The Transformation of Israelite Religion to Rabbinic Judaism

The Transformation of Israelite Religion to Rabbinic Judaism by Juan Marcos Bejarano Gutierrez

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This is a broad and fairly superficial survey of the topic concerning how Judaism went from an Ancient Near Eastern (“ANE”) religion with some peculiarities to the form of Rabbinic Judaism which is normative today.

Of course, there were the defining elements of the Sinai and Torah revelations/covenants that gave the Jewish religion a different premise from other ANE religions. Likewise, Gutierrez argues that the putative polytheism of ancient Judaism until the prophets combed through Judaism to repress its apparent polytheism is overstated. There was a monotheistic commitment prior to the prophets reflected by the success of the prophets:

‘To speak of the prophets such as Isaiah as instrumental in the introduction of strict monotheism is therefore incorrect according to this view. The most persuasive evidence for this lies in the very conditions of Israelite religion following the disintegration of Judean independence after the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BCE. The returning Babylonian exiles from subsequent generations returned with a religious expression very much connected to the idea of uncompromising monotheism, which arguably would not have occurred if indeed the character of popular Israelite belief was so ingrained with the mythological beliefs of assumed polytheism.

Bejarano-Gutierrez, Dr. Juan Marcos. The Transformation of Israelite Religion to Rabbinic Judaism (pp. 10-11). Yaron Publishing. Kindle Edition.

The Babylonian Captivity oriented the leadership class of Israel toward a literate, law-abiding, monotheistic religion, which Guiterrez argues, was present previously:

“The returning Babylonian exiles from subsequent generations returned with a religious expression very much connected to the idea of uncompromising monotheism, which arguably would not have occurred if indeed the character of popular Israelite belief was so ingrained with the mythological beliefs of assumed polytheism.

Bejarano-Gutierrez, Dr. Juan Marcos. The Transformation of Israelite Religion to Rabbinic Judaism (p. 11). Yaron Publishing. Kindle Edition.

Scribes came to dominate and to diminish the importance of the prophets. The adherence to the law required legal rulings, attention to precedent, and a class that could make such rulings. The focus of the individual believer included not only the Temple, but the written word. Scripture was read throughout the Diasporan communities. The Torah and other sacred texts were kept in the Temple as equivalent to Temple treasures, which helped to form the idea of a canon of scriptures, although the “canon” was not exclusive:

“The liturgy of the Temple service came to include readings from various sections of the Pentateuch, including passages from Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Also, three copies of the Torah were kept in the Temple, each reflecting a textual variant currently in existence.

Bejarano-Gutierrez, Dr. Juan Marcos. The Transformation of Israelite Religion to Rabbinic Judaism (p. 18). Yaron Publishing. Kindle Edition.

Guitierrez discusses the categories of canonization, including an odd third category:

“It appears that the rabbis of the Mishnaic period, for example, differentiated between works they considered as canonical but uninspired and those, which they regarded as both inspired and canonical literature. Surprisingly, a third category exists, that of non-canonical but inspired works. As an example, later Judaism regarded the Mishnah, Talmud, and Halakhic codes as authoritative texts for daily life and practice, though not inspired through divine revelation. In this regard, such works are to be considered canonical. In contrast, the Hebrew Scriptures were regarded as inspired, canonical literature. The Tannaim and Amoraim regarded the Hebrew Scriptures as having been written under divine inspiration, n'amarah b'ruach HaKodesh – spoken through the Holy Spirit.

Bejarano-Gutierrez, Dr. Juan Marcos. The Transformation of Israelite Religion to Rabbinic Judaism (p. 22). Yaron Publishing. Kindle Edition.

Unfortunately, in my reading, he did not go far enough in explaining what was contained in or what happened to the category of “inspired but not canonical.” I will have to research more about books that “defilith the hand.”

But that is the virtue of this book. It is more of a springboard and introduction to the subject and so can be profitably used as a place to begin further study. In itself the book is quite short and read in short order. It is not by any means a comprehensive survey of the topic.