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Ammi

Ammi

- Ammi (Bible) - my people, a name given by God to the people of Israel in the Hebrew Bible (Hos. 2:1, 23. Comp. 1:9; Ezek. 16:8; Rom. 9:25, 26; 1 Pet. 2:10).
- Ammi is also the name of a plant genus (family Apiaceae) that includes the large bullwort or bishop's weed (A. majus) and the toothpickweed or bisnaga (A. visnaga).
- Ammi is the name of a sage mentioned in the Mishnah and Talmud.
- Ammi (Urdu) means 'Mother' in the Urdu language, spoken in Pakistan.

Israelites

:Twelve Tribes redirects here. For the modern day messianic religious community, see The Twelve Tribes An Israelite is a member of the Twelve Tribes of Israel, descended from the twelve sons of the Biblical patriarch Jacob who was renamed Israel by God in the book of Genesis, 32:28. The Israelites were a group of Hebrews, as described in the Hebrew Bible. There are modern historical debates about the origins of the Hebrews/Israelites. The English word Israelite derives from ישראל ("Struggled with God", Standard Hebrew Yisraʾel, Tiberian Hebrew Yiśrāʾēl). Please read this entry in conjunction with the entries on:
- History of ancient Israel and Judah
- Children of Israel
- Lost Ten Tribes
- Bnai Israel

Israelites in Biblical times

According to the Hebrew Bible, the Israelites were the descendants of the children of Jacob, later known as Israel. His twelve male children were Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Dan, Gad, Naphtali, Asher, Joseph, and Benjamin. Twelve tribes of Israel are listed in the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible, Old Testament). Old Testament
- Tribe of Reuben
- ראובן, Standard Rəʾuven, Tiberian Rəʾûḇēn
- ראובני, Standard Ruʾuveni, Tiberian Ruʾûḇēnî
- Tribe of Simeon
- שמעון, Standard Šimʿon, Tiberian Šimʿôn
- שמעני, Standard Šimʿoni, Tiberian Šimʿônî
- Tribe of Levi (This is a special case; see further below)
- לוי, Standard Levi, Tiberian Lēwî
- Tribe of Judah
- יהודה, Standard Yəhuda, Tiberian Yəhûḏāh
- יהודי, Standard Yəhudi, Tiberian Yəhûḏî
- Tribe of Dan
- דן, Standard Dan, Tiberian Dān
- דני, Standard Dani, Tiberian Dānî
- Tribe of Naphtali
- נפתלי, Standard Naftali, Tiberian Nap̄tālî
- Tribe of Gad
- גד, Standard Gad, Tiberian Gāḏ
- גדי, Tiberian Standard Gadi, Gāḏî
- Tribe of Asher
- אשר, Standard Ašer, Tiberian ʾĀšēr
- אשרי, Standard Ašeri, Tiberian ʾĀšērî
- Tribe of Issachar
- יששכר, Standard Yissaḫar, Tiberian Yiśśâḵār
- יששכרי, Standard Yissaḫari, Tiberian Yiśśâḵārî
- Tribe of Zebulun
- זבולן, Standard Zəvúlun, Tiberian Zəḇûlun
- זבולני, Standard Zəvuloni, Tiberian Zəḇûlōnî
- House of Joseph
- יוסף, Standard Yosef, Tiberian Yôsēp̄
- יוספי, Standard Yosefi, Tiberian Yôsēp̄î
- containing the tribes of his sons:
- Tribe of Manasseh
- מנשה, Samaritan Manatch, Standard Mənašše, Tiberian Mənaššeh
- מנשי, Standard Mənašši, Tiberian Mənaššî
- Tribe of Ephraim
- אפרים, Samaritan Afrime, Standard Efráyim, Tiberian ʾEp̄ráyim / ʾEp̄rāyim
- אפרתי, Standard Efrati, Tiberian ʾEp̄rāṯî
- Tribe of Benjamin
- בנימין, Standard Binyamin, Tiberian Binyāmîn
- בן־הימיני Standard Ben haYmini, Tiberian Ben-haYmînî In Biblical Israel, the tribes were collectively Hebrews and organized into a northern and a southern kingdom. In 722 BC the Assyrians conquered the northern Kingdom of Israel and sent it into exile. Many Israelites from the northern Kingdom of Israel fled to the southern Kingdom of Judah, and likewise portions of Judah went with Israel. In 586 BC the nation of Judah was conquered by Babylon. About 50 years later, in 539 BC, the Persians (who had recently conquered Babylon) allowed Jews to move back to Jerusalem. By the end of this era, members of the tribes seem to have abandoned their individual identities. Today's Jews are mostly descended from the Hebrews of the Kingdom of Judah. Note that over time people joined the Jews via conversion, and married with the descendants of the Judaic Hebrews. The number of converts is unknown, but not so large as to swamp out the original Jewish people. It is thus fair to say that Jews today are descendants of those Hebrews who lived in the Southern Kingdom of Judah, along with some converts who joined Judaism. One should take note of the historical debate over the accuracy of the Bible's account of the origin of the Hebrews, discussed more fully in the entry on the History of ancient Israel and Judah. Secular Biblical theories are very controversial.

The Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Ten Lost Tribes

The Ten Lost Tribes are those from the northern Kingdom of Israel who were deported by the Assyrians in the 8th century BC to Khorason. In Jewish popular culture, the ten tribes disappeared from history, leaving only the tribes of Benjamin and Judah and the Levi who evolved into the modern day Jews. (See Bnai Israel) According to the Hebrew Bible, after the civil war in the time of Solomon's son Rehoboam, ten tribes split off to create the northern kingdom of Israel. These were the nine landed tribes Zebulun, Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, Dan, Manasseh, Ephraim, Reuben and Gad, and some of Levi which had no land allocation. The Bible makes no reference at this point to the tribe of Simeon, and we might conjecture the author had in mind that that tribe had already disappeared due to the curse of Jacob. Judah, the southern kingdom, had Jerusalem as its capital and was led by King Rehoboam. It was populated by the tribes of Judah and Benjamin (and also some of Levi). In 722 BC, the Assyrians (under Shalmaneser and then under Sargon II) conquered Israel (the northern kingdom), destroyed its capital Samaria and sent the Israelites into exile and captivity in Khorason, now part of eastern Iran and western Afghanistan.

Jews as Israelites

Whatever the historical origin of the Israelite tribes, each tribe had a distinct identity inherited from one's father as recently as 722 BC, when the Assyrians conquered the northern Kingdom of Israel and sent its populace into exile. Individual tribes intermarried extensively throughout history. Many Israelites from the northern kingdom fled to the Southern Kingdom of Judah. At this point in time the tribes living in the Kingdom of Judah melded into a single people from all the Israelite tribes. In 586 BC the nation of Judah was conquered by Babylon. About 50 years later, in 539 BC the Persians (who conquered Babylon) allowed Jews to move back to Jerusalem. By the end of this era, members of the tribes seem to have abandoned their individual identities. Today's Jews are mostly descended from the Israelites of Judah, and thus are often identified as Israelites. Note that over time many people married with the descendants of the Israelites. The number of converts is not trivial, but not so large as to swamp out the origin. It is thus fair to say that Jews today are descendants of those Israelites who lived in the Southern Kingdom of Judah, along with many converts who joined them. One should take note of the historical debate over the accuracy of the Bible's account of the origin of the Israelites, discussed more fully in the entry on the History of ancient Israel and Judah. Writing of Hungary in the 1920s and 1930s, Stephen Roth writes, "The word 'Israelite' denoted only religious affiliation and was free from the ethnic or national conotation attached to the word 'Jew', which [Jews in Hungary] therefore regarded almost as a derogatory term." [Roth, 1992, 132]

"Israelite" traditions outside mainstream Judaism

Some modern religions maintain that its followers are "Israelites" or "Jews" although the meaning of these claims differs widely. Some outside traditional practice of the Law of Moses and with no proven historical connection to the Israelites believe themselves to be the modern descendants and inheritors of the Israelites. Such groups include the Latter-day Saints, adherents of British Israelism and even some anti-semitic groups.

Samaritans

Samaritans are a very small ethnic group (not more than about 700 persons) and religious sect living in the State of Israel and the West Bank with many beliefs in common with Judaism. They accept the canonization of the five books of the Torah and the Book of Joshua (but no other books), and that the only prophet is Moses. They also preserve their own unique form of Hebrew, and regard themselves as the descendants of Aphrime (Ephraim) and Manatch (Manasseh). Many regard them as a sect of Judaism, but they regard themselves as distinct from Jews, and do not refer to themselves as Jews.

Messianic Judaism

Messianic Judaism is a sect which accepts the core doctrines of Christianity, and stresses adherence to some precepts of the Torah, a feature of Judaism. It is comprised of mostly gentile adherents, although some ethnic Jews have joined the movement. Many of its non-Jewish converts believe they have been "grafted in" to the tribes of Israel, thus, that they are "Jewish".

Karaite Judaism

Karaite Judaism, relies on the Tanakh as the sole scripture and rejects the Oral Law (the Mishnah and the Talmuds). It does not require its adherents to wear Tefillin in any form, wear Tzitzit, etc. There are approximately 50,000 adherents of Karaite Judaism, most of whom reside in Israel. However, exact numbers are not known, as most Karaites have not participated in any religious censuses. Like the Samaritans, the division goes back many hundreds of years.

Latter-day Saints

The Latter Day Saint movement (Mormons) consists of a group of religious denominations derived from that started by Joseph Smith, Jr., of which the largest by far is the LDS Church of nearly 12 million members. Almost half of all Latter-day Saints — those in the LDS Church — live in the United States, and the rest are scattered in countries on every continent all over the world. They believe that through baptism and receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, they become "regathered" Israelites, either as recovered from the scattered seed of Israel, or as Gentiles adopted and grafted into Israel, and thus becoming part of the chosen people of God. LDS Israelite belief is not strictly ethnic, and as such, Latter-day Saints do not consider themselves to be Jews, but rather as "Israelites" of many different cultures occasionally including Jews. (For more details, see Latter-day Saint theology and Judaism and this [http://scriptures.lds.org/gsi/israel guide to LDS scriptural references on Israel].) "Gentile" is sometimes used informally by Mormons to refer to non-Mormons. As Isaac Asimov, himself a Jew, wrote in his book Laughing Space: :Janet [Asimov's wife] and I have a special interest in stories about Mormons. In Janet's case there's a loose genealogical connection. In my case, there's an interest in any group that considers me a Gentile.

Rastafarians

Rastafarians believe that the black races are the true Children of Israel, or Israelites, as they like to call themselves. Using the Bible they also conclude that Haile Selassie of Ethiopia is the returned messiah who will lead the world's peoples of African descent into a promised land of full emancipation and divine justice. One Rasta sect, called the Twelve Tribes of Israel, imposes an astrological system whereby Aries is Reuben, Aquarius is Joseph, etc. With his famous early reggae song The Israelites Desmond Dekker immortalised the Rastafarian concept themselves as the Children of Israel.

Anti-Semitic Groups

There are a number of many anti-semitic groups which claim to be the only "true Israelites", a claim that Jews regard as ironic since these groups are openly hostile to Judaism. Such anti-Semitic groups generally do not recognize the validity of Jews or any other group that claims Israelite descent. See British-Israel-World Federation. See also: History of ancient Israel and Judah, Bible and The Bible and history.

External links

- The Israelite census, of the book of numbers, in isolation, at wikisource
- [http://www.orange-street-church.org/text/british-israel%20fact%20or%20fiction.htm Alan Campbell promotes British Israelism]
- [http://www.hebroots.org/hebrootsarchive/0208/0208h.html The Return of the Lost Tribes: What Does the Bible Say? By Nachmanides (Moshe ben Nachman. 1194-1270)]
- [http://www.wzo.org.il/en/resources/view.asp?id=174 The Ten Lost Tribes of Israel: Looking for The Remnants]
- [http://ohr.edu/ask_db/ask_main.php/329/Q1/ Afghanistan: Home to Lost Tribes of Israel?]
- [http://www.aish.com/literacy/jewishhistory/Video_The_10_Lost_Tribes.asp What happened to the 10 lost tribes? Find out in this video feature direct from Jerusalem]
- [http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/israel/losttribes.html Covering Several Claims of Lost Tribes of Israel]
- [http://www.preparing.org/resources/doctrine/legacy/overview.htm The Hidden Legacy: The True Identity and Destiny of Messianic Hebrew Israelites]. An article claiming that the African Americans are the true Israelites.

References

- Roth, Stephen, "Memories of Hungary", in Riff, Michael, The Face of Survival: Jewish Life in Eastern Europe Past and Present. Valentine Mithcell, London, 1992, 125-141, ISBN 0853032203.
- Category:Ancient peoples Category:Jewish history ja:イスラエルの失われた10部族

Hebrew Bible

] :This article discusses usage of the term "Hebrew Bible". For the article on the Hebrew Bible itself, see Tanakh. Hebrew Bible refers to the common portions of the Jewish and Christian canons. Its use is favored by most academic Biblical scholars as a neutral term that is preferred to both Tanakh (the term used by Judaism) and Old Testament (the term historically used by Christianity) when discussing the text in academic writing. (For instance, see section 4.3 of The SBL Handbook of Style from the Society of Biblical Literature.) Hebrew here may refer to either the Hebrew language or to the Jews (the Hebrew people)—who historically used the Hebrew language as a spoken language, and have continuously used the language in prayer and study—or both. Because it refers to the common portions of the Jewish and Christian biblical canons, it does not encompass the deuterocanonical books, largely from the Koine Greek Septuagint translation, included in the Old Testament by the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches; thus it can be argued that the term Hebrew Bible only corresponds fully to the Old Testament in use by the Protestant denominations that follow Jerome's Veritas Hebraica doctrine.
Further reading

- Anderson, Bernhard. Understanding the Old Testament. (ISBN 0139483993)
See also

- Books of the Bible for the differences between these two versions of the text, or the much more detailed Biblical canon.
- Greek Scriptures
- Masoretic Text
- Old Testament for the history of the Hebrew Bible and its interpretation within the Christian tradition.
- Tanakh for the history of the Hebrew Bible and its interpretation within the Jewish tradition.
- Category:Bible

Plant

- Land plants (embryophytes)
- Non-vascular plants (bryophytes)
- Marchantiophyta - liverworts
- Anthocerotophyta - hornworts
- Bryophyta - mosses
- Vascular plants (tracheophytes)
- Lycopodiophyta - clubmosses
- Equisetophyta - horsetails
- Pteridophyta - "true" ferns
- Psilotophyta - whisk ferns
- Ophioglossophyta - adderstongues
- Seed plants (spermatophytes)
- †Pteridospermatophyta - seed ferns
- Pinophyta - conifers
- Cycadophyta - cycads
- Ginkgophyta - ginkgo
- Gnetophyta - gnetae
- Magnoliophyta - flowering plants Magnoliophyta Plants are a major group of living things (about 300,000 species), including familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, and ferns. Aristotle divided all living things between plants, which generally do not move or have sensory organs, and animals. In Linnaeus' system, these became the Kingdoms Vegetabilia (later Plantae) and Animalia. Since then, it has become clear that the Plantae as originally defined included several unrelated groups, and the fungi and several groups of algae were removed to new kingdoms. However, these are still often considered plants in many contexts. Indeed, any attempt to match "plant" with a single taxon is doomed to fail, because plant is a vaguely defined concept unrelated to the presumed phylogenic concepts on which modern taxonomy is based.

Embryophytes

:See main article at Embryophytes Most familiar are the multicellular land plants, called embryophytes. They include the vascular plants, plants with full systems of leaves, stems, and roots. They also include a few of their close relatives, often called bryophytes, of which mosses and liverworts are the most common. All of these plants have eukaryotic cells with cell walls composed of cellulose, and most obtain their energy through photosynthesis, using light and carbon dioxide to synthesize food. About three hundred plant species do not photosynthesize but are parasites on other species of photosynthetic plants. Plants are distinguished from green algae, from which they evolved, by having specialized reproductive organs protected by non-reproductive tissues. Bryophytes first appeared during the early Palaeozoic. They can only survive where moisture is available for significant periods, although some species are desiccation tolerant. Most species of bryophyte remain small throughout their life-cycle. This involves an alternation between two generations: a haploid stage, called the gametophyte, and a diploid stage, called the sporophyte. The sporophyte is short-lived and remains dependent on its parent gametophyte. Vascular plants first appeared during the Silurian period, and by the Devonian had diversified and spread into many different land environments. They have a number of adaptations that allowed them to overcome the limitations of the bryophytes. These include a cuticle resistant to desiccation, and vascular tissues which transport water throughout the organism. In most the sporophyte acts as a separate individual, while the gametophyte remains small. Devonians (Pteridophyta) more closely allied to seed plants than they are to clubmosses (Lycopodiophyta)]] The first primitive seed plants, Pteridosperms (seed ferns) and Cordaites, both groups now extinct, appeared in the late Devonian and diversified through the Carboniferous, with further evolution through the Permian and Triassic periods. In these the gametophyte stage is completely reduced, and the sporophyte begins life inside an enclosure called a seed, which develops while on the parent plant, and with fertilisation by means of pollen grains. Whereas other vascular plants, such as ferns, reproduce by means of spores and so need moisture to develop, some seed plants can survive and reproduce in extremely arid conditions. Early seed plants are referred to as gymnosperms (naked seeds), as the seed embryo is not enclosed in a protective structure at pollination, with the pollen landing directly on the embryo. Four surviving groups remain widespread now, particularly the conifers, which are dominant trees in several biomes. The angiosperms, comprising the flowering plants, were the last major group of plants to appear, emerging from within the gymnosperms during the Jurassic and diversifying rapidly during the Cretaceous. These differ in that the seed embryo is enclosed, so the pollen has to grow a tube to penetrate the protective seed coat; they are the predominant group of flora in most biomes today.

Algae and Fungi

The algae comprise several different groups of organisms that produce energy through photosynthesis. However, they are not classified within the kingdom plantae but in the kingdom protista instead. The most conspicuous are the seaweeds, multicellular algae that often closely resemble terrestrial plants, but as stated above are not plants, found among the green, red, and brown algae. These and other algal groups also include various single-celled creatures and forms that are simple collections of cells, without differentiated tissues. Many can move about, and some have even lost their ability to photosynthesize; when first discovered, these were considered as both plants and animals. Now they are considered neither, but protists. The embryophytes developed from green algae; the two are collectively referred to as the green plants or Viridiplantae. The kingdom Plantae is now usually taken to mean this monophyletic group, as shown above. With a few exceptions among the green algae, all such forms have cell walls containing cellulose and chloroplasts containing chlorophylls a and b, and store food in the form of starch. They undergo closed mitosis without centrioles, and typically have mitochondria with flat cristae. The chloroplasts of green plants are surrounded by two membranes, suggesting they originated directly from endosymbiotic cyanobacteria. The same is true of the red algae, and the two groups are generally believed to have a common origin. In contrast, most other algae have chloroplasts with three or four membranes. They are not in general close relatives of the green plants, acquiring chloroplasts separately from ingested or symbiotic green and red algae. Unlike embryophytes and algae, fungi are not photosynthetic, but are saprophytes: they obtain their food by breaking down and absorbing surrounding materials. Most fungi are formed by microscopic tubes called hyphae, which may or may not be divided into cells but contain eukaryotic nuclei. Fruiting bodies, of which mushrooms are the most familiar, are actually only the reproductive structures of fungi. They are not related to any of the photosynthetic groups, but are close relatives of animals. Therefore, fungus has a kingdom of its own.

Importance

The photosynthesis and carbon fixation conducted by land plants and algae are the ultimate source of energy and organic material in nearly all habitats. These processes also radically changed the composition of the Earth's atmosphere, which as a result contains a large proportion of oxygen. Animals and most other organisms are aerobic, relying on oxygen; those that do not are confined to relatively few, anaerobic environments. Much of human nutrition depends on cereals. Other plants that are eaten include fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices. Some vascular plants, referred to as trees and shrubs, produce woody stems and are an important source of building material. A number of plants are used decoratively, including a variety of flowers.

Growth

It is a common misconception that most of the solid material in a plant is taken from the soil, when in fact almost all of it is actually taken from the air. Through a process known as photosynthesis, plants use the energy in sunlight to convert carbon dioxide from the air into simple sugars. These sugars are then used as building blocks and form the main structural component of the plant. Plants rely on soil primarily for water (in quantitative terms), but also obtain nitrogen, phosphorus and other crucial nutrients. phosphorus Simple plants like algae may have short life spans as individuals, but their populations are commonly seasonal. Other plants may be organized according to their seasonal growth pattern:
- Annual: live and reproduce within one growing season.
- Biennial: live for two growing seasons; usually reproduce in second year.
- Perennial: live for many growing seasons; continue to reproduce once mature. Among the vascular plants, perennials include both evergreens that keep their leaves the entire year, and deciduous plants which lose their leaves for some part. In temperate and boreal climates, they generally lose their leaves during the winter; many tropical plants lose their leaves during the dry season. The growth rate of plants is extremely variable. Some mosses grow less than 0.001 mm/h, while most trees grow 0.025-0.250 mm/h. Some climbing species, such as kudzu, which do not need to produce thick supportive tissue, may grow up to 12.5 mm/h.

Fossils

Plant fossils include roots, wood, leaves, seeds, fruit, pollen, spores, phytoliths, and amber (the fossilized resin produced by some plants). Fossil land plants are recorded in terrestrial, lacustrine, fluvial and nearshore marine sediments. Pollen, spores and algae (dinoflagellates and acritarchs) are used for dating sedimentary rock sequences. The remains of fossil plants are not as common as fossil animals, although plant fossils are locally abundant in many regions worldwide. Early fossils of these ancient plants show the individual cells within the plant tissue. The Devonian period also saw the evolution of what many believe to be the first modern tree, Archaeopteris. This fern-like tree combined a woody trunk with the fronds of a fern, but produced no seeds. Archaeopteris The Coal Measures are a major source of Palaeozoic plant fossils, with many groups of plants in existence at this time. The spoil heaps of coal mines are the best places to collect; coal itself is the remains of fossilised plants, though structural detail of the plant fossils is rarely visible in coal. In the Fossil Forest at Victoria Park in Glasgow, Scotland, the stumps of Lepidodendron trees are found in their original growth positions. The fossilized remains of conifer and angiosperm roots, stems and branches may be locally abundant in lake and inshore sedimentary rocks from the Mesozoic and Caenozoic eras. Sequoia and its allies, magnolia, oak, and palms are often found. Petrified wood is common in some parts of the world, and is most frequently found in arid or desert areas were it is more readily exposed by erosion. Petrified wood is often heavily silicified (the organic material replaced by silicon dioxide), and the impregnated tissue is often preserved in fine detail. Such specimens may be cut and polished using lapidary equipment. Fossil forests of petrified wood have been found in all continents. Fossils of seed ferns such as Glossopteris are widely distributed throughout several continents of the southern hemisphere, a fact that gave support to Alfred Wegener's early ideas regarding Continental drift theory.

Distribution

References and further reading

- Kenrick, Paul & Crane, Peter R. (1997). The Origin and Early Diversification of Land Plants: A Cladistic Study. Washington, D. C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. ISBN 1-56098-730-8.
- Raven, Peter H., Evert, Ray F., & Eichhorn, Susan E. (2005). Biology of Plants (7th ed.). New York: W. H. Freeman and Company. ISBN 0-7167-1007-2.
- Taylor, Thomas N. & Taylor, Edith L. (1993). The Biology and Evolution of Fossil Plants. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. ISBN 0-13-651589-4.

External links

- [http://tolweb.org/tree?group=Green_plants&contgroup=Eukaryotes Tree of Life]
- Chaw, S.-M. et al. [http://mbe.library.arizona.edu/data/1997/1401/7chaw.pdf Molecular Phylogeny of Extant Gymnosperms and Seed Plant Evolution: Analysis of Nuclear 18s rRNA Sequences (pdf file)] Molec. Biol. Evol. 14 (1): 56-68. 1997.
- [http://florabase.calm.wa.gov.au/phylogeny/cronq88.html Interactive Cronquist classification]

Botanical and vegetation databases

- [http://www.efloras.org/index.aspx e-Floras (Flora of China, Flora of North America and others)]
- [http://plants.usda.gov/ United States of America]
- [http://rbg-web2.rbge.org.uk/FE/fe.html Flora Europaea]
- [http://www.anbg.gov.au/cpbr/databases/ Australia]
- [http://davesgarden.com/pdb/ 'Dave's Garden' horticultural plant database]
- [http://www.chilebosque.cl Chilean plants at Chilebosque] Category:Plants Category:Plant_taxonomy zh-min-nan:Si̍t-bu̍t ko:식물 ms:Tumbuhan ja:植物 simple:Plant th:พืช

Mishnah

The Mishnah (Hebrew משנה, "repetition") is a major source of rabbinic Judaism's religious texts. It is the first recording of the oral law of the Jewish people, as championed by the Pharisees and is considered the first work of Rabbinic Judaism. The Mishnah was redacted around the year 200 CE by Judah haNasi ("Judah the Prince"). He is usually simply referred to as Rebbi ("Rabbi"). Nearly all of the Mishnah is written in Mishnaic Hebrew, except for a few verses, which are written in Aramaic. Rabbinic commentaries on the Mishnah over the next three centuries were recorded mostly in Aramaic and were redacted as the Gemara. The Mishnah and the Gemara together form the Talmud. The Mishnah is noteworthy in Rabbinic literature for its depiction of a religious universe in which the Temple in Jerusalem, destroyed a century earlier, still retains a central place. Laws concerning the Temple service constitute one of the Mishnah's six divisions. Also noteworthy is the Mishnah's lack of citation of a scriptural basis for its laws. It is said that the Oral Law was given simultaneously with the Written Law (Torah), and so does not derive directly from it. Connecting the Mishnaic law with the Torah law was a major enterprise of the later Midrash and Talmuds. The Rabbinic sages whose views are recorded in the Mishnah are called Tannaim (תנאים), the plural of Tanna (תנא); Tanna is an Aramaic term for the Hebrew word shana, which also is the root-word of Mishnah. The verb shano (שנה) literally means 'to repeat [what one was taught]' and is used to mean 'to learn'. The word mishna can also indicate a single paragraph, i.e., the smallest unit of structure in the Mishnah. The plural is mishnayot. Thus, a number of mishnayot make up a perek (chapter), a number of perakim (chapters) make up a masechet (tractate), a number of masechtot (tractates) make up a seder (order) and the Shas (acronym for Shisha Sedarim - the six orders) make up the Mishnah. (The term Shas is also used to refer to a complete Talmud, which follows the structure of the Mishnah.)

Relation between the Hebrew Bible and the Mishnah

Rabbinical Judaism holds that the Five Books of Moses called the (Written) Torah have always been transmitted in parallel with an oral tradition. Two guides to laws were given to Moses at Mount Sinai. The first, known as Torah she-bi-khtav, or the "Written Law" is composed of only the Five Books of Moses -- Genesis through Deuteronomy. These five books are the Hebrew Bible. When the writings of the Prophets and the wisdom and creative literature are added to the Torah [the Five Books of Moses] the expanded volume is called the Tanakh. It is this "complete" version of Hebrew literature that Christianity knows as "The Old Testament." The Tanakh comprises the Hebrew Bible as we know it today. The second law given to Moses at Sinai, known as Torah she-be'al-peh, is the exposition of the Written Law as relayed by the scholarly and other religious leaders of each generation. This Oral Law is, in some sense, the more authoritative of the two. The traditions of the Oral Law are considered as the basis for the interpretation, and often for the reading, of the Written Law. By 200 CE, the time of Rabbi Judah Ha-Nasi, much of the Oral Law was edited together into the Mishnah; see below. Over the next four centuries this material underwent analysis and debate, known as Gemara ("completion"), in both of the world's major Jewish communities (in the land of Israel and Babylon). These eventually came to be edited together into compilations known as the Talmud. Jewish law and custom thus is not based on a literal reading of the Torah, or the rest of the Tanakh, but on the combined oral and written traditions.

The writing of the Mishnah

According to Jewish Law, the Written Law must be transmitted from a written source, and the Oral Law orally. Therefore, it was forbidden to write down the Oral Law in any form, other than for notes. The Babylonian Talmud (Hagiga 14a) states that there were either six-hundred or seven-hundred orders of the Mishnah. Hillel the Elder organized them into six orders to make it easier to remember. Over time, different traditions of the Oral Law came into being, debating what the laws or their rulings were. Further, (according to the Mavoh Hatalmud) many rulings were given about specific things that could have been taken out of context or where a ruling was revisited but the second ruling was not as popularly known. To correct this, Rabbi took up the redaction of the Mishnah. If something was already there with no conflict, he used it without changes in language, he reordered and ruled on where there was conflict, and clarifed where context was not given. The idea was not do this at his own discretion, but rather to examine the tradition as far back as he could, and only supplement as required. As he went through the tractates, the Mishnah was set forth, but throughout his life some parts were updated as new information came to light. Because of the proliferation of earlier versions, it was deemed too hard to retract anything already released, as such, a second version of certain laws were released. The Talmud refers to these differing version as Mishnah Rishona ("First Mishnah") and Mishna Acharona ("Last Mishnah"). With Rabbi's death, no more redactions were done to the body of the Mishnah, though it was still not written down. It was finally written down some centuries later when it was deemed too difficult to remember, but the exact date is a matter of debate.Together the Gemara and Mishnah form the Talmud.

The structure of the Mishnah

The Mishnah consists of six orders (sedarim). This explains the traditional name for the Talmud as Shas, which is an abbreviation of shishah sedarim, "six orders". Each of the six orders contains between 7 and 12 tractates, called masechtot. Each masechet is divided into verses called mishnayot (singular - mishna). #First Order: Zeraim ("Seeds"). 11 tractates. It deals with agricultural laws and prayers. #Second Order: Moed ("Festival"). 12 tractates. This pertains to the laws of the Sabbath and the Festivals. #Third Order: Nashim ("Women"). 7 tractates. Concerns marriage and divorce. #Fourth Order: Nezikin ("Damages"). 10 tractates. Deals with civil and criminal law. #Fifth Order: Kodshim ("Holy things"). 11 tractates. This involves sacrificial rites, the Temple, and the dietary laws. #Sixth order: Tohorot ("Purities"). 12 tractates. This pertains to the laws of purity and impurity, including the impurity of the dead, the laws of ritual purity for the priests (cohanim), the laws of "family purity" (the menstrual laws) and others. Most of the Mishnah is related stam, i.e. without any name attributed to it. This usually indicates that many sages taught so, and the halakhic ruling usually follows that view. Sometimes, however, it is the opinion of a single sage whom Rabbi Judah haNasi favored and sought to establish the ruling accordingly.

The generations of the Mishnah sages

#First Generation: Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai's generation (circa 40-80 CE). #Second Generation: Rabban Gamliel of Yavneh, Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua's generation, the teachers of Rabbi Akiva. #Third Generation: The generation of Rabbi Akiva and his colleagues. #Fourth Generation: The generation of Rabbi Meir, Rabbi Yehuda and their colleagues. #Fifth Generation: Rabbi Judah haNasi's generation. #Sixth Generation: The interim generation between the Mishnah and the Talmud: Rabbis Shimon ben Judah HaNasi and Yehoshua ben Levi, etc.

Oral traditions and pronunciation

The Mishnah was and still is traditionally studied through recitation (out loud). Many medieval manuscripts of the Mishnah are vowelized, and some of these contain partial Tiberian cantillation. Jewish communities around the world preserved local melodies for chanting the Mishnah, and distinctive ways of pronouncing its words. Most vowelized editions of the Mishnah today reflect standard Ashkenazic vowelization, and often contain mistakes. The Albeck edition of the Mishnah was vowelized by Hannokh Yellin, who made careful eclectic use of both medieval manuscripts and current oral traditions of pronunciation from Jewish communities all over the world. The Albeck edition includes an entire volume by Yellin detailing his eclectic method. Two institutes at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem have collected major oral archives which hold (among other things) extensive recordings of Jews chanting the Mishnah using a variety of melodies and many different kinds of pronunciation. These institutes are the Jewish Oral Traditions Research Center and the National Voice Archives (the Phonoteca at the Jewish National and University Library). See below for external links.

Commentaries

- In 1168, Maimonides was probably the first to author a comprehensive commentary on the Mishnah. It was written in Arabic and was one of the first commentaries of its kind. In it, "Rambam" condenses the associated Talmudical debates, and offers his conclusions in a number of undecided issues. Of particular significance are the various introductory sections - as well as the introduction to the work itself [http://www.daat.ac.il/daat/mahshevt/hakdama/tohen-m-2.htm] - these are widely quoted in other works on the Mishna, and on the Oral law in general. Perhaps the most famous is his introduction to the tenth chapter of tractate Sanhedrin [http://www.daat.ac.il/daat/mahshevt/rambam/hakdamat-2.htm] where he enumerates the thirteen fundamental beliefs of Judaism.
- Rabbi Samson of Sens (France) was, apart from Maimonides, one of the few rabbis of the early medieval era to compose a Mishnah commentary. It is printed in many editions of the Mishnah.
- Rabbi Obadiah ben Abraham of Bertinoro (15th century) wrote one of the most popular Mishnah commentaries. He draws on Maimonides' work but also offers Talmudical material (in effect a summary of the Talmudic discussion). In addition to its role as a commentary on the Mishna, this work is often referenced by students of Talmud as a review-text, and is often referred to as "the Bartanura".
- After the Maharal of Prague had initiated organised Mishnah study (Chevrath ha-Mishnayoth), his pupil Yomtov Lipman Heller wrote a commentary which resembles that of the Tosafists on the Talmud, and is therefore called Tosafoth Yom Tov. He offers brief insights into the Mishnah and Bertinoro. In many compact Mishnah printings, a condensed version of his commentary, titled Ikar Tosafoth Yom Tov, is featured.
- Other Acharonim who have written Mishnah commentaries:
- Rabbi Solomon Luria (the Maharshal)
- The Vilna Gaon (Shenoth Eliyahu)
- Rabbi Akiva Eiger
- A prominent commentary from the 19th century is Tifereth Yisrael by Rabbi Yisrael Lipschutz. It is subdivided into two parts, one more general and the other more analytical, titled Yachin and Boaz respectively (after two large pillars in the Temple in Jerusalem). Lipschutz has not been completely without controversy, partially because he refers on occasion to scientific findings.
- The commentary by Rabbi Pinhas Kehati, which is written in Modern Israeli Hebrew and based on classical and contemporary works, has become popular in the late Twentieth Century. The commentary is designed to make the Mishnah widely accessible to a wide spectrum of learners of all ages and all levels of experience in Torah study. It is popularly referred to as "The Kehati". Each tractate is introduced with an overview of its contents, including historical and legal background material, and each mishnah is prefaced by a thematic introduction.

Historical study

Both the Mishnah and Talmud contain little serious biographical studies of the people discussed therein, and the same tractate will conflate the points of view of many different people. Yet, sketchy biographies of the Mishaic sages can often be constructed with historical detail from Talmudic and Midrashic sources. Many modern historical scholars have focused on the timing and the formation the Mishnah. A vital question is whether it is comprised of sources which date from its editor's lifetime, and to what extent is it comprised of earlier, or later sources. Are Mishnaic disputes distinguishable along theological or communal lines, and in what ways do different sections derive from different schools of thought within early Judaism? Can these early sources be identified, and if so, how? In response to these questions, modern scholars have adopted a number of different approaches.
- Traditionally, rabbinic Judaism has viewed the statements in the Mishnah and Talmud as being historically accurate, and written under a subtle form of divine inspiration, sometimes called the Ruach haKodesh, "The Holy Spirit". In this view, the statements described therein are entirely reliable, and accepted as much. Nevertheless, even the Talmud points out that the Mishnah is on occasions ambiguous or deficient. In general, textual criticism of the Mishnah from Orthodox point-of-view has ceased after the completion of the Talmud, and modern attempts at textual criticism are mainly considered heretical. Most Orthodox Jews view the biographical statements in the Mishnah, Talmud and in some cases, even the early midrash collections, as being entirely historically reliable.
- Some scholars hold that there has been extensive editorial reshaping of the stories and statements within the Mishnah (and later, in the Talmud.) Lacking outside confirming texts, they hold that we cannot confirm the origin or date of most statements and laws, and that we can say little for certain about their authorship. In this view, the questions above are impossible to answer. See, for example, the works of Louis Jacobs, Baruch M. Bokser, Shaye J.D. Cohen, Steven D. Fraade.
- Some scholars hold that the Mishnah and Talmud have been extensively shaped by later editorial redaction, but that it contains sources which we can identify and describe with some level of reliability. In this view, sources can be identified to some extent because each era of history and each distinct geographical region has its own unique feature, which one can trace and analyze. Thus, the questions above may be analyzed. See, for example, the works of Goodblatt, Lee Levine, David C. Kraemer and Robert Goldenberg.
- Some scholars hold that many or most of the statements and events described in the Mishnah and Talmud usually occurred more or less as described, and that they can be used as serious sources of historical study. In this view, historians do their best to tease out later editorial additions (itself a very difficult task) and skeptically view accounts of miracles, leaving behind a reliable historical text. See, for example, the works of Saul Lieberman, David Weiss Halivni, Avraham Goldberg and Dov Zlotnick.

References

Translations

- Herbert Danby. The Mishna. Oxford, 1933 (ISBN 019815402X).
- Jacob Neusner. The Mishnah: A New Translation. New Haven, reprint 1991 (ISBN 0300050224).
- Various editors. The Mishnah, a new translation with commentary Yad Avraham. New York: Mesorah publishers, since 1980s.

Historical study

- Shalom Carmy (Ed.) Modern Scholarship in the Study of Torah: Contributions and Limitations Jason Aronson, Inc.
- Shaye J.D. Cohen, Patriarchs and Scholarchs, Proceedings of the American Academy for Jewish Research 48 (1981), pp. 57-87
- Steven D. Fraade, "The Early Rabbinic Sage," in The Sage in Israel and the Ancient Near East, ed. John G. Gammie and Leo G. Perdue (Winona Lake, Indiana: Eisenbrauns, 1990), pp. 417-23
- Robert Goldenberg The Sabbath-Law of Rabbi Meir (Missoula, Montana: Scholars Press, 1978)
- Jacob Neusner Making the Classics in Judaism (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1989), pp. 1-13 and 19-44
- Jacob Neusner Judaism: The Evidence of the Mishna (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1981), pp. 14-22.
- Gary Porton, The Traditions of Rabbi Ishmael (Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1982), vol. 4, pp. 212-25
- Dov Zlotnick, The Iron Pillar: Mishnah (Jerusalem: Bialik Institute, 1988), pp. 8-9

External links

Wikimedia projects

Wikisource's Open Mishnah Project is developing Mishnah texts, commentaries, and translations. The project is currently available in three languages: Hebrew (the largest collection), English, and French.

Other electronic texts

- [http://www.mechon-mamre.org/ Mechon Mamre] - Hebrew text according to Maimonides' version.
- [http://chaver.com/Mishnah/TheMishnah.htm The Structured Mishnah] - Hebrew text according to the Albeck edition (without vowels) with special formatting.

The daily Mishnah (a study-cycle)

- [http://www.jafi.org.il/education/torani/kehati/ The Daily Mishnah] - uses the Kehati commentary (in English translation).
- [http://www.shemayisrael.com/mishna/ Mishna Yomis] - Daily Mishnah audio (English).
- [http://www.uscj.org/New!_Mishnah_Yomit740.html Mishnah Yomit] - One mishnah per day. (Note: this study-cycle follows a different schedule than the regular one; contains extensive archives in English).
- [http://www.mishnaofthedaf.org/mishna.php Mishnah of the Daf] - a new Mishnah study cycle that parallels the progress of the Daf Yomi.

Audio lectures

- [http://613.org/mishnah.html Rabbi Meir Pogrow] - advanced lectures (in English); free MP3 download.

Manuscripts

- [http://jnul.huji.ac.il/dl/talmud/indexeng.htm Kaufmann manuscript] of the Mishnah - View images of the entire vowelized manuscript. Oral Traditions (chanting and pronunciation of the Mishnah):
- [http://www.hum.huji.ac.il/masorot/ Jewish Oral Traditions Research Center] (Hebrew University)
- [http://jnul.huji.ac.il/eng/music.html The National Sound Archives] at the Hebrew University (catalogue not currently online).
- ja:ミシュナー

Talmud

The Talmud (תלמוד) is a record of rabbinic discussions on Jewish law, Jewish ethics, customs, legends and stories, which Jewish tradition considers authoritative. It is a fundamental source of legislation, customs, case histories and moral exhortations. The Talmud has two components, the Mishnah which is the first written compilation of Judaism's Oral Law, and the Gemara, a discussion of the Mishnah (though the terms Talmud and Gemara are generally used interchangeably). It expands on the earlier writings in the Torah in general and in the Mishnah in particular, and is the basis for all later codes of Jewish law, and much of Rabbinic literature. The Talmud is also traditionally referred to as Shas (a Hebrew abbreviation of shishah sedarim, the "six orders" of the Mishnah).

Structure and function

Traditional Judaism has always held that the books of the Tanakh were transmitted in parallel with a living, oral tradition. Thus, the Torah - the "Law" or "Instruction" - is the written law, while the oral law - the Talmud - deals with its application and elaborates on its meaning. The Talmud, ultimately, constitutes the authoritative redaction of this tradition. It is thus the major influence on Jewish belief and thought. Furthermore, although not a formal legal code, it is the basis for all later codes of Jewish law, and thus continues to exert a major influence on Halakha and Jewish religious practice. (See Maimonides introduction to the Mishneh Torah [http://www.mechon-mamre.org/e/e0000.htm].) The Talmud is arranged content-wise by Order and by Tractate; while conceptually, it is divided into two parts: Mishna and Gemara.

Mishna and Gemara

The Jewish Oral law was recorded by Rabbi Judah haNasi and redacted as the Mishnah (משנה) in 200 CE. The oral traditions were committed to writing to preserve them, as it became apparent that the Palestine Jewish community, and its learning, was threatened. The rabbis of the Mishnah are known as Tannaim (sing. Tanna תנא); teachings in the Mishnah are generally reported in the name of a Tanna. Over the next three centuries the Mishna underwent analysis and debate in Israel and Babylon (the world's major Jewish communities). This analysis is known as Gemara (גמרא). The rabbis of the Gemara are referred to as Amoraim (sing. Amora אמורא). The analysis of the Amoraim is generally focused on clarifying the positions, words and views of the Tannaim. The Mishnah and the Gemara together comprise the Talmud. The Talmud is thus the combination of a core text, the Mishnah, or “redaction” (from the verb shanah שנה, to repeat, revise) and subsequent analysis and commentary, the gemara, or “completion” (from gamar גמר : Hebrew to complete; Aramaic to study)

Orders and tractates

The Mishna consists of six orders (sedarim, singular seder סדר). Each of the six orders contains between 7 and 12 tractates, called masechtot (singular masechet מסכת). Each masechet is divided into smaller units called mishnayot (singular mishnah). In the Talmud, not every tractate in the Mishnah has Gemara. Furthermore, the order of the tractates in the Talmud differs in some cases from that in the Mishnah; see the discussion on each Seder.
- First Order: Zeraim ("Seeds"). 11 tractates. It deals with prayer and blessings, tithes, and agricultural laws.
- Second Order: Moed ("Festival Days"). 12 tractates. This pertains to the laws of the Sabbath and the Festivals.
- Third Order: Nashim ("Women"). 7 tractates. Concerns marriage and divorce, some forms of oaths and the laws of the nazirite.
- Fourth Order: Nezikin ("Damages"). 10 tractates. Deals with civil and criminal law, the functioning of the courts and oaths.
- Fifth Order: Kodshim ("Holy things"). 11 tractates. This involves sacrificial rites, the Temple, and the dietary laws.
- Sixth Order: Tohorot ("Purity"). 12 tractates. This pertains to the laws of ritual purity.

Form and style

The Mishnah states concluded legal opinions - and often differences in opinion between the Tannaim. There is little dialogue. The Gemara, by contrast, is presented as a dialectical exchange between two (frequently anonymous and possibly imaginary) disputants, termed the makshan (questioner) and tartzan (answerer). These exchanges form the "building-blocks" of the gemara; the name for a passage of gemara is a sugya (סוגיא; plural sugyot). A sugya will typically comprise a detailed proof-based elaboration of the Mishna. In each sugya, either participant may cite scriptural, Mishnaic and Amoraic proof to build a logical support for their respective opinions. In so doing, the gemara will bring semantic disagreements between Tannaim and Amoraim (often imputing a view to an earlier authority as to how he may have answered a question), and compare the Mishnaic views with passages from the Tosefta (תוספתא, a parallel, Mishnaic-era, source of halakha) and the Halakhic Midrash (Mekhilta, Sifra and Sifre). All such non-mishnaic sources are termed beraitot (lit. outside material; sing. beraita ברייתא). Rarely are debates formally closed; in many instances, the final word determines the practical law, although there are many exceptions to this principle. See Gemara for further discussion. The language medium in the Talmud will differ, broadly, by section - the Mishna sections and Bibilical references are in Hebrew, and the Gemara sections in Aramaic.

Halakha and Aggadah

While the Gemara is essentially a legal document, it also supplements the Mishna with discussion on non-normative, i.e. aggadic (or haggadic), material and biblical expositions, and is a source for history and legend. (Thus the Gemara may change topic to related subjects, including narrative Biblical commentary, ethics, science, sociology and medicine; often the only similarity between two sugyot is the fact that they cite the same Tannaitic or Amoraic sage.) Tractates discussing philosophical or ethical material - for example Berachot dealing with prayers and blessings - will have a relatively high aggadic content. The aggadot are generally presented as tales, folklore, historical anecdotes, moral exhortations, and business and medical advice - note that this mode of presentation is often used to convey deeper teachings indirectly. See Aggada for further discussion. The Ein Yaakov is a compilation of the aggadic material in the Babylonian Talmud together with commentaries.

The two Talmuds

There is only one Mishnah but there are two distinct Gemaras: the Yerushalmi and the Bavli, and two corresponding Talmuds. (Today the word "Talmud", when used without qualification, refers to the Babylonian Talmud.)

Talmud Yerushalmi (Jerusalem Talmud)

The Gemara here is a synopsis of almost 200 years of analysis of the Mishna in the Academies in Israel. Due to the location of the Academies, the agricultural laws of the Land of Israel are discussed in great detail. It was redacted in the year 350 C.E. by Rav Muna and Rav Yossi in Israel. Together, this Gemara and the Mishnah are known as Talmud Yerushalmi (The Jerusalem Talmud; however, the name is a misnomer, as it was not written in Jerusalem. As such it is also known more accurately as the Palestinian Talmud or The Talmud of the Land of Israel.) References to the Yerushalmi are usually not by page (as in the Babylonian Talmud) but by the Mishna which is under discussion. References are therefore in the format of [Tractate chapter:Mishna] (e.g. Berachot 1:2). As the Babylonian Talmud is considered more influential, references to the Yerushalmi are generally prefaced by "Yerushalmi" to clarify their origin. The classical commentaries on the Yerushalmi are the P'nei Moshe and the Korban ha-Eidah, which are printed alongside the Talmudic text in most versions of the Yerushalmi.

Talmud Bavli (Babylonian Talmud)

The Gemara here is a synopsis of more than 300 years of analysis of the Mishna in the Babylonian Academies. It was redacted as a formal collection by Rav Ashi and Ravina, two leaders of the Babylonian Jewish community, around the year 550. Rav Ashi actually died in 427 CE, leaving an early version of the Talmud that is no longer extant. Ravina furthered the editorial process well after Rav Ashi's death. Editorial work by the Savoraim or Rabbanan Savoraei (post-Talmudic rabbis), continued on this text for the next 250 years; much of the text did not reach its final form until around 700. (See eras within Jewish law.) The Mishnah and Babylonian Gemara together form the Talmud Bavli (the "Babylonian Talmud"). In modern editions, the Gemara is never printed by itself, but always together with the Mishnah. The "canonical edition" is the Vilna edition, typeset by the widow and Brothers Romm. Because this "Vilna Shas" is used to the exclusion of all other printings, the typesetting, pagination, etc., are today frequently thought of as integral to the gemara. The Babylonian Talmud comprises the full Mishna, the 37 gemaras, and the extra-canonical minor tractates, in 5,894 folios. A page number in the Talmud refers to a double-sided page, known as a daf; each daf has two amudim labelled א and ב, sides A and B. The referencing by daf is relatively recent and dates from the early Talmud printings of the 17th century. Earlier rabbinic literature generally only refers to the tractate or chapters within a tractate. Nowadays, reference is made in format [Tractate daf a/b] (e.g. Berachot 23b). The primary commentary on the Babylonian Talmud is that of Rashi (Rabbi Solomon ben Isaac, 1040-1105). The commentary is comprehensive, covering almost the entire Talmud. It provides a full explanation of the words, and of the logical structure of each Talmudic passage. The commentary known as Tosafot ("additions" or "supplements") is also regarded as basic to a full understanding of the daf. It comprises collected commentaries on the Talmud, compiled mainly by French and German Rabbis (amongst them Rashi’s grandsons). It carries on the Talmud's own methods of dialectical argument and debate. Some have seen the Tosafot as an addition to the Talmud itself (“the Talmud on the Talmud”); it also functions as a supplement to Rashi's basic commentary. Both commentaries appear in virtually every edition of the Talmud since it was first printed. In yeshivot, the analytic commentaries by "Maharshal" (Solomon Luria), "Maharam" (Meir Lublin) and "Maharsha" (Samuel Edels), which discuss the Talmud, Rashi, and Tosafot together, are considered integral to advanced study of the tractate. Advanced students will also study the legal commentaries on the Talmud, chiefly "the Rosh" (Asher ben Jehiel) and "the Rif" (Isaac Alfasi). These commentaries are printed in almost all editions of the Talmud.

Comparison of style and subject matter

The Talmud Yerushalami is fragmentary and difficult to read, even for experienced Talmudists. However, the Yerushalmi covers a number of topics specific to the land of Israel which are not covered in the Bavli, such as the agricultural laws. (The laws such as leaving the corners of one's field for the poor, leaving one's land fallow every seven years, etc. only apply within the borders of the land of Israel, and thus, the rabbis of the Bavli who had lived in the Diaspora for generations, in many cases, did not consider themselves experts in these laws.) The redaction of the Babylonian Talmud is much more careful and precise. However, the gemara only exists for 37 out of the 63 tractates of the Mishna: most laws from the Orders Zeraim (agricultural laws limited to the land of Israel) and Toharot (ritual purity laws related to the Temple and sacrificial system) had little practical relevance and were therefore not included. (There is Babylonian gemara on Qodashim - this is probably because the study of the sacrificial regulations is generally thought of as being on par with actually performing sacrifices.) Over time, the Bavli has been studied more intensively, and thus has a plethora of commentary; further, because it is later, the Bavli is assumed to supersede the Yerushalmi, and so Jewish practice is generally determined based on the Babylonian Talmud.

Attitude to the Talmud within Judaism

The Talmud and its study spread from Babylon to Egypt, northern Africa, Italy, Spain, France, and Germany, regions destined to become abodes of the Jewish spirit; and in all these countries Jewish intellectual interest centered in the Talmud.

Karaism

One great reaction against its supremacy was Karaism, which arose in the very strong-hold of the Geonim within two centuries after the completion of the Talmud. The movement thus initiated and the influence of Arabic culture were the two chief factors which aroused the dormant forces of Judaism and gave inspiration to the scientific pursuits to which the Jewish spirit owed many centuries of fruitful activity. This activity did not infringe on the authority of the Talmud; for although it combined other ideals and intellectual aims with Talmudic study, the importance of that study was in no way decried by those who devoted themselves to other fields of learning. The central concept of Karaism was the rejection of the Oral Law, as embodied in the Talmud, in favor of a strict adherence to only the Written Law. This is in contradiction to the fundamental Rabbinic Jewish concept that the Oral Law, as well as the Written Law, was given to Moses on Mount Sinai.

Talmudic Study and Kabbalah

Within Judaism, the prime competitor to the primacy of Talmud study was the development of Kabbalah (Jewish esoteric mysticism) which in its modern form arose in the thirteenth century. During the decline of intellectual life among the Jews which began in the sixteenth century, the Talmud was regarded almost as the supreme authority by the majority of them; and in the same century eastern Europe, especially Poland, became the seat of its study. Even the Bible (as a "standalone" document) was relegated to second place and the Jewish schools devoted themselves almost exclusively to the Talmud; so that "study" became synonymous with "study of the Talmud."

The Enlightenment

A reaction against the supremacy of the Talmud came with the appearance of Moses Mendelssohn and the intellectual regeneration of Judaism through its contact with the gentile culture of the eighteenth century, the results of this struggle being a closer assimilation to European culture, the creation of a new science of Judaism, and the movements for religious reform. Despite the quasi-Karaite inclinations which appeared in early Reform Judaism, the majority of Jews clung to the Talmud as the primary document through which mainstream Judaism was understood.

Jews in Western culture

Modern culture has gradually alienated most Jews from Talmud study; Talmud is now regarded by the majority of Jews as merely one of the branches of Jewish theology. On the whole Jewish learning has done full justice to the Talmud, many scholars of the nineteenth and twentieth century having made noteworthy contributions to its history and textual criticism, and having constituted it the basis of historical and archaeological researches. The study of the Talmud has even attracted the attention of non-Jewish scholars; and it has been included in the curricula of universities.

The Talmud in modern-day Judaism

:See also How Halakha is viewed today; The Halakhic process. Orthodox Judaism continues to regard the Talmud as the primary document through which Judaism in general, and Halakha in particular, is to be understood. Orthodox Jews study the Talmud in depth, but rarely use Talmudic legal methodology to alter Jewish law as codified in later compendia. Orthodox Jews will also study the Talmud for its own sake; this is considered a great mitzvah, Talmud Torah (see Talmud study,Torah study). See also: Orthodox beliefs about Jewish law and tradition. Conservative Jews also consider Halakha as binding, but do not always accept modern (post-1500) legal codes as absolutely binding; as such they use the Talmud in the same way that pre-1500 rabbis used it. This is theoretically still an option in the Orthodox community, but in practice is used very rarely. See also: The Conservative Jewish view of the Halakha. Reform and Reconstructionist Jews usually do not teach much Talmud in their Hebrew schools, but they do teach it in their rabbinical seminaries; The world view of liberal Judaism rejects the idea of binding Jewish law, and uses the Talmud as a source of inspiration and moral instruction. See also: The Reform Jewish view of the Halakha and view of the Talmud.

Historical study

The Talmud contains little serious biographical studies of the people discussed therein, and the same tractate will conflate the points of view of many different people. Yet, sketchy biographies of the Talmudic sages can often be constructed with historical detail from Talmudic sources. Many modern historical scholars have focused on the timing and the formation of the Talmud. A vital question is whether it is comprised of sources which date from its editor's lifetime, and to what extent is it comprised of earlier, or later sources. Are Talmudic disputes distinguishable along theological or communal lines, and in what ways do different sections derive from different schools of thought within early Judaism? Can these early sources be identified, and if so, how? In response to these questions, modern scholars have adopted a number of different approaches.
- Traditionally, rabbinic Judaism has viewed the statements in the Talmud as being historically accurate, and written under a subtle form of near-prophecy called Ruach haKodesh (Divine inspiration). Most Orthodox Jews today view the statements described therein are entirely reliable, and accepted as such. Nevertheless, classical rabbinic commentators on the Talmud, known as the Tosafists, and the early Babylonian rabbis (Savoraim and Geonim) point out that the Talmud is often ambiguous or unclear. In general, textual criticism of the Talmud from Orthodox point-of-view has ceased after the completion of the Talmud, and modern attempts at textual criticism are mainly considered heretical, though some Modern Orthodox Rabbis view critical Talmud study as acceptable. [http://www.edah.org/backend/JournalArticle/bigman2_1.pdf].
- Some scholars hold that there has been extensive editorial reshaping of the stories and statements within the Talmud. Lacking outside confirming texts, they hold that we cannot confirm the origin or date of most statements and laws, and that we can say little for certain about their authorship. In this view, the questions above are impossible to answer. See, for example, the works of Louis Jacobs and Shaye J.D. Cohen.
- Some scholars hold that the Talmud have been extensively shaped by later editorial redaction, but that it contains sources which we can identify and describe with some level of reliability. In this view, sources can be identified to some extent because era of history and each distinct geographical region has its own unique feature, which one can trace and analyze. Thus, the questions above may be analyzed. See, for example, the works of Lee Levine and David C. Kraemer.
- Some scholars hold that many or most the statements and events described in the Talmud usually occurred more or less as described, and that they can be used as serious sources of historical study. In this view, historians do their best to tease out later editorial additions (itself a very difficult task) and skeptically view accounts of miracles, leaving behind a reliable historical text. See, for example, the works of Saul Lieberman, David Weiss Halivni, and Avraham Goldberg.

Changes within the text of the Talmud

The Talmud is presented as an analysis of the Mishnah, as opposed to a later, competing, teaching. Generally, the rabbis of the Talmud will not disagree with their counterparts from earlier generations. In fact, for an Amoraic opinion to be accepted as authoritative it must be in accordance with the teachings of at least one of the Tannaim. However, some scholars suggest that the current text of the Talmud is artificially smooth; the text, having been edited by the Savoraim (post-Talmudic rabbis), covers up many disagreements between the rabbis of the Mishnah and the rabbis of the Talmud. The present text of the Talmud thus shows little disagreement. Eli Turkel writes: :What is the reason that later generations never disagree with a halacha in the Talmud? In the introduction to Mishne Torah, Maimonides declares that the sages after the generation of Rav Ashi and Ravina accepted on themselves not to disagree with any halacha in the Gemara. Thus, even if individual portions of the Gemara were ADDED BY LATER GENERATIONS they did not change the halacha. This viewpoint is reiterated by Rav Yosef Karo in his commentary on Mishne Torah (Kesef Mishne on Maimonides' Hilchot Mamrim 2:1, also Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik in Two Kinds of Tradition in Yahrzeit lectures vol. 1.). It is interesting to note that Rav Yosef Karo mentions this only with regard to the Mishna and Gemara. There is no such ruling with regard to Gaonim and Rishonim. Rav Yosef Karo, among the early generations of Acharonim, recognized no formal barrier to disagree with a Rishon or a Gaon. (Turkel's essay "Rabbinic Authority" in Modern Scholarship in the Study of Torah) Some within Orthodoxy are comfortable with noting that when someone writes "later generations never disagree with a halacha in the Talmud", this is in effect a legal fiction. In practice, legal authorities did disagree with what was in the Talmud, and in some cases actually changed the Talmud itself. This new Talmudic text then became accepted as binding, and the Jewish community acts as if there was no change.

External attacks on the Talmud

The history of the Talmud reflects in part the history of Judaism persisting in a world of hostility and persecution. Almost at the very time that the Babylonian savoraim put the finishing touches to the redaction of the Talmud, the emperor Justinian issued his edict against the abolition of the Greek translation of the Bible in the service of the Synagogue. This edict, dictated by Christian zeal and anti-Jewish feeling, was the prelude to attacks on the Talmud, conceived in the same spirit, and beginning in the thirteenth century in France, where Talmudic study was then flourishing. The charge against the Talmud brought by the convert Nicholas Donin led to the first public disputation between Jews and Christians and to the first burning of copies of the work (Paris, 1244). The Talmud was likewise the subject of a disputation at Barcelona in 1263 between Nahmanides (Rabbi Moses ben Nahman) and Pablo Christiani. This same Pablo Christiani made an attack on the Talmud which resulted in a papal bull against it and in the first censorship, which was undertaken at Barcelona by a commission of Dominicans, who ordered the cancellation of passages reprehensible from a Christian perspective (1264). At the disputation of Tortosa in 1413, Geronimo de Santa Fé brought forward a number of accusations, including the fateful assertion that the condemnations of pagans and apostates found in the Talmud referred in reality to Christians. Two years later, Pope Martin V, who had convened this disputation, issued a bull (which was destined, however, to remain inoperative) forbidding the Jews to read the Talmud, and ordering the destruction of all copies of it. Far more important were the charges made in the early part of the sixteenth century by the convert Johann Pfefferkorn, the agent of the Dominicans. The result of these accusations was a struggle in which the emperor and the pope acted as judges, the advocate of the Jews being Johann Reuchlin, who was opposed by the obscurantists and the humanists; and this controversy, which was carried on for the most part by means of pamphlets, became the precursor of the Reformation. An unexpected result of this affair was the complete printed edition of the Babylonian Talmud issued in 1520 by Daniel Bomberg at Venice, under the protection of a papal privilege. Three years later, in 1523, Bomberg published the first edition of the Palestinian Talmud. After thirty years the Vatican, which had first permitted the Talmud to appear in print, undertook a campaign of destruction against it. On New-Year's Day (September 9, 1553) the copies of the Talmud which had been confiscated in compliance with a decree of the Inquisition were burned at Rome; and similar burnings took place in other Italian cities, as at Cremona in 1559. The Censorship of the Talmud and other Hebrew works was introduced by a papal bull issued in 1554; five years later the Talmud was included in the first Index Expurgatorius; and Pope Pius IV commanded, in 1565, that the Talmud be deprived of its very name. The first edition of the expurgated Talmud, on which most subsequent editions were based, appeared at Basel (1578-1581) with the omission of the entire treatise of 'Abodah Zarah and of passages considered inimical to Christianity, together with modifications of certain phrases. A fresh attack on the Talmud was decreed by Pope Gregory XIII (1575-85), and in 1593 Clement VIII renewed the old interdiction against reading or owning it. The increasing study of the Talmud in Poland led to the issue of a complete edition (Kraków, 1602-5), with a restoration of the original text; an edition containing, so far as known, only two treatises had previously been published at Lublin (1559-76). In 1707 some copies of the Talmud were confiscated in the province of Brandenburg, but were restored to their owners by command of Frederick, the first king of Prussia. The last attack on the Talmud took place in Poland in 1757, when Bishop Dembowski, at the instigation of the Frankists, convened a public disputation at Kamenetz-Podolsk, and ordered all copies of the work found in his bishopric to be confiscated and burned by the hangman. The external history of the Talmud includes also the literary attacks made upon it by Christian theologians after the Reformation, since these onslaughts on Judaism were directed primarily against that work, even though it was made a subject of study by the Christian theologians of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. In 1830, during a debate in the French Chamber of Peers regarding state recognition of the Jewish faith, Admiral Verhuell declared himself unable to forgive the Jews whom he had met during his travels throughout the world either for their refusal to recognize Jesus as the Messiah or for their possession of the Talmud. In the same year the Abbé Chiarini published at Paris a voluminous work entitled "Théorie du Judaïsme," in which he announced a translation of the Talmud, advocating for the first time a version which should make the work generally accessible, and thus serve for attacks on Judaism. In a like spirit modern anti-Semitic agitators have urged that a translation be made; and this demand has even been brought before legislative bodies, as in Vienna. The Talmud and the "Talmud Jew" thus became objects of anti-Semitic attacks, although, on the other hand, they were defended by many Christian students of the Talmud. The Talmud makes little mention of Jesus or the early Christians. There are a number of quotes about individuals named Yeshu that once existed in editions of the Talmud; these quotes were long ago removed from the main text due to accusations that they referred to Jesus, and are no longer used in Talmud study. However, these removed quotes were preserved through rare printings of lists of errata, known as Hashmatot Hashass ("Omissions of the Talmud"). Some modern editions of the Talmud contain some or all of this material, either at the back of the book, in the margin, or in alternate print. These passages do not necessarily refer to a single individual and many of the stories are far removed from anything written in the New Testament. Many scholars are convinced that these people cannot be identified as the Christian Jesus.

Charges of racism

Some groups and individuals consider that passages in the Talmud show that Judaism is inherently racist. Critics of these charges argue that the passages in question do not indicate inherent racism on the part of the Talmud (and Judaism), but rather mistranslation, falsification, and "quote-mining" (i.e. the selective choice of out-of-context quotes) on the part of those making the charges. The Anti-Defamation League's report on this topic states:

By selectively citing various passages from the Talmud and Midrash, polemicists have sought to demonstrate that Judaism espouses hatred for non-Jews (and specifically for Christians), and promotes obscenity, sexual perversion, and other immoral behavior. To make these passages serve their purposes, these polemicists frequently mistranslate them or cite them out of context (wholesale fabrication of passages is not unknown)...
In distorting the normative meanings of rabbinic texts, anti-Talmud writers frequently remove passages from their textual and historical contexts. Even when they present their citations accurately, they judge the passages based on contemporary moral standards, ignoring the fact that the majority of these passages were composed close to two thousand years ago by people living in cultures radically different from our own. They are thus able to ignore Judaism's long history of social progress and paint it instead as a primitive and parochial religion.
Those who attack the Talmud frequently cite ancient rabbinic sources without noting subsequent developments in Jewish thought, and without making a good-faith effort to consult with contemporary Jewish authorities who can explain the role of these sources in normative Jewish thought and practice.

Gil Student, an expert on exposing anti-Talmud accusations, writes that

Anti-Talmud accusations have a long history dating back to the 13th century when the associates of the Inquisition attempted to defame Jews and their religion [see Yitzchak Baer, A History of Jews in Christian Spain, vol. I pp. 150-185]. The early material compiled by hateful preachers like Raymond Martini and Nicholas Donin remain the basis of all subsequent accusations against the Talmud. Some are true, most are false and based on quotations taken out of context, and some are total fabrications [see Baer, ch. 4 f. 54, 82 that it has been proven that Raymond Martini forged quotations]. On the Internet today we can find many of these old accusations being rehashed...

Modern day Talmud scholars

Talmud scholars of the 20th century include:
- Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach
- Rabbi Yechiel Michel Epstein (author of the Aruch HaShulchan).
- Rabbi Moshe Feinstein (author of the Iggros Moshe)
- Rabbi Yosef Eliahu Henkin
- Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan (the Chofetz Chaim, author of the Mishnah Berurah)
- Rabbi Avraham Yishayahu Karelitz (the Chazon Ish)
- Rabbi Eleazar Menachem Shach
- Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik (the Rav)
- Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz
- Rabbi Yehiel Yaakov Weinberg (Seridei Eish)
- Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef
- Rabbi Avigdor Nebenzahl (primary student of Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach and Chief Rabbi of the Old City of Jerusalem)

Conservative

- Dr. Aryeh Cohen
- Dr. Sharlotte Fonrobert
- Rabbi Louis Ginzberg
- Rabbi Saul Lieberman
- Rabbi Judith Hauptman
- Rabbi David Weiss Halivni
- Rabbi Jacob Neusner

The Daf Yomi ("Daily Page")

Thousands of Jews worldwide participate in Daf Yomi - literally the daily page (of Talmud) - as part of a monumental program. Daf Yomi was initiated by Rabbi Meir Shapiro in 1923 at the First World Congress of Agudath Israel in Vienna. With 2711 folios in the Talmud, one cycle takes about 7.5 years. Daf Yomi started its 12th cycle of study on March 2, 2005.

Translations

Translations of Talmud Bavli

There are four contemporary translations of the Talmud into English:
- The Soncino Hebrew-English Talmud Isidore Epstein, Soncino Press. In this translation, each English page faces the Aramaic/Hebrew page. Notes on each page provide additional background material. See also: [http://www.soncino.com/Talmudset.html Soncino Talmud site].
- The Talmud of Babylonia. An American Translation, Jacob Neusner, Tzvee Zahavy, others. Atlanta: 1984-1995: Scholars Press for Brown Judaic Studies. Complete.
- The Schottenstein Edition of the Talmud, Mesorah Publications. In this translation, each English page faces the Aramaic/Hebrew page. The English pages are elucidated and heavily annotated; each Aramaic/Hebrew page of Talmud typically requires three English pages of translation. See also: [http://www.artscroll.com/Talmud1.htm Mesorah Talmud site].
- The Talmud: The Steinsaltz Edition Adin Steinsaltz, Random House (incomplete). This work is in fact a translation of Rabbi Steinsaltz' Hebrew language translation of and commentary on the entire Talmud. See also: [http://www.steinsaltz.org/dynamic/content.asp?id=17 Steinsaltz Talmud site].

Translations of Talmud Yerushalmi

Talmud of the Land of Israel: A Preliminary Translation and Explanation Jacob Neusner, Tzvee Zahavy, others. University of Chicago Press. This translation uses a form-analytical presentation which makes the logical units of discourse easier to identify and follow. This work has received many positive reviews. However, some consider Neusner's translation methodology idiosyncratic. One volume was negatively reviewed by Saul Lieberman of the Jewish Theological Seminary.

References

General

- Maimonides Introduction to the Mishneh Torah ([http://www.mechon-mamre.org/e/e0000.htm English translation])
- Maimonides Introduction to the Commentary on the Mishnah ([http://www.daat.ac.il/daat/mahshevt/hakdama/tohen-m-2.htm Hebrew Fulltext]), transl. Zvi Lampel (Judaica Press, 1998). ISBN 1880582287
- Adin Steinsaltz The Talmud: A Reference Guide (Random House, 1996). ISBN 0679773673
- Adin Steinsaltz The Essential Talmud (Basic Books, 1984). ISBN 0465020631; see also [http://www.steinsaltz.org/dynamic/essay_details.asp?id=6&sub=1 here]
- Zvi Hirsch Chajes "Mevo Hatalmud", transl. Jacob Shachter: The Students' Guide Through The Talmud (Yashar Books, 2005). ISBN 1933143053
- Shmuel Hanaggid Introduction to the Talmud, in Aryeh Carmell Aiding Talmud Study (Philipp Feldheim, 1986). ISBN 0873064283
- Nathan T. Lopes Cardozo The Infinite Chain : Torah, Masorah, and Man (Philipp Feldheim, 1989). ISBN 0944070159
- D. Landesman A Practical Guide to Torah Learning (Jason Aronson, 1995). ISBN 1568213204
- Aaron Parry The Complete Idiot's Guide to The Talmud (Alpha Books, 2004). ISBN 1592572022
- R. Travers Herford Christianity in Talmud and Midrash (Ktav Pub Inc, 1975). ISBN 0870684833

Historical study

- Shalom Carmy (Ed.) Modern Scholarship in the Study of Torah: Contributions and Limitations Jason Aronson, Inc.
- Louis Jacobs, "How Much of the Babylonian Talmud is Pseudepigraphic?" Journal of Jewish Studies 28, No. 1 (1977), pp. 46-59
- Richard Kalmin Sages, Stories, Authors and Editors in Rabbinic Babylonia Brown Judaic Studies
- David C. Kraemer, On the Reliability of Attributions in the Babylonian Talmud, Hebrew Union College Annual 60 (1989), pp. 175-90
- Lee Levine, Ma'amad ha-Hakhamim be-Erez Yisrael (Jerusalem: Yad Yizhak Ben-Zvi, 1985), (=The Rabbinic Class of Roman Palestine in Late Antiquity)
- Saul Lieberman Hellenism in Jewish Palestine (New York: Jewish Theological Seminary, 1950)
- Jacob Neusner Sources and Traditions: Types of Compositions in the Talmud of Babylonia (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1992).
- David Weiss Halivni Mekorot u-Mesorot: Eruvin-Pesahim (Jerusalem: Jewish Theological Seminary, 1982)
- [http://www.edah.org/backend/coldfusion/displayissue.cfm?volume=2&issue=1 Finding A Home for Critical Talmud Study], David Bigman, Rosh Yeshivah, Yeshivat Ma'ale Gilboa

External links

General

- [http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=32&letter=T Talmud], jewishencyclopedia.com
- [http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=33&letter=T Talmud Commentaries], jewishencyclopedia.com
- [http://www.aish.com/literacy/jewishhistory/Crash_Course_in_Jewish_History_Part_39_-_Talmud.asp Jewish History: Talmud], aish.com
- [http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/talmud_&_mishna.html Talmud/Mishna/Gemara], jewishvirtuallibrary.org
- [http://library.law.miami.edu/jewishguide.html Jewish Law Research Guide], University of Miami Law Library
- [http://ohr.edu/judaism/survey/survey.htm A survey of rabbinic literature], Ohr Somayach

Full text resources

- [http://www.mechon-mamre.org/b/h/h0.htm Mishna]
- [http://www.mechon-mamre.org/b/f/f0.htm Tosefta]
- [http://www.mechon-mamre.org/b/r/r0.htm Talmud Yerushalmi]
- [http://www.mechon-mamre.org/b/l/l0.htm Talmud Bavli]
- [http://www.sacred-texts.com/jud/talmud.htm Rodkinson English translation] (1903, parts only).
- [http://www.e-daf.com Images of each page of the Babylonian Talmud].

A Page from the Talmud

- [http://www.acs.ucalgary.ca/~elsegal/TalmudPage.html "A Page from the Babylonian Talmud"] image map from Prof. Eliezer Segal
- [http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/rs/2/Judaism/talmud.html Talmud and its Shape: colour coded daf], upenn.edu
- [http://www.steinsaltz.org/dynamic/content.asp?id=17 A Tour of the English-language Steinsaltz Edition of the Talmud page]
- [http://www.shemayisrael.co.il/dafyomi2/today.htm point by point summary and discussion by daf]

Pertaining to the "Daf Yomi" program

- [http://www.dafyomi.org/ A general resource for Daf Yomi]
- [http://www.shemayisrael.co.il/dafyomi2/calendars/calendar.htm Calendar for this Daf Yomi cycle]
- [http://www.mishnaofthedaf.org/mishna.php Mishnah corresponding to the daily Daf]
- [http://www.geocities.com/DafAWeek Daf-A-Week: A project to study a daf per week]
- [http://www.steinsaltz.org/dynamic/content.asp?id=20 Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz's Daily Insights on Daf Yomi]

Refutation of anti-Semitic allegations concerning the Talmud

- [http://talmud.faithweb.com/ The Real Truth about the Talmud]
- [http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Cyprus/8815/ Talmud Exposed]
- [http://groups.msn.com/Mishpocha/thetalmudpart1.msnw Mishpocha]
- Category:Hebrew words ja:タルムード

Lord Cave

The Right Honourable George Cave, 1st Viscount Cave, GCMG, KC (February 23, 1856) - (March 29,