<<The>> stories they tell Halakhic anecdotes in the Babylonian Talmud

"In this engaging book of commentary on the Talmud, the author upends the long-held theory of the immutability of halakhah, Jewish law. In her detailed analysis of over 80 short halakhic anecdotes in the Babylonian Talmud, the author shows that the Talmud itself promotes halakhic change. She leads the reader through one sugya (discussion unit) after another, accumulating evidence for her rather radical thesis. Along the way, she teases out details of what life was like 1500 years ago for women in their relationships with men and for students in their relationships with mentors. An eye-opening read by one of today's leading Talmud scholars"-- Provided by publisher TABLE OF CONTENTS 7 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 11 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS 13 INTRODUCTION 15 CHAPTER 1. HALAKHIC ANECDOTES THAT INCLUDE THE TERM “IQLA” 59 CHAPTER 2. HAVA QA’IMNA/HAVA YATIVNA SUGYOT 103 CHAPTER 3. “ENCOUNTERED HIM” ANECDOTES 151 CHAPTER 4. SUGYOT WITH MULTIPLE HALAKHIC ANECDOTES 199 CHAPTER 5. INI VEHA ANECDOTES 243 CHAPTER 6. HALAKHIC ANECDOTES THAT FEATURE WOMEN 273 CONCLUDING REMARKS 293 APPENDIX. HALAKHIC ANECDOTES IN THE YERUSHALMI 299 BIBLIOGRAPHY 303 INDEX 309