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Rabbinic Authority : The Authority of the Talmudic Sages
Rabbinic Authority The Authority of the Talmudic Sages Author:Michael S. Berger This book examines the nature and sources of the unique authority accorded in Judaism to the Sages of the first five centuries C.E. These teachers--often referred to reverentially as Chazal, a Hebrew acronym for "our Sages of blessed memory"--occupy a central and unrivaled position in traditional Judaism. Their statements, collected in the vast ... more »corpus of Rabbinic literature, serve as the basis for Halakhah (Jewish law) which developed since the Babylonian Talmud was redacted over thirteen centuries ago. Berger critically examines the notion of the Sages' authority, laying bare the assumptions that undergird it and the implications that follow from it. Berger's purpose is not to justify specific normative claims about talmudic law, but to show the deeply nuanced concept of authority in a textual and interpretive tradition.« less