Aspects of Rabbinic Theology: Major Concepts of the Talmud

by Solomon Schechter

Few writers have crafted such a classic statement of the nature of and concepts within rabbinic theology as did Solomon Schechter. Aspects of Rabbinic Theology distills for the uninitiated the basic principles, concepts, and ideas of Judaism, particularly as they are found in the Talmud and Midrash. Noted Jewish author Louis Ginzberg could say of Schechter, "He showed the . . . special Jewish conception of God and the universe, the special Jewish interpretation of the Bible." Key aspects of Jewish theology, such as the election of Israel, God's relationship to Israel, and the place of the Law, receive careful examination and vivid explanation. The notion of sin as rebellion and the nature of forgiveness and reconciliation with God, under Schechter's steady hand, likewise are disclosed in fresh and thought-provoking ways. Moreover, since "There is hardly any miracle recorded in the Bible for which a parallel might not be found in the Rabbinic literature" (from the introduction), any student of Judaism or Christianity readily recognizes the tremendous potential for increased understanding. Though written nearly ninety years ago, Aspects of Rabbinic Theology remains a clear and useful distillation of the essence of rabbinic Judaism.

Genres: Judaism, Theology, Judaica

416 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1987

Reviews

[Mike Bright · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good introduction to the whole Talmud and midrash thinking of conservative Judaism. It took a couple chapters and a few Wikipedia searches to get my footing, but it was worthwhile. The entire Jewish literature of Talmud, targums and various other sources is still confusing to me. Also, Jewish hermeneutic rules for interpreting scriptures are still puzzling. However, the text doesn't attempt to systematize anything, it explicitly wants to give you a flavor for Jewish thought.

I am a long time Christian so appreciate the overlap in Scripture and ideas with Judaism. However, I was surprised at the extent of the overlap. I don't want to minimize the differences, but I thought my Christian Bible background gave me a lot of insight. At the same time, conservative Judaism is a foreign world to me in many ways, so the text was very instructive.

The text picks 18 different topics and gives the reader a flavor for how the rabbis historically interpreted these ideas. It doesn't gloss over the seeming contradictions, discrepancies or mysteries, in fact it embraces them in many cases. Life is complex and Jewish thought is complex. I agreed with most interpretations, disagreed with some and was challenged by many. My bent is toward systematic theology, and the lack thereof was challenging (in a positive way) in and of itself. The book is well footnoted, but I am a stranger to that literature in general, so that was less helpful than it could have been for me.

Rabbi Schecter writes well and accomplishes his stated purpose (giving a flavor). Theology texts can sometimes drag, but this one moved along fairly well. It inspired me to delve more into this literature, which I think means he did his job.

[Laura Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is such a useful book.

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an excellent attempt at the nearly impossible: a coherent statement of main themes in rabbinic theology. The issue is that theology is not what the rabbis did. The major rabbinic sources - midrash collections, sifre, the two talmuds, mishnah - were not concerned with the statement of a coherent theology according to the standards of western philosophy - what we moderns would call theology. Schechter combs through the vast corpus of rabbinic writings to assemble a coherent statement of rabbinic theology.

[Dr. Paul T. Blake · Rating 2 out of 5]

There were a couple amazing revelations, but as with many books it didn't need to be 400 pages long ... or 250 for that matter.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good reference book on some basic thoughts found in Rabbinic Theology.