A fascinating combination of a sometimes poetic ``love song'' to and a crisp structural analysis of Judaism's magnum opus, the Babylonian Talmud. The metaphor of music may initially seem inappropriate for the verbal, intellectual, and argumentative Talmud, which the author describes as ``so elliptical, so self-referential that its rules of thought require explanation that the writing does not convey.'' But Neusner (Religious Studies/Univ. of South Florida, Tampa; A Rabbi Talks with Jesus, 1993, etc.), by far the most prolific scholar of rabbinic Judaism, succeeds in demonstrating the Talmud's distinctive ``melody.'' In part, he does so by differentiating it from the Pentateuch, which is characterized by narrative and ritual commandments, while the Talmud revels in polemical dialectics. Referring to specific talmudic passages, Neusner demonstrates how the student of Talmud, like the musician facing a score, is presented with a skeletal ``melody'' that he—and, increasingly, she—then co-creates with the ``composer'' by relearning and reinterpreting it. Somewhat less convincingly, Neusner maintains that this hermeneutic is purposeful because it helps the learner apprehend ever-higher realms of rationality and harmony. In his view, the Talmud's logic and law stand revealed as but one facet of the universe's divinely inspired harmony. In a typically beautifully succinct formulation, Neusner writes that ``what we learn about God [in the Talmud] is that what we dispute is beyond dispute.'' Yet what, one wonders, of evidence of divine absence, of human evil, and natural destructiveness? These are, after all, matters both the Pentateuch and the Talmud address repeatedly and, wisely, avoid resolving. Neusner may wax a bit too rhapsodic at times, as lovers are wont to do. But despite minor flaws, he writes with the kind of balance between imaginative daring and explicatory clarity that has become academia's rarest commodity.
Pub Date: May 1, 1995
ISBN: 0-226-57648-5
Page Count: 248
Publisher: Univ. of Chicago
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1995
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
