitions may be transgressed on its account (Ber. 19b). Especially do unclaimed dead require respectful burial (see Burial in Jew. Encyc. iii. 432b: "met miẓwah").

[edit] Self-respect

In addition to teaching caring for others, Jewish sources tend to teach that man is duty bound to preserve his life (Berachot 32b) and his health. Foods dangerous to health are more to be guarded against than those ritually forbidden. Jewish ethics denies self-abasement. "He who subjects himself to needless self-castigations and fasting, or even denies himself the enjoyment of wine, is a sinner" (Taanit 11a, 22b). A person has to give account for every lawful enjoyment he refuses (Talmud Yer. Ḳid. iv. 66d). A person should show self-respect in regard to both his body, "honoring it as the image of God" (Hillel: Midrash Leviticus Rabbah 34), and his garments (Talmud Shabbat 113b; Ned. 81a).

[edit] Areas of applied Jewish ethics

[edit] Business ethics

Main article: Jewish business ethics

In the Torah, there are more commandments concerning the kashrut (fitness) of one's money than the kashrut of food. These laws are developed and expanded upon in the Mishnah and the Talmud (particularly in Order Nezikin). The Talmud denounces as fraud every mode of taking advantage of a man's ignorance, whether he be Jew or Gentile; every fraudulent dealing, every gain obtained by betting or gambling or by raising the price of breadstuffs through speculation, is theft (B. B. 90b; Sanh. 25b). The Talmud denounces advantages derived from loans of money or of victuals as usury; every breach of promise in commerce is a sin provoking God's punishment; every act of carelessness which exposes men or things to danger and damage is a culpable transgression. There is a widely quoted tradition (Talmud Shabbat 31a) that in one's judgement in the next world, the first question asked is: "were you honest in business?"

Laws concerning business ethics are delineated in the major codes of Jewish law (e.g. Mishneh Torah, 12th c.; Shulhan Arukh, particularly Choshen Mishpat, 16th c.). A wide array of topics on business ethics are discussed in the responsa literature. Business ethics received special emphasis in the teaching of Rabbi Yisrael Lipkin Salanter (19th century), founder of the Musar movement in Eastern Europe. Enforcing laws regarding the proper treatment of workers in the food industry has been central to the efforts of Conservative Judaism's Hekhsher Tzedek commission and its 2008 approval of a responsum by Rabbi Jill Jacobs which required paying workers in accordance with Jewish law and treating workers with dignity and respect.[5][6]

[edit] Charitable giving

Main article: Tzedakah

The Jewish idea of righteousness ("tzedakah") gives the owner of property has no right to withhold from the poor their share. According to Maimonides in the Mishneh Torah, the highest level of tzedakah is giving charity that will allow the poor to break out of the poverty cycle and become independent and productive members of society.[7][8] Tzedakah may come in the form of giving an interest-free loan to a person in need; forming a partnership with a person in need; giving a grant to a person in need; finding a job for a person in need; so long as that loan, grant, partnership, or job results in the person no longer living by relying upon others.

Traditional Jews commonly practice "ma'aser kesafim," tithing 10% of their income to support those in need. The Rabbis decreed (against Essene practice, and against advice given in the New Testament) that one should not give away much, most or all of their possessions. They did not expect a supernatural savior to come and take care of the poor, and so they held that one must not make oneself poor.[9] Given that nearly all Jews of their day were poor or middle-class (even the rich of that time were only rich relative to the poor), they ruled that one should not give away more than a fifth of his income to charity, while yet being obligated to give away no less than 10% of his income to charity.[10]

Many folios of the Talmud are devoted to encouragement in giving charity (see, for example, B.B. 9b-11a; A.Z. 17b; Pes. 8a; Rosh. 4a), and this topic is the focus of many religious books and rabbinic responsa.

[edit] Ethics of speech

Main article: Lashon hara

Evil-speaking is a sin regarded with intense aversion both in the Bible and in rabbinical literature. The technical term for it in the latter is lashon hara, "the evil tongue." In the Bible the equivalent words are: dibbah, meaning "talk" in a sinister sense; rakhil, the "merchandise" of gossip with which the talebearer goes about; and ragal, a verb, denoting the "peddling" of slander. As these words indicate, that which is condemned as lashon hara denotes all the deliberate or malicious accusations, or even the exposure of truthful information which has the purpose of injuring one's neighbor, that is, calumny proper, and also the idle but mischievous chatter which is equally forbidden, though it is not slander.[11]

A rabbi in the Talmud opines that putting one's fellow man to shame, in the same category as murder (B. M. 58b), and brands as calumny the spreading of evil reports, even when true. Also forbidden is listening to slanderous gossip, or the causing of suspicion, or the provoking of unfavorable remarks about a neighbor.

[edit] Jewish family ethics

Main article: Honor your father and your mother

The Jewish tradition gives great stress to reverence for parents. More Orthodox forms of Judaism view the father as the head of the family, while seeing the mother as entitled to honor and respect at the hands of sons and daughters. More liberal Jews view the mother and father as equal in all things.

The family plays a central role in Judaism, both socially and in transmitting the traditions of the religion. To honour one's father and mother is one of the Ten Commandments. Jewish families try to have close, respectful family relationships, with care for both the elderly and young. Religious observance is an integral part of home life, including the weekly Sabbath and keeping kosher dietary laws. The Talmud tells parents to teach their children a trade and survival skills, and children are asked to look after their parents.

[edit] Marriage and sexual relations

Main articles: Jewish views on marriage, Judaism and sexuality, and LGBT topics and Judaism

Marriage is called kiddushin, or 'making holy'. To set up a family home is to take part in an institution imbued with holiness. Monogamy is the ideal (Gen. ii. 24). Celibacy is regarded as contrary to the injunction to be fruitful and multiply (Genesis 2:18 and Isaiah 45:18). According to the Talmud and midrash, man is enjoined to take a wife and obtain posterity (Yeb. 63b; Mek., Yitro, 8). "He who lives without a wife lives without joy and blessing, without protection and peace"; he is "not a complete man" (Yeb. 62a, 63a), and for it he has to give reckoning at the great Judgement Day (Shab. 31a).

Sex is not considered acceptable outside marriage, but it is an important part of the love and care shown between partners. Sexual relations are forbidden during the time of the woman's period. After her period has ended, she will go to the mikveh (the ritual immersion pool) where she will fully immerse herself and become ritually clean again. Sexual relations may then resume. Married couples need to find other ways of expressing their love for each other during these times, and many say that the time of abstention enhances the relationship.

Adultery and incestual relationships (Leviticus 18:6–23) are prohibited. Orthodox Jews view male homosexuality as explicitly prohibited by the Torah, but other Jews view various forms of homosexual behavior or all forms of homosexual behavior as permitted by the tradition.

[edit] Medical ethics and bioethics

Main article: Jewish medical ethics

Jewish medical ethics is one of the major spheres of contemporary Jewish ethics. Beginning primarily as an applied ethics based on halakhah, more recently it has broadened to bioethics, weaving together issues in biology, science, medicine and ethics, philosophy and theology. Jewish bioethicists are usually rabbis who have been trained in medical science and philosophy, but may also be experts in medicine and ethics who have received training in Jewish texts. The goal of Jewish medical ethics and bioethics is to use Jewish law and tradition and Jewish ethical thought to determine which medical treatments or technological innovations are moral, when treatments may or may not be used, etc.

[edit] Political governance

Main article: Judaism and politics

The ethics of proper governance is the subject of much contention among Jews. Various models of political authority are developed in the Hebrew Bible, rabbinic literature, and later Jewish literature. Many prominent Jewish thinkers, such as Maimonides, see monarchy as a moral ideal, while others, such as Abravanel, disparage the model of monarchy. Modern Jews have championed a variety of Jewish political movements, often based on their conceptions of Jewish ethics.

[edit] Ethics of warfare

See also: Judaism and war and Judaism and peace

Jewish war ethics are developed by Maimonides in his "Laws of Kings and their Wars," part of his Mishneh Torah. Modern Jewish war ethics have been developed especially in relationship to the Israeli military's doctrine of Purity of arms.

[edit] Capital punishment

Main article: Capital and corporal punishment in Judaism

The Talmud approves of the death penalty in principle but the standard of proof required for application of death penalty is extremely stringent, so that situations in which a death sentence could be passed are effectively impossible.

[edit] Relationship to non-Jews

The non-Jew is within the covenant of ethical considerations (Ex. xxii. 20; Lev. xix. 33). "You shall love him as yourself," a law the phraseology of which proves that in the preceding "thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself" (Lev. xix. 18) "neighbor" does not connote a Jew exclusively. There was to be one law for the native and the stranger (Lev. xix. 34; comp. Ex. xii. 49).

Jews are strongly influenced by the exhortation, 'Remember the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt' (Deuteronomy 10:9), especially as this refers to the Exodus celebrated at Passover. Jews are expected to show hospitality to all, and to consider the needs and feelings of anyone who may be marginalized, for whatever reason. In biblical times, the slaves of Jewish people had special rights that preserved their dignity as equal human beings, allowed them freedoms, and forbade mistreatment.

Non-Jews are to have a share in all the benevolent work of a township which appeals to human sympathy and on which the maintenance of peace among men depends, such as supporting the poor, burying the dead, comforting the mourners, and visiting the sick (Tosef., Giṭ. v. 4-5; Giṭ. 64a).

Most Jews do not actively seek to convert non-Jews to Judaism; in fact conversion to Judaism can be a lengthy and difficult process. They are respectful of other religions, but cannot actively approve of religions that appear to promote idolatry or immorality.[citation needed]

Jews believe that non-Jews who follow the Noachide code, the minimum ethical and religious requirements for all non-Jews, will be equally recognized by God. The laws of the Noachide code are: do not engage in idolatry; do not engage in blasphemy; do not murder; do not steal; do not commit acts of sexual immorality; do not cause excessive pain to animals (e.g. eating a limb torn from a living animal); and establish courts of justice.

The principle of Kiddush Hashem requires Jews to conduct themselves in every way as to prevent the name of God from being dishonored by non-Israelites. The greatest sin of fraud, therefore, is that committed against a non-Israelite, because it may lead to the reviling of God's name. A desire to sanctify the name of God may help to motivate some Jews to treat adherents of other creeds with the utmost fairness and equity.[9]

[edit] Treatment of animals

Main article: Tza'ar ba'alei chayim

According to Jewish tradition, animals have a right to be treated well, even ones that might belong to one's enemy (Ex. 23:4). The Biblical commands regarding the treatment of the brute (Ex. xx. 10; Lev. xxii. 28; Deut. xxv. 4; Prov. xii. 10) are amplified in rabbinical ethics, and a special term is coined for the prohibition on causing suffering to animals ("tza'ar ba'alei hayyim"). Not to sit down to the table before the domestic animals have been fed is a lesson derived from Deut. xi. 15. Compassion for the brute is declared to have been the merit of Moses which made him the shepherd of his people (Exodus Rabbah 2), while Judah ha-Nasi saw in his own ailment the punishment for having once failed to show compassion for a frightened calf.

Consideration for animals is an important part of Judaism. It is part of the Noachide code. Resting on the Sabbath also meant providing rest for the working animals, and people are instructed to feed their animals before they sit down to eat. At harvest time, the working animals must not be muzzled, so that they can eat of the harvest as they work. All animals must be kept in adequate conditions. Sports like bullfighting are forbidden. Animals may be eaten as long as they are killed as painlessly and humanely as possible using the method known as shechitah, where the animal is killed by having its throat cut swiftly using a specially sharpened knife. Jewish butchers have a special training in this which must meet the requirements of kashrut.

Enforcing laws regarding the treatment of animals in the certification of food products has been part of the effort of Conservative Judaism's Hekhsher Tzedek commission.

[edit] Environmental ethics

Main article: Judaism and environmentalism

The Book of Genesis 1:26 indicates that God gave people control over the animals and earth, while Genesis 2:15 emphasizes that people were put in the world to maintain it and care for it. The Talmud teaches the principle of Bal tashkhit, which some take to mean that wasting or destroying anything on earth is wrong. Many take the view that pollution is an insult to the created world, and it is considered immoral to put commercial concerns before care for God's creation. However, humans are regarded as having a special place in the created order, and their well-being is paramount. Humans are not seen as just another part of the ecosystem, so moral decisions about environmental issues have to take account of the well-being of humans.[citation needed]

Trees and other things of value also come within the scope of rabbinical ethics, as their destruction is prohibited, according to Deut. xx. 19 (Talmud, tracate Shabbat 105b, 129a, 140b, et al.). In modern times, a Jewish enivronmentalism movement has emerged.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/law/teshuvot_public.html
  2. ^ Talmud, Gittin 59b
  3. ^ Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, The Laws of Chanukah 4:14
  4. ^ http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=699&letter=C&search=compassion |The Jewish Encyclopedia
  5. ^ Dispatches from the Workplace: Rabbis for Worker Justice
  6. ^ http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/teshuvot/docs/20052010/jacobs-living-wage.pdf
  7. ^ Meir Tamari, http://www.myjewishlearning.com/practices/Ethics/Tzedakah_Charity/History/Jewish_Tradition/Maimonides_Ladder.shtml
  8. ^ Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, Hilkhot Matanot Aniyim (Laws about Giving to Poor People), Chapter 10:7-14
  9. ^ a b http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=499&letter=E
  10. ^ The Jerusalem Talmud Gemara to Tractate Pe'ah 1:1; Babylonian Talmud, Ketubot 50a; Babylonian Talmud, Arakhin, 28a
  11. ^ http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=65&letter=C

[edit] Further reading on Jewish ethics

  • Abrahams, Israel, ed. 2006. Hebrew Ethical Wills. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society. ISBN 0827608276.
  • Bleich, J. D. 1977. Contemporary Halakhic Problems. 4 vols. New York: Ktav Publishing House Inc. Yeshiva University Press.
  • Breslauer, S. Daniel, comp. 1985. Contemporary Jewish Ethics: A Bibliographical Survey. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
  • Breslauer, S. Daniel, comp. 1986. Modern Jewish Morality: A Bibliographical Survey. New York: Greenwood Press.
  • Dorff, Elliot N., and Louis E. Newman, eds. 1995. Contemporary Jewish Ethics and Morality: A Reader. Oxford University Press.
  • Dosick, Wayne. The Business Bible: 10 New Commandments for Bringing Spirituality & ethical values into the workplace. Jewish Lights Publishing.
  • Newman, Louis E. 1998. Past Imperatives: Studies in the History and Theory of Jewish Ethics. Albany: State University of New York Press.
  • Segal, Arthur. 2009 A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud. Amazon Press.
  • Tamari, Meir. 1995. The Challenge of Wealth: A Jewish Perspective on Earning and Spending Money. Jason Aronson.
  • Telushkin, Joseph. 2000. The Book of Jewish Values. Bell Tower.
  • Werblowsky. 1964. In Annual of Jewish Studies 1: 95-139.

[edit] Further reading on Jewish bioethics

Further information: Jewish medical ethics
  • Bleich, J. David. 1981. Judaism and Healing'. New York: Ktav.
  • Conservative Judaism. 2002. Vol. 54(3). Contains a set of six articles on bioethics.
  • Elliot Dorff. 1998. Matters of Life and Death: A Jewish Approach to Modern Medical Ethics. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society.
  • David Feldman. 1974. Marital Relations, Birth Control, and Abortion in Jewish Law. New York: Schocken Books.
  • Freedman, B. 1999. Duty and Healing: Foundations of a Jewish Bioethic. New York: Routledge.
  • Jakobovits, Immanuel. 1959. Jewish Medical Ethics. New York: Bloch Publishing.
  • Mackler, Aaron L., ed. 2000. Life & Death Responsibilities in Jewish Biomedical Ethics. JTS.
  • Maibaum, M. 1986. "A 'progressive' Jewish medical ethics: notes for an agenda." Journal of Reform Judaism 33(3): 27-33.
  • Rosner, Fred. 1986. Modern Medicine and Jewish Ethics. New York: Yeshiva University Press.
  • Byron Sherwin. 2004. Golems among us: How a Jewish legend can help us navigate the biotech century
  • Sinclair, Daniel. 1989. Tradition and the biological revolution: The application of Jewish law to the treatment of the critically ill
  • _________. Jewish biomedical law. Oxford
  • Zohar, Noam J. 1997. Alternatives in Jewish Bioethics. Albany: State University of New York Press.
  • Zoloth Laurie. 1999. Health care and the ethics of encounter: A Jewish discussion of social justice. Univ. of North Carolina Press.

[edit] External links

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