A Talmudist’s Biblical Hermeneutics: A New Understanding of Maimonides’ Principle of Peshat Primacy.

Date

2012

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Ramat-Gan, Israel : Faculty of Jewish Studies, Bar-Ilan University, [2002-

Abstract

The clarification of Maimonides’ peshat model does more than simply demonstrate his connection to the celebrated peshat school of Jewish interpretation; it reveals how he shatters hermeneutical barriers and charts a bold, unique course within the revolutionary peshat movement. Other pashtanim, as a rule, avoided drawing halakhic conclusions from their novel exegetical methods. Maimonides, on the other hand, specifically formulates his principle of peshat primacy in order to shape a stratified system of halakhah anchored in “the texts of the Torah.” Fusing his exegetical sensibilities, his firm control of the vast sea of talmudic learning and a theoretical framework he constructed by appropriating concepts from Muslim jurisprudence, Maimonides creates an integrated legal hermeneutics that makes him a bright star within the constellation of great Jewish Bible interpreters. (from conclusion)

Description

Scholarly article

Keywords

biblical hermeneutics, biblical interpretation, Maimonides, peshat

Citation

Cohen, Mordechai Z. A Talmudist’s Biblical Hermeneutics: A New Understanding of Maimonides’ Principle of Peshat Primacy. Jewish Studies, an Internet Journal 10 (2012): 1–103.