The prince and the emperors : the life and times of Rabbi Judah the Prince / Dov S. Zakheim.

First edition.

New Milford, Connecticut ; Jerusalem : Maggid Books, 2021.

©2021

xviii, 326 pages : illustrations ; 22 cm

The hundreds of anecdotes about R. Judah that address everything from his childhood to his education, his family life and household, his role of leader of the Jewish community, his numerous halakhic rulings and opinions, and his passing, offer a relatively accurate account of his long and successful life. . . It is from this copious and diffuse material that I have sought to construct a biographical account of the man. While the talmudic anecdotes about the rabbis often are mere appendages to serious discussions of law and practice, this study attempts the reverse. It focuses on the individual, as well as on many of his colleagues, students, and interlocutors, while along the way incorporating elements of the debates and halakhic decisions that compose the core of the Talmud. In this way, readers hopefully will not only obtain a holistic picture of Rabbi Judah the Prince, but will also be afforded some insight into the human and historical context that shaped the Mishna, and by extension the Babylonian and Jerusalem Talmuds that were its primary interpretations. In providing that context, I have also devoted considerable attention to the careers of the two emperors who, I argue, were the models for the many stories of Rebbe and "Antonius" that appear throughout rabbinic literature. An outline of their careers provides a backdrop to several of the talmudic tales of Rebbe's interaction with these powerful men, who in many ways were a rabbinic vehicle for demonstrating that Rebbe was as important a personage in the secular world as he was among the Jews of both Judaea and the Diaspora.

English

October 04, 2022

Includes bibliographical references (pages 317-326).