Sanders,Neusner,andSatlow(Smith)

RabbiDarrenKleinberg

InJudaism:PracticeandBelief,63BCE66CE1992),E.P.Sandersarguedthat,notwithstanding
thewellknowndiversityoffirstcentury,theordinarypeoplepracticedacommonJudaism
centeredontemple,synagogue,andhome.(1)

[C]ommonJudaismsignifiesthebeliefsandpracticesandpracticesofthevastmajorityof
JewsintheSecondTempleperiodwhodidnotbelongtothemajorpartiesorsectsand
thereforedidnotengageinthepracticesorholdthebeliefsthatdifferentiatedonegroupfrom
anothertherearefourelementsthatJewsheldincommon:(1)theybelievedinand
worshipedtheGodofIsrael;(2)theyacceptedtheHebrewBible(oftenintranslation)as
revealingGodswill;(3)consequentlytheyobservedmostaspectsofMosaiclaw;and(4)they
identifiedthemselveswiththehistoryandfateoftheJewishpeople.(2)

ThislargeassumptionofdiversitywithinunitywaschallengedbyJacobNeusner.Intheearly
andmid1980shepublishedbooksandessaysthattookanextremestanceonunityand
diversity.Therewaslittleunity,andthediversityamountedtoasubstantialdegreeofisolation:
therewerevariousJudaisms,eachhavingverylittleor,ashesometimessaid,nothingtodo
withanother.TheMishnah,hewrote,exhaustivelyexpress[es]acompletethefitofthe
worldviewandwayoflifefantasizedbyitsframer.(14)

Thisrhetoricwasattractivetomanypeople.ThewordJudaismscameintowidespreaduse.
(15)

CommonJudaism,asdefinedbySanders,wasaliveandwellinDiasporaJudaism.Jewsfrom
Italy,Egypt,Mesopotamia,andJerusalembelievedthatGodhadgiventheTorahtoIsrael,
rescuedIsraelfromEgyptianbondage,andwouldinsomefashionfreeIsraelinthefutureyet
again.IncludedwithincommonJudaismwasacommitmenttothesacrificialsystem,the
temple,observanceofSabbathandfestivals,circumcision,purity,dietarylaws,andcharity.
True,profounddifferencesexisted.WhileTorah,synagogues,andpuritywereimportantforall
Jews,theirlanguage,function,andsignificancediffered.AlthoughPalestinianJewswerebyno
meansimmunetoHellenisticinfluence,DiasporaJewsconfrontedanddealtwithGreek
language,culture,andsocialstructuresinamuchmoredirectandwidespreadwaythandid
PalestinianJews.YetPalestinianandDiasporaJewsidentifiedthemselvesandeachotheras
membersofthesamepeople,justasIsraeliJewsandNorthAmericanJewsdotoday.(219220)

Excerptstakenfrom:McCready,WayneO.&AdeleReinhartz.CommonJudaism:ExplorationsinSecond
TempleJudaism.Minneapolis:FortressPress,2008.

TheearliestunderstandingofJudaism,whichcontinuestosomeextenttotoday,ultimatelyis
anessentialistone.Essentialistdefinitionsassertthatthereisanessencetothething,usually
markedbyasetofdefiningcharacteristics.Thismightbeasetofbeliefsorpracticesora
supernaturalessence.WithoutthisessencewhateveritisitisnolongerconsideredJudaism.
Essentialistdefinitionsusuallyhaveanormativedimension.Theyarecreatedandusedbya
communitytodefineitselfandthusalsotosetitsboundaries.(3)
 Sanders,Neusner,andSatlow(Smith)
RabbiDarrenKleinberg

ThepracticeofdefiningJudaismbothnormativelyandessentiallyhashadaremarkablestaying
power.Paul,himselfaJew,turnedthisnormativedefinitiononitshead.Judaismindeedhadan
essence,butthatessencewasthestatic,deadlawagainstwhichChristianitywouldcometo
defineitselfasareligionofthespirit.Intheseformulations,JudaismbecameaChristian
theologicalcategorythatChristianscouldusefortheirownselfdefinition:WearenotJews.(3)

thestudyofJudaisminantiquityhasmadeclear[that]thereweremanyJewishsubgroups,
and[]theywerefrequentlyatoddswitheachother[Previously]scholarsalmostuncritically
consideredtheJudaismofantiquitytobethatofthePharisees,asimaginativelyreconstructed
bymodernscholars.[Subsequentscholarswereforced]totakecontemporaryrenegadeand
marginalJewishgroupsmoreseriously,especiallythegroupdocumentedbytheDeadSea
Scrolls,whichwerejustbeginningtobepublished.Thecumulativeeffectofthisscholarly
activitywastodecenterthePharisees;theydidnotrepresentmainstreamJudaism,but
ratherwerejustoneofmanyJewishgroups(albeitonethatatcertaintimesmayhavehad
moreinfluencethatother)competingforadherentsuntiltheslowriseoftheRabbisthatbegan
afterthedestructionoftheSecondTemplein70CE.JacobNeusner,aprofessoratBrown
University,sawsuchdiversityinthisperiodthathetendedtospeakoftheJudaismof
antiquityratherthanofasingleJudaism.(45)

ThetermJudaismsseemstosolvetheproblemcreatedbyJudaism.Itimplicitlyassumesthat
therearemanyJudaisms,eachoneofwhichhasintegrityinitsownright,thusrejectingasingle
normativedefinitionButJudaismsdoesnotsolveanything.Remarkably,anddespiteits
commonusebyscholars,thereislittleextensivescholarlydefenseoftheterm;ithasbeen
used,butonlythinlyexplainedorargued.IfJudaismsuffersfromitsneglectofdiversity,
Judaismsneglectstheaspectofunity.(5)

ThedebatebetweenJudaismandJudaismsislargelyamatterofsemanticemphasis,butpoints
toamuchmoreinterestingandcomplexproblem.Howarewe,notnecessarilyasparticipants
withinareligiouscommunitybutashumanbeingswhoseektounderstandandlearn
somethingfromandaboutreligion,toexplaintheenormousdiversityofJewishreligious
communitiesor,forthatmatter,anygroupofreligiouscommunitieswithoutlosingsightof
theirunity?(5)

JonathanZ.SmitharguedforapolytheticdefinitionofearlyJudaism(and,byextension,other
religioustraditions).Polytheticdefinitionsdifferfromessentialistonesinthattheyfocuson
setsofoverlappingcharacteristics.Outofalistofcharacteristicsthatallmembersofaclass
mightshare,therewillbelargeoverlapsofsharedcharacteristics,butsomememberswillhave
nothingincommonwithothers.Thereisnosinglesharedcomponentthatisessentialtoa
membersinclusion.(7)

Excerptstakenfrom:Satlow,Michael.CreatingJudaism:History,Tradition,Practice.NewYork:Columbia
UniversityPress,2006.