<x-tad-bigger>"Traditional Judaism has always held that the books of the </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>Tanakh</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger> were transmitted in parallel with a living, </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>oral tradition</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>. Thus, the </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>Torah</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger> - the "Law" or "Instruction" - is the </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>written law</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>, while the </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>oral law</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger> deals with its application and elaborates on its meaning. The Talmud, ultimately, constitutes the authoritative </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>redaction</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger> of this tradition. It is thus the major influence on </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>Jewish belief and thought</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>. Furthermore, although not a formal legal code, it is the basis for all later </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>codes of Jewish law</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>, and thus continues to exert a major influence on </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>Halakha</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger> and Jewish religious practice. (See </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>Maimonides</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger> introduction to the </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>Mishneh Torah</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger> </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>[1]</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>.) The Talmud is arranged content-wise by Order and by Tractate; while conceptually, it is divided into two parts: </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>Mishna</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger> and </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>Gemara</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>. There is also a distinction between </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>Halakha</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger> (</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>normative</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>, legal focused material) and </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>Aggadah</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger> (non-normative material)."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talmud
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On Feb 25, 2006, at 1:55 PM, shempmcgurk wrote:
Well, actually, isn't that precisely what the Talmud is...basically,
volume after volume after volume of "legalese" of the contract
between man and God?
