Rabbinical Judaism

The rabbinical Judaism (in Hebrew: יהדותרבנית - Yahadout Rabbanit ) is resulting from the Judaism pharisee after the destruction of the second Temple in 70 EC.. It structured II {{E}} at the 6th century of the Christian era, dates as from which it was recognized as the standard of the Judaïsme.

Only the Judaism karaïte, which comprises few members today, will reject after this date the authority of rabbinical interpretations.

Beliefs

Exodus 24:12: L `Eternal called to Brace: go up towards me on the mountain, and remains there; I will give you stone tables, the Torah and Mitsva that J `wrote for their instruction

According to the rabbinical Judaism, this verse implies the existence of two Laws simultaneously given on the Sinai: the Torah, written Law (Torah shebikhtav, the Tanakh) and the Mitsva , oral Law (Torah shebeal EP).
Toutes two was revealed with those which present and were transmitted since orally until the time of the Second Temple of Jerusalem.
With the destruction of this one (70 of the common era), and especially after the death of large Wise of the time, Rabbi Akiva being most famous, it was decided to codify the oral Torah in the Mishna , on which the Tossefta was worked out, then the Guemara.

With the Ve and the 6th century of the common era the two versions of the Talmud were written: the Talmud of Jerusalem and the Talmud of Babylon, which synthesize the Mishna, the Guemara and their comments.

Lastly, in the centuries which followed, enormous a rabbinical Littérature was written around the Talmud: comments, questions and answers, interpretations, etc This gigantic unit constitutes the doctrinal base of the rabbinical Judaism.

For the rabbinical Judaism, the Torah written cannot be included/understood without the oral Torah. Thus, for example the Bible indicates: " you will cut down the animals, according to the rules that I have you prescrites". But these regulations are not mentioned in the Bible. They are it in the oral Torah.

The Halakha ( way of going , i.e. the religious law) of the rabbinical Judaism is thus based on the Torah written above all, but also on the oral law , and its developments.

History

The Judaïsme known as of the “First Temple” (Xe-Life centuries before Jesus-Christ) was centered on the Prêtre S of the Temple of Jerusalem. The Pentateuque, which is worked out at the end of this period, does not mention Rabbin S. One cannot however exclude their existence, so much the documentary sources of the time are rare.

Starting from the “Second Temple” (Life century before our era - first century afterwards), the existence of the Rabbin S is certain. The leading religious authorities remain however centered on the priests.

The Rabbin S are thus not priests. They are specialists in the religious law, including “oral law”, where a series of commands is found, them (mitzvot), not included in the Torah written (the Bible).

The Prêtre S disputed this oral Torah, regarding it only as one whole of popular traditions without normative value. These divergences however never were until the Schisme.

Under the monarchy of the Hasmonéens, these divergences took a form politico-nun. The priests and their partisans formed the party of the Sadducéens, while the Rabbin S and their partisans formed various groups, whose main thing (but not only) was called “Pharisien”.

In 70 of the Christian era, the Romans destroy the Temple of Jerusalem, eliminating in fact the priests and the Sadducéen S. the rabbis Pharisiens remained only in string, and their vision of the Judaïsme became the standard.

Certain currents of the Judaism however continued to reject the oral Torah as being an innovation. For them, only the written Torah, i.e. the Bible (and especially the Pentateuque, the first 5 books), have a normative value. These currents will re-appear at the 8th century within the Judaïsme karaïte, which will be a spectacular success before undergoing a long decline until our days.

See the detailed article Karaïsme.

Today

The rabbinical Judaism representing the largely majority current of the Judaism, it is often used like synonym of this one. Nevertheless, far from being homogeneous, it comprises 3 main tendencies, which interpret the nature of the revelation differently, the importance of the rabbinical decisions even what constitutes the rabbinical Judaism.

Reformed Judaism

In first half of the XIXe century in Germany a new current of thought appeared, the Judaïsme reformed. This one remains centered on the rabbis, but rather largely gives causes the oral Torah of it.

The Judaïsme reformed denies the divine origin of the oral Torah (Talmud), by admitting however that it could be inspired (but not codified, even less written) by God. The Halakha thus has a relative importance for this current, which encourages even its members to choose its own standards on the matter, since they respect some practical Jewish fundamental based on the Bible.

Beyond the will to adapt the Judaism to the modern world, it is also about a resurgence of a vision at least bimillenary, which insists more on the Bible than on the oral Torah.

Initially conceived for " to bring back the Jews to the synagog" in “modernizing” the religion, the Judaïsme reformed was a great success in the United States, but remains much more modest in the rest of the world. In France, he knows a less success than the orthodoxe Judaism, most of the Jewish being Séfarade and rather inclined population to preserve his traditions.

See the article detailed on the Judaism reformed.

“Preserving” Judaism or “massorti”

The massorti are reformed which estimated that some reformed went too far. The Mouvement Massorti wants to be a current median, recognizing a great moral authority with the Talmud, but alive according to rules less strict, less scrupulously respectful of the attitudes and former decisions, which gives to its rabbis more a big leeway as regards interpretation of Halakha.

Like reformed, the conservatives are primarily powerful in the USA.

See the article detailed on the Movement Massorti.

Orthodoxe Judaism

For the orthodoxe Judaism, the Halakha is a fundamental concept. Orthodoxe that is Jewish which admits duty acting according to Halakha (corpus of established rules by the oral tradition, since Talmud until today). Progressively of time, Halakha was codified in codes of laws making authority for the future generations. Example: Rambam (Maïmonide) wrote a code of Laws called Michné Thora, which was, with works of Roch (Rabbénou Acher) and Rif (Rabbi Itzhak Elfassi), one of the pillars of Choulkhan Aroukh. Choulkhan Aroukh, written by Rabbi Yosef Caro in XVIe century marks an important stake in the development of the halakha. Indeed, after Choulkhan Aroukh, it becomes difficult to go against decisions considered as the ultimate syntheses as regards halakha. Difficult does not want to say impossible: there exist many cases in which large Masters of the Jewish Tradition (Gaon de Vilna, Hafets Hayim) sliced all the same differently of Choulkhan Aroukh.

However, an orthodoxe Jew recognizes this transmission chain of the halakha in his entirety, contrary to the Liberals (who do not attach major importance to him) and of Massorati (who will be authorized to go up with a decision of Talmud called then into question by the chain of the Masters it oral tradition to justify a practice in conformity with manners of the contemporary time).

The orthodoxe Judaism thus stresses particularly adhesion at the Law, of the Torah in Halakha, and the respect of the established traditions.

The orthodoxe ones regard as nonvalid the decisions taken by the other currents, conversions with the Judaism which they carry out and authority of their rabbis.

If the respect due to Halakha is paramount for the orthodoxe ones, the orthodoxe Jewish landscape however is very coloured according to the importance given to the study, the Community life, the profane studies or the importance of the ground of Israel.

Hassidim, the Zionist-monks, the modern-orthodox in the United States or Haredim in Israel are all of the orthodoxe Jews.

See the articles detailed on the orthodoxe Judaism and the ultra-orthodoxe Judaism.

A revealing joke

At the time of a rabbinical conference, three rabbis, excellent friendly in spite of their membership of different currents, see arriving a well annoyed young man:

Excuse me, I see that you are rabbis, I am Juif, but I do not know the brakha (blessing) to make on the lobster ( rigorously not Cachère! , to see Religion and food)

the rabbi massorti: what is it that this question?

the orthodoxe rabbi: what is it that a lobster?

the reformed rabbi: what is it that a brakha?

Three currents of the current rabbinical Judaism: synthesis

The rabbinical Judaism was built historically around the Rabbin S, these specialists in the oral law. But it diversified at the XIXe century, and one saw appearing a relative contradiction in term: rabbis who do not follow the oral law strictly.

See too

History of the Jewish people
Judaism karaïte, a current opposed to the rabbinical Judaism.
Sadducéens, a current disappeared since 2.000 years rather opposed to the rabbinical Judaism.
Samaritans, a current strokes very about it, related with the Judaism, which accepts only the Bible.
Falashas, an Ethiopian Jews group which was unaware of the rules of the rabbinical Judaism until its immigration in Israel.
Pharisee, the original current which left the rabbinical Judaism.
orthodoxe Judaism, the current dominating of the rabbinical Judaism.
ultra-orthodoxe Judaism, the most strict wing of the orthodoxe Judaism.
Movement Massorti, a current resulting from the rabbinical Judaism, but which calls into question a too strict interpretation of the oral Torah.
Judaism reformed, a current resulting from the rabbinical Judaism, but which rather largely gives causes the oral Torah of it.
liberal Jewish Movement of France

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