Charity in rabbinic Judaism : atonement, rewards, and righteousness / Alyssa M. Gray.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Gray, Alyssa M., author.

Contributor:

John G. Hartman Memorial Library Fund.

Series:

Routledge Jewish studies series

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Charity--Religious aspects--Judaism.

Charity.

Rabbinical literature--History and criticism.

Rabbinical literature.

Genre:

Criticism, interpretation, etc.

Physical Description:

x unnumbered pages, 214 pages ; 24 cm.

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York, NY : Routledge, July 2019.

Summary:

"Studying the many ideas about how giving charity atones for sin and other rewards in late antique rabbinic literature, this volume contains many, varied, and even conflicting ideas, as the multiplicity must be recognized and allowed expression. Topics include the significance of the rabbis' use of the biblical word "tzedaqah" as charity, the coexistence of the idea that God is the ultimate recipient of tzedaqah along with rabbinic ambivalence about that idea, redemptive almsgiving, and the reward for charity of retention or increase in wealth. Rabbinic literature's preference for "teshuvah" (repentance) over tzedeqah to atone for sin is also closely examined. Throughout, close attention is paid to chronological differences in these ideas, and to differences between the rabbinic compilations of the land of Israel and the Babylonian Talmud. The book extensively analyses the various ways the Babylonian Talmud especially tends to put limits on the divine element in charity while privileging its human, this-worldly dimensions. This tendency also characterizes the Babylonian Talmud's treatment of other topics and briefly surveys some post-Talmudic developments. As the study fills a gap in existing scholarship on charity and the rabbis, it is an invaluable resource for scholars and clergy interested in charity within comparative religion, history and religion"-- Provided by publisher.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the John G. Hartman Memorial Library Fund.

Other Format:

ebook version :

ISBN:

9781138599963

1138599964

9780429471162

0429471165

9780429895906

0429895909

9780429895890

0429895895

OCLC:

1089258537