While Scripture is at the center of many religions, among them Islam and Christianity, this book inquires into the function, development, and implications of the centrality of text upon the Jewish community, and by extension on the larger question of canonization and the text-centered community. It is a commonplace to note how the landless and scattered Jewish communities have, from the time of the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem in 70 A.D. until the founding of modern Israel in 1948, cleaved to the text and derived ...
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While Scripture is at the center of many religions, among them Islam and Christianity, this book inquires into the function, development, and implications of the centrality of text upon the Jewish community, and by extension on the larger question of canonization and the text-centered community. It is a commonplace to note how the landless and scattered Jewish communities have, from the time of the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem in 70 A.D. until the founding of modern Israel in 1948, cleaved to the text and derived their identity from it. But the story is far more complex. The shift from the Bible to the Torah, from biblical religion to rabbinic Judaism mediated by the Sages, and the sealing of the canon together with its continuing interpretive work demanded from the community, amount to what could be called an unparalleled obsession with textuality. Halbertal gives us insights into the history of this obsession, in a philosophically sophisticated yet straightforward narrative. People of the Book offers the best introduction available to Jewish hermeneutics, a book capable of conveying the importance of the tradition to a wide audience of both academic and general readers. Halbertal provides a panoramic survey of Jewish attitudes toward Scripture, provocatively organized around problems of normative and formative authority, with an emphasis on the changing status and functions of Mishnah, Talmud, and Kabbalah. With a gift for weaving complex issues of interpretation into his own plot, he animates ancient texts by assigning them roles in his own highly persuasive narrative.
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Add this copy of People of the Book: Canon, Meaning, and Authority to cart. $12.05, very good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Baltimore rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Halethorpe, MD, UNITED STATES, published 1997 by Harvard University Press.
Add this copy of People of the Book: Canon, Meaning, and Authority to cart. $15.40, good condition, Sold by BooksRun rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Philadelphia, PA, UNITED STATES, published 1997 by Harvard University Press.
Add this copy of People of the Book: Canon, Meaning, and Authority to cart. $15.99, good condition, Sold by SurplusTextSeller rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Columbia, MO, UNITED STATES, published 1997 by Harvard University Press.
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Good. Ships in a BOX from Central Missouri! May not include working access code. Will not include dust jacket. Has used sticker(s) and some writing or highlighting. UPS shipping for most packages, (Priority Mail for AK/HI/APO/PO Boxes).
Add this copy of People of the Book: Canon, Meaning, and Authority to cart. $21.10, good condition, Sold by Book Culture Inc. rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from New York, NY, UNITED STATES, published 1997 by Harvard University Press.
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Good. All pages and cover are intact. Possible minor highlighting and marginalia. Ships from an indie bookstore in NYC. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 208 p.
Add this copy of People of the Book: Canon, Meaning, and Authority to cart. $31.50, very good condition, Sold by The Haunted Bookshop rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Iowa City, IA, UNITED STATES, published 1997 by Harvard University Press.
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Very Good. Clean pages except for some gray smudging on the first (half-title) page; no owners' marks; corners gently fanned throughout, and soft cover has a series of short creases at the bottom front edge as well as mild corner wear, otherwise well-kept. x, 185pp.
Add this copy of People of the Book: Canon, Meaning, and Authority to cart. $37.45, new condition, Sold by Griffin Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Stamford, CT, UNITED STATES, published 1997 by Harvard University Press.
Add this copy of People of the Book to cart. $39.34, new condition, Sold by Paperbackshop rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Bensenville, IL, UNITED STATES, published 1997 by Harvard University Press.
Add this copy of People of the Book: Canon, Meaning, and Authority to cart. $43.67, good condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 1997 by Harvard University Press.