Essay: Sources of Jewish Tradition

Sample Essay

One of the sources to be considered is the rabbinic tradition. In this tradition the case of Moses and his personal encounter with God is of paramount importance. It asserts that Moses got two divine communications while atMount Sinai, one in written form and the other spoken. However, though the methodology of the two is distinct, they are referred to as the Torah. Torah etymologically implies teaching or instruction. Considering the Biblical sources, the Written Torah, as implied in the Hebrew Bible is known by the acronym “Tanakh” drawn from the first letter of each of its three parts.

Torah is here characterized by the Pentateuch, Neviim or the Prophets, and Ketuvim also referred to as Writings. It is believed that the Jewish tradition does not recognize the Hebrew Bible to be an Old Testament due to its concurrence with the Christian view that Christ delivered a New Testament. In this light the Jews refer to the Hebrew Bible as the Christian Bible. In Rabbinic sources, the Oral Torah consists of legal and homiletic commentaries on the books of the Tanakh with exceptional emphasis on the Law Books. It also has with it apodictic laws established in the third century.

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