The purpose of this study was to research the early history of the Vancouver Talmud Torah, from 1913 to 1959, in order to determine how one group of Canadian Jews attempted to retain their separate identity while functioning in Canadian society. Two sources provided the bulk of the material for this study. Twenty-five interviews with former students, teachers, parents and Board members provided first-hand information and back issues of the Jewish Western Bulletin, the Vancouver Jewish community weekly newspaper, from 1925-1959 served as a written primary source. A book of minutes from 1944-1947 was also very useful in verifying facts. All of this information was then integrated with research on Jewish education in other parts of Canada, especially Western Canada, to establish the Vancouver Talmud Torah’s connection with similar efforts across Canada. There are two main divisions to this thesis. The first section covers the period from 19 13- 1948, during which time a group of Vancouver Jews dedicated themselves to the establishment and continuation of a Jewish afternoon school. The second section examines the first decade of the day school from 1948-1959 where a full program of Jewish and secular studies was offered to Jewish children during the regular school day. This study examines why the day school was set up. Some insights are also offered regarding whether both the afternoon and the day schools were successful in meetings the goals set out by the organizers and the needs of the community which it served. There is no easy way to determine the success or failure of a school. Many problems are beyond the control and scope of a school’s mandate. The findings of this research indicate that the Vancouver Talmud Torah endeavoured to provide the best possible Jewish education for its students under unfavourable conditions. The primary obstacle comes in comparing the quality of Jewish education in Vancouver with that in other major Jewish centres in Canada, because of the Vancouver Jewish community’s relative isolation from other communities and its small population. The shortage of qualified teachers and the lack of adequate teaching materials and professional development programs have made it difficult for the school to provide a Jewish studies program on the same level as its secular studies program (which was excellent). Furthermore, too much responsibility for the children’s Jewish education and identity had been placed on the school, with the family and community assuming a lesser role than it historically did. This has not only made the task of the Talmud Torah very difficult, it has also created a chasm between the school and the community, with the teachers and students left to battle it out in the middle. Therefore, under the circumstances, the Talmud Torah has provided the best possible Jewish education for its students. However, if the family and community would have maintained their responsiblity in guiding the religious and cultural education of their children, the Talmud Torah would have been in a much better position to fulfill its supplementary role in the education of Jewish children. It is interesting to note that the same comments could be made today, some 35 years later.

The purpose of this study was to research the early history of the Vancouver Talmud Torah, from 1913 to 1959, in order to determine how one group of Canadian Jews attempted to retain their separate identity while functioning in Canadian society. Two sources provided the bulk of the material for this study. Twenty-five interviews with former students, teachers, parents and Board members provided first-hand information and back issues of the Jewish Western Bulletin, the Vancouver Jewish community weekly newspaper, from 1925-1959 served as a written primary source. A book of minutes from 1944-1947 was also very useful in verifying facts. All of this information was then integrated with research on Jewish education in other parts of Canada, especially Western Canada, to establish the Vancouver Talmud Torah’s connection with similar efforts across Canada. There are two main divisions to this thesis. The first section covers the period from 19 13- 1948, during which time a group of Vancouver Jews dedicated themselves to the establishment and continuation of a Jewish afternoon school. The second section examines the first decade of the day school from 1948-1959 where a full program of Jewish and secular studies was offered to Jewish children during the regular school day. This study examines why the day school was set up. Some insights are also offered regarding whether both the afternoon and the day schools were successful in meetings the goals set out by the organizers and the needs of the community which it served. There is no easy way to determine the success or failure of a school. Many problems are beyond the control and scope of a school’s mandate. The findings of this research indicate that the Vancouver Talmud Torah endeavoured to provide the best possible Jewish education for its students under unfavourable conditions. The primary obstacle comes in comparing the quality of Jewish education in Vancouver with that in other major Jewish centres in Canada, because of the Vancouver Jewish community’s relative isolation from other communities and its small population. The shortage of qualified teachers and the lack of adequate teaching materials and professional development programs have made it difficult for the school to provide a Jewish studies program on the same level as its secular studies program (which was excellent). Furthermore, too much responsibility for the children’s Jewish education and identity had been placed on the school, with the family and community assuming a lesser role than it historically did. This has not only made the task of the Talmud Torah very difficult, it has also created a chasm between the school and the community, with the teachers and students left to battle it out in the middle. Therefore, under the circumstances, the Talmud Torah has provided the best possible Jewish education for its students. However, if the family and community would have maintained their responsiblity in guiding the religious and cultural education of their children, the Talmud Torah would have been in a much better position to fulfill its supplementary role in the education of Jewish children. It is interesting to note that the same comments could be made today, some 35 years later. / Education, Faculty of / Curriculum and Pedagogy (EDCP), Department of / Graduate

This dissertation deals with two exegetical traditions, that of the early Jewish and the patristic schools. The research work for this project urges the need to analyze both Jewish and Patristic literature in which specific types of hermeneutics are found. The title of the thesis (“compared study of patristic and Jewish exegesis”) indicates the goal and the scope of this study. These two different hermeneutical approaches from a specific period of time will be compared with each other illustrated by their interpretation of the book of Ruth. The thesis discusses how the process of interpretation was affected by the interpreters’ society in which they lived. This work in turn shows the relationship between the cultural variants of the exegetes and the biblical interpretation. Both methodologies represented by Jewish and patristic exegesis were applicable and social relevant. They maintained the interest of community and fulfilled the need of their generation. Referring to early Jewish exegesis, the interpretations upheld the position of Ruth as a heir of the Davidic dynasty. They advocated the importance of Boaz’s and Ruth’s virtue as a good illustration of morality in Judaism. Early Christian exegetes were also interested in the basic values of the social community. They maintained the important social value of marriage as an example of the emphasis on virtue. They also paid much emphasis on teaching morality. Concerning the doctrine and value of Judaism, the sage upheld the principle of monotheism and the legitimacy of Davidic dynasty. In turn, patristic fathers urged for the introduction of the gospel through the salvation of Jesus Christ in the process of interpretation. From our investigation, we can formulate the thesis that both early Jewish and Christian exegetes did not explain the text for its inherent meaning, but rather used the text for their own purposes. Normally, the main task and mission of an exegete should be to find the meaning inherent in the text. We clearly indicated that both exegetical schools of interpreters did not find meaning in the text of the book of Ruth, but rather read in some agendas and issues into the text from outside, from the exegetes themselves and their surrounding backgrounds. They tend to meet the requirement of the social and political expectations of their reader community. Interpretation was used as a tool for this purpose. They conducted an application rather than explanation. This thesis can be explained by the fact that the meaning of a text depends on the value and pre-set agenda of the exegete who interprets it. Both the text and its interpreters are part of a specific historical, political, social and cultural environment, which imposed influence on them. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Old Testament Studies / unrestricted

[pt] A pesquisa envolve a crítica textual do livro do Gênesis transcrito em IX rolos de pergaminhos pertencentes ao acervo do Museu Nacional, no Rio de Janeiro, conhecidos como Pergaminhos Ivriim. Seu texto encontra-se como fragmentos de livros e livros completos da Torá, compilado em Hebraico consonântico quadrático, tendo sido comprados por D. Pedro II, Regente do Segundo Reinado Brasileiro, em sua primeira viagem à Europa, entre 1871 a 1872. A análise envolve a elucidação, segundo os princípios formulados por eruditos do Antigo Testamento, das características massoréticas, divisões e erros de transcrição presentes nos rolos I, II e III referente ao texto do Gênesis. Além disso, algumas questões foram especialmente apontadas, tais como, o critério utilizado para validar as variantes textuais, as razões para apontar a possível família textual e o período de sua transcrição. As conclusões puderam ser obtidas a partir da confrontação textual entre o livro do Gênesis na Torá do Museu Nacional com as transcrições de diferentes períodos do texto Hebraico: massorético primitivo, medieval tardio e contemporâneo. Estes foram relacionados entre si sob três diferentes níveis: o primeiro abrangendo a colação das variantes textuais, o segundo envolvendo a análise, e o terceiro enfocando a possível família textual da Torá do Museu Nacional. / [en] The investigation is concerned to the textual criticism at Genesis book, transcript across the IX scroll rolls from the Museu Nacional collection, in Rio de Janeiro, named Pergaminhos Ivriim. These ones are a square consonantal Hebrew writing, as fragments and complete books, which have been brought by D. Pedro II, Regent of the Second Brazilian Kingdom, along his first travel to Europe, in 1871 and 1872. The analysis is related to the investigation about of massoretic features, divisions and scribal errors through the rolls I, II and III, concerned to the fragments of Genesis book, evaluated under rules formulated from the principles of Old Testament scholars. So that, some questions were posed, as the criteria used to find out the textual variants, the reasons to appoint the textual family and the period of its transcription. The conclusions were obtained by textual confrontation between the Genesis writing fragments according diferents periods of Hebrew text: ancient massoretic, late medieval and contemporary. These ones were closely connected each other under three stages of investigation: The first step related to the collation. The second step concerned to the analysis of the readings. The third step affected the textual family.

The purpose of this thesis is to identify the reasons for Israeli and Palestinian religious objections to peaceful co-existence in a two-state solution to the conflict over the land between the Jordan River and Mediterranean Sea. Developing an understanding of the basic religious requirements and precedents, while consistently considering religious impact in politics, may help to open dialogue between Jewish Gush Emunim and Muslim Palestinian Hamas, strong opponents to land compromise. Arguments by Gush Emunim and Hamas from the two major religious works, the Jewish Tanakh and the Muslim Qur’an, and associated commentaries, the Jewish Talmud and Muslim Hadith, are compared and evaluated for religious insights into the disputed areas. Contemporary interpretations of each major writing and political objections based on religious argumentation create a strong context for modern conflict. The requirements and precedents for peace that come from religious texts also promote open dialogue. This thesis suggests ways to open dialogue between the Israeli and Palestinian cultures, comparing religious texts, interpretations, and concepts, in an effort to promote peaceful co-existence and build an effective strategic narrative.

Judendom och kristendom härstammar från samma rot, men trots detta ser diskussionerna kring abort olika ut bland religionerna. Den här uppsatsen syftar till att beskriva trosföreställningar kring livets begynnelse, besjälning och fostrets status som avgörande faktorer för hur synen på abort inom judendom och kristendom har sett ut sedan antiken fram till i dag. För att få svar på frågan analyseras officiella kyrkoläror inom katolicism samt judiska hållningar uttryckt i judendomens skriftliga auktoriteter (Torah, Tanakh, Mishnah och Talmud) samt av framstående post-talmudiska rabbiner. Dessa trosföreställningar analyseras även utifrån den antika hellenistiska kulturen och filosofin för att förstå hur dessa har påverkat judiska och kristna trosföreställningar. Därefter analyseras hur de beskrivna trosföreställningar också har påverkat synen på abort bland protestanter liksom bland ortodoxa och reformerta judar. Metoden som används är en allmän litteraturstudie som syftar till att beskriva kunskapsläget inom det valda ämnet. Resultatet visar att synen på abort och trosföreställningarna kring livets begynnelse, besjälning och fostrets status har varit relativt konstant inom judendom där abort generellt har fördömts, om inte abort har varit en nödvändighet för att rädda kvinnans liv. Detta har baserats på att fostret inte har ansetts ha samma rättigheter och status som den gravida kvinnan. Reformjudendomen har dock blivit alltmer liberal i frågan och menar att det är den gravida kvinnan som själv måste avgöra om en abort är etisk försvarbar eller ej. Den katolska kyrkan har i alla tider fördömt abort, men har inte varit konsekvent ifrån vilken tidpunkt en abort betraktas som mord. I dag betraktas ett foster som en person redan vid befruktningen, medan man tidigare har satt olika tidsgränser. De protestantiska kyrkorna bevarade till en början de katolska lärorna kring abort, men dessa kom sedan att slopas av de moderna protestanterna i och med moderniteten. De konservativa protestantiska kyrkorna fördömer dock generellt abort likt katolikerna. I dag betraktas abort bland moderna protestanter som någonting som den gravida kvinnan själv måste fatta ett beslut om. Det är tydligt att både judar och kristna har satt fostrets rättigheter och status i centrum som avgörande faktorer för synen kring abort, medan man i antiken generellt inte betraktade abort som någonting problematiskt ur fostrets perspektiv, status och rättigheter.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-03T12:19:56Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Silas Cardoso2.pdf: 1303036 bytes, checksum: 6bfbab99f1aee463f9c257e694559274 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-05-25 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The research aims the Torah as an aniconic cultic object in the postexilic, revealing its ritualistic face in the Ancient Israel worship. It is proposed that the centralization of Torah in the Second Temple Period will be an ideological and macrostructural construction i.e., an invented tradition of the post-exilic priesthood that aims to unify the nation that rebuild itself. For that analysis, three cuts related to the question are persecuted: (1) the cult materiality in its continuities and ruptures with the pre-exilic Israelite religion, from the material culture and biblical analysis of four central cultic objects presented in the Deuteronomistic History, bamah, massebah, Asherah and Ark; (2) the redactional practices that defend the Torah centralization that inspires in the other cults of Ancient Israel, especially observed in the exegetical analysis of Ps 19, one of the major Torah Psalms of the Hebrew salter; (3) the canonical texts editing that was legitimator retroprojected visions of the posterior and centralized vision of Torah, from the creation of a text materiality typology, from the exegetical analysis of the texts. With that environment we propose a model of four instances of construction of post-exilic aniconism, centralized on Torah and reaching the different layers from judahite religion. / A pesquisa trabalha a Torá como objeto de culto anicônico no pósexílio, apresentando sua face ritualística no culto do Israel Antigo. É proposto que a centralização da Torá no período do Segundo Templo seria uma construção ideológica macroestrutural i.e., uma tradição inventada do grupo sacerdotal pós-exílico em vista de unificar a nação que se reconstruía e reconfigurava. Para tal análise, observam- se três recortes distintos ligados à questão: (1) a materialidade do culto em suas continuidades e rupturas com a religião israelita pré-exílica, a partir da análise da cultura material e da análise da literatura bíblica de quatro objetos cúlticos centrais da OHD, bamah, massebah, Asherá e arca; (2) as práticas redacionais que advogavam a centralização da Torá com inspiração nos demais cultos e concepções do divino no Antigo Israel, especialmente observada na análise exegética do Sl 19, como um dos principais Salmos da Torá que teriam sido produzidos no período para promulgar a nova prática; e (3) a editoração dos diversos textos canônicos que teriam sido retroprojeções legitimadores da visão posterior centralizadora da Torá, através da criação de uma tipologia da materialidade dos textos e da Torá advinda da análise exegética de diversos textos. Com tal panorama, sob pesquisa exegética de orientação histórico-crítica, é proposto um modelo de quatro instâncias de construção do aniconismo pós-exílico, centralizado na Torá e atingindo as diferentes camadas da religião judaíta.

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This thesis interprets the concept of human being in the work of Maimonides and ibn Rushd, two representatives of major Arab and Jewish medieval philosophy. It combines the ancient Greek philosophical tradition, especially Aristotle, with a religious context. When Maimonides and Ibn Rushd tried to harmonize these two traditions, they had to deal with many opposite views, that stemmed from the difference between religious and ancient world. Behind this intellectual ground have they created the original thesis and approaches to grasping reality, the world and the human being in it. The issue of human being is analyzed in three levels. The first level consists of the relationship between human being and creation, which addresses the question about origin of the world the human soul and the resurrection. The second level, i.e. the man and the world, is devoted to describing a scheme of the world, human knowledge and the theory of prophecy. Ethical and political views are analyzed on the third level, which represents the position of human being in relation to the polis. Keywords Ibn Rushd, Maimonides, Aristotle, Plato, neoplatonism, philosophy, religion, The Koran, Torah, human being, world, creation, eternity, soul, resurrection, emanation, knowledge, illumination, active intellect, prophecy, politics,...

This dissertation is an exploration of the relationship of wisdom to salvation history in the book of Psalms. The notional starting point of this thesis is a conviction that there might be a juncture at which the two themes converge because in certain psalms such as Psalm 78, the Israelite concept of salvation appears to have a close relationship with the wisdom theme. In the history of Psalm interpretation so far, the concept of wisdom psalm has not been properly dealt with due to scholastic difficulty in ascertaining the clear criteria of a genre. The process of scrutinizing the history of interpretation showed that the Psalms in their final form were far more purposeful than were previously understood. The major guiding principles of the method employed are: (1) 'the canonical approach' of Brevard Childs; (2) 'the canonical criticism' of James Sanders; (3) 'the canonical process approach' of Bruce Waltke; (4) 'the Christo-canonical approach' of Jerry E. Shepherd; and (5) 'the communito-canonical approach' of deClaissé-Walford. This thesis made use of these methodological principles by attempting to read the Psalter from the beginning to the end, and by focusing mainly on the final stage of the Psalter proposed by B. Waltke as the third stage, or the final and complete Old Testament canon associated with the Second Temple, and by purposefully limiting the scope of our study to around the post-exilic period. Having dealt with the issue of classifying the wisdom psalm, the presence of the wisdom motif in many psalms which do not fall into the wisdom category serves to add a didactic dimension to the entire Psalter. In so doing, we reach a conclusion that what we are dealing with is not merely the wisdom psalms within the Psalms, but 'the wisdom Psalter' as a literary unit. Then, it can be said that the Psalter is not merely an anthology of individual psalms used for cult, but was meant to be read also as a source of min , an instruction. This means that every psalm in the Psalter has pedagogical potential, which may have been the ostensible intent of the editor(s) at the final stage of the formation of the Psalter. On this premise, this study attempts to set up a strategy to read the Psalms from the beginning to the end from book I up to book V as a wisdom Psalter, with a particular focus on how the wisdom motif relates to the salvation history motif. The question did not merely concern their interpretation as disjointed pieces, but also what their presence in the book of Psalter meant in terms of the relationship between wisdom and salvation history. This means that the study is influenced less by a historical and form critical approach, but more from a literary and canonical perspective. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Old Testament))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2008.