Books Discussed
Bnei Banim
1. Tinok She-Nishbah
2. Seating Arrangements at Weddings
3. Non-Kosher Quotes
Israel Salanter
1. Musar and Benjamin Franklin
2. Musar and Benjamin Franklin II
3. Rabbi Israel Salanter
4. R. Joseph Zundel of Salant
Student's Guide Through the Talmud
1. Beruriah's Fate
2. Hazal and Biblical Characters
3. Classic Guide To Talmud Reissued
4. The Belated Answers to the Four Questions
5. Fantastic Aggadah
6. Publishers Weekly on Students' Guide
Pursuit of Justice and Jewish Law
1. Migo Misunder-stood
The Right and the Good
1. Spousal Abuse
2. A Pound of Flesh
3. First Book
4. Meet the Author
5. Human Dignity
Mysterious Creatures
1. Of Books and Bannings
2. Of Books and Bannings II
3. Creation and the Age of the Universe
4. Of Books and Bannings III
5. Of Books and Bannings IV
6. Buy the Books
7. Slifkin in the News
8. Letter to Haaretz
9. The Scientists on Slifkin
10. Moment Magazine on Slifkin
The Camel, the Hare, & the Hyrax
1. Of Books and Bannings
2. Of Books and Bannings II
3. Creation and the Age of the Universe
4. Of Books and Bannings III
5. Of Books and Bannings IV
6. Slifkin in the News
7. No More Camels
8. Letter to Haaretz
9. The Scientists on Slifkin
10. Moment Magazine on Slifkin
Archives
November 2004
December 2004
January 2005
February 2005
March 2005
April 2005
May 2005
June 2005
July 2005
August 2005
September 2005
October 2005
December 2005
January 2006
February 2006
March 2006
April 2006
May 2006
June 2006
July 2006
August 2006
September 2006
October 2006
November 2006
December 2006
January 2007
February 2007
March 2007
April 2007
May 2007
June 2007
July 2007
August 2007
September 2007
October 2007
November 2007
December 2007
January 2008
February 2008
December 2008
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
Beruriah's Fate
R. Zevi Hirsch Chajes, The Student's Guide Through the Talmud
Beruriah, the scholarly wife of the Tanna R. Meir, is mentioned a handful of times in the Talmud, always in a very positive light. It is therefore surprising that Rashi, in his commentary to Avodah Zarah (18b), should relate a very negative story about Beruriah in which she ends up committing suicide. There is no extant earlier source for this story, yet anyone familiar with Rashi's style of commentary knows that it is not in his nature to create stories.
R. Zevi Hirsch Chajes (AKA Maharatz Chayes) offers an explanation of this puzzle in a brief comment in chapter 31 (pp. 237-238) of his Mevo Ha-Talmud, translated into English and annotated by R. Jacob Shachter as The Student's Guide Through the Talmud and now being reprinted by Yashar Books. In a helpful footnote, R. Shachter summarizes the story of Beruriah's fate as told by Rashi:
The Gemara relates that in the opinion of some, R. Meir ran away to Babylon because of the incident involving Beruriah. Rashi, however tells the following story: Once Beruriah criticized the Rabbinic view (Kid. 80b) that women are light-minded, to which R. Meir replied that one day her own experience would testify to the truth of the Rabbi's words. The day came when she succumbed to the temptation of one of R. Meir's own disciples. Beruriah committed suicide and R. Meir fled from his home for shame.R. Chajes explains that "all such stories relating to various Talmudical sages as reflect no honour upon them... have been removed from our editions of the Talmud" but might still be reflected in the manuscripts or traditions available to the Geonim and early Rishonim. Thus, for example, the Halakhos Gedolos contains a story about how Mar Shmuel's father almost succumbed to a certain Median woman. Similarly, R. Chajes suggests, the story of Beruriah's fate was removed from the Talmud by an early editor but Rashi recorded the tradition in order to explain the cryptic passage about R. Meir.
- posted by Gil Student @ 9:10 AM
2023 © www.yasharbooks.com