bunal. This was the constant practice until the days of our our holy Rabbi; who collected the whole of the oral instructions, and the decisions, and all the commentaries and interpretations, which had been received by word of mouth from Moses, and which the successive beth-din, or " tribunals," of every age had expounded on the whole of the torah From all of which he compiled the book Mishna, and taught it to wise men in the public assembly. Thus it was made known to all Israel, who copied it, and spread it every where, in order that the verbal law might not be lost to Israel. Should it be asked, "Why did our holy Rabbi depart from the usual course?" the answer is, Because he saw that the number of disciples was continually decreasing whilst persecutions were increasing; that the rule of tyranny prevailed and overspread the world, and Israel was in continued commotion, and scattered to the utmost ends of the carth. He therefore compiled a work to be in the hands of all, that they might speedily learn and not forget it. He and his tribunal occupied themselves throughout his whole life-time in constant and public instruction. And these are the great sages who were members of his tribunal, or who succeeded him: Simeon and Gamaliel the sons of R. Jehuda, R. Ephes, Chanina ben Chama, R. Chija, Rab, R. Janai, bar Caphara, Samuel, R. Jochanan, R. Hosea, and with them thousands of other learned men. Although the eleven here enumerated were pupils of our holy Rabbi, and remained by his instruction, R. Jochanan was the yougest among them, and but a youth. He afterwards became the disciple of R. Janai, and received the tradition from him. Rab likewise learned from R. Janai, whilst Samuel was instructed by R. Chanina ben Chama. Rab composed Siphra and Siphri, to expound and elucidate the principles of the Mishna. R. Chija composed Tosephta, to explain its different subjects and their causes; and R. Hosea and bar Caphara together composed Beractha to interpret the contents of the Mishna. R. Jochanan compiled the JERUSALEM TALMUD in Palestine, about two hundred years after the destruction of the second temple. As the greatest of the sages who succeeded Rab and Samuel, we mention, R. Huna, R. Jehuda, R. Nachman, R. Gaana; and of those who succeeded R. Jochanan we likewise mention Rabbah the grandson of Chanah, R. Ami, R.Assi, R. Dimi, and R. Abon. Amongst the number of sages who succeeded R. Huna and R. Jehuda we mention Rabba and R. Joseph the blind. Amongst their successors we name Abajah and Ravah, both of whom likewise received instruction from R. Nachman. Amongst the number of sages who received instruction from Ravah were, R. Ashi and R. Avina. Mar, the son of R. Ashi, received instruction from his father and from R. Avina. Thus you find forty generations from R. Ashi up to Moses, our teacher of blessed memory, who was instructed by the Deity himself. And thus you find that their traditions in an uninterrupted chain are all from the Lord God of Israel. All the sages that have been enumerated were the greatest of their respective ages; some of them were heads of colleges, some of them heads of the captivity, some of them members of the Great Sanhedrim; and in every age thousands and tens of thousands of their contemporaries heard from, and were instructed by, them. R. Avina and R. Ashi were the last of the Talmudic Doctors. R. Ashi compiled the Babylonic Talmud, in the land of Shinnaar, (Chaldea,) about one hundred years after the compilation of the Jerusalem Talmud by R. Jochanan. The subject of both the Talmuds is the explanation of the contents of the Mishnaioth, and an interpretation of its difficulties; likewise what had been decided in every age since the decease of our holy Rabbi. By these two Talmuds, by Tosephta, Siphra, Siphri, and the Tosephtoth; by all of them is made manifest what is prohibited or permitted; what is clean or unclean; guilty or not guilty; what is unlawful or legal, as it had been transmitted from man to man, even from the mouth of Moses 66 at Sinai. By them likewise are made manifest the commands of our Rabbies, and of the prophets who were in each succeeding age, in order to make a fence round the law, as they had plainly been directed by Moses, who said, “And ye shall observe my statutes; (Levit. xix. 37;) that is, Ye shall make a guard to my statutes. By them are likewise explained the customs and decrees which were enacted and practised in every age, as the beth-din of that age approved them, and from which it was prohibited to depart: As it is said, Thou shalt not deviate from the word which they will tell thee either to the right or the left." (Deut. xvii. 11.) The judgments and difficult decisions are likewise explained, whieh had not been received from Moses, but which the respective tribunals of the age decided in conformity with the thirteen logical rules according to which the law is expounded: Concerning which decisions the elders pronounced, "Such is the law." All these R. Ashi compiled in the Talmud, from the days of Moses to his own times. The Doctors of the Mishna likewise composed other works to interpret the words of the torah. R. Hosea, a pupil of our holy Rabbi composed a Commentary on the book of Bereshith," Genesis;" and R. Ismael commented on Schemoth," Exodus," and on the rest of the Pentateuch; which Commentary is called Mechilta. R. Akiva had likewise written a Mechilta; and many other sages after them wrote Medrashim, or Expositions." But all these were composed previous to the Babylonian Talmud. Consequently R. Avina and R. Ashi, and their associates, were the last of the great sages of Israel to whose guardianship the transmission of the verbal laws was confided,-who decreed ordinances, enacted statutes, laid down customs, and extended such ordinances, statutes, and customs to all Israel, in all their habitations. After the beth-din of R. Ashi, who composed the Talmud, and in the days of his son who completed it, Israel was still more widely scattered throughout all the nations, and extended even to the most distant 66 shores and isles. Dissensions increased in the world. Warlike hosts rendered the roads unsafe. The study of the law decreased, and Israelites did not, as in former days, assemble by thousands and tens of thousands in their colleges. Only a few individuals, whom the Lord deigned to call, joined themselves together in their respective cities and countries, occupied themselves with the study of the law, and understood all the writings of the sages; by means of which they knew the decision which justice dictated. Each beth-din, or tribunal," that arose subsequent to the compilation of the Talmud, and that decreed, or enacted, or laid down customs to its own countrymen, or to the inhabitants of different countries, did not extend its authority to all the Israelites, owing to the distance of their habitations, and the unsafe state of the roads. As the tribunals of these countries were individual, and as the great beth-din of Seventy-one with whom rested all final decisions had ceased to exist many years previous to the compilation of the Talmud, the inhabitants of one country are not compelled to observe the customs of another country; and one beth-din cannot be called upon to enforce the decrees enacted by that of another land. And thus, likewise, if one of the Gaonim, "principal Rabbies," pronounced a certain decision or judgment, and if another tribunal was of opinion that such decision was not in conformity to the Talmud, it was left to the option of individuals to adhere to the decision of the former or to that of the latter. This relates to decisions, ordinances, enactments, and customs, originating since the compilation of the Talmud. But whatever is contained in the Babylonian Talmud is obligatory on all Ísrael to abide by. And it is compulsory on each city or country to observe all the customs laid down by the Talmudic Doctors, to enforce their decrees, and to obey their enactments; because all those things which are contained in the Talmud have been authenticated and legalized by all Israel; and those sages who authorized, or decreed, or enacted, or demonstrated a decision, and taught such to be the law, had received the principles of the law by tradition, from age to age up to the days of Moses our teacher. The sages who arose after the compilation of the Talmud, and demonstrated therefrom, and gained favour by their wisdom, are called Gaonim. All these Gaonim who arose either in the land of Israel, or of Shinnar, (“Chaldea,") or in Sphard, ("Spain,") or Zarphath, (“France,") and taught the principles of the Talmud, elucidated its profound sayings, and expounded those passages in it the meaning of which is extremely difficult in itself. In addition to which it is written in Aramaic, intermixed with other languages; the former was the vernacular tongue amongst the men of Shinnar at the time the Talmud was compiled. But in other places, and likewise in Shinnar, in the days of the Gaonim, that language was no longer understood unless by tuition. As the inhabitants of different cities directed many questions to the Gaon of every respective age, that he might expound to them the difficult passages of the Talmud, to which he replied according to the measure of talents with which he was gifted; those who asked the questions collected the answers, and formed them together into books for their instruction. Each of the Gaonim in every age likewise composed works of their own accord, to explain the Talmud: some of them on solitary decisions, others on single chapters, which, in their time, were considered as difficult; and some of them expounded entire treatises and volumes. They likewise pronounced and wrote decisions on subjects of prohibition and permission, guilt or acquittal; and on such matters as the occasion required, in order that they might be within the reach of the understanding of those who could not penetrate the depths of the Talmud. And this is the work of the Lord with which all the Gaonim, "principal teachers," of Israel occupied themselves, from the day when the Talmud was compiled until this present time, which is the eighth after 1100 since the destruction of the temple, or in the year 4937 since the creation of the world. At this present time persecutions are become exceeding strong; the pressure of the times weighs heavily on all; the wisdom of our sages is lost; and the understanding of our wise men is concealed from us; so that the expositions, decisions, and replies which the Gaonim composed and approved as explicit, are, in these days, become difficult of comprehension, which induces me, Moses the son of Maimon, to undertake the present work. (To be resumed.) V.-CUSTOMS AND OBSERVANCES OF THE JEWS. THE harvest-home has, at all times and amongst most nations, been considered as a season of hilarity and feasting. The Israelites, in the possession of their own land, blessed with abundance, and favoured with all the gifts of bountiful Providence which a rich soil, a salubrious clime, and a land overflowing with milk and honey could produce, had cause, beyond most other nations, to exult in the permission to express their gratitude towards the God of their fathers, who had released them from the house of bondage, protected them during their wanderings in the wilderness, settled them in the land of his promise, in cities which they had not built, to enjoy houses abundantly furnished with every thing good, which they did not fill, and vineyards and olive trees which they did not plant. However great these temporal mercies were, they were far exceeded by that spiritual blessing which their God pronounced on them when he vouchsafed to say, "Ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people; for all the earth is mine. And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests and a holy people." (Exod. xix. 5, 6.) To them he entrusted his laws, them he appointed as the guardians of his commandments, the depositaries of his will, and of them he emphatically declared, in the words of the prophet Isaiah, "Ye are my witnesses, saith the Lord." (xliii. 10.) The special purposes which induced the Deity to select our fathers from amongst the nations of the earth, and to consecrate them to his service, required that they should be a holy people, sanctified in all their paths, pious and godly at all times and under all circumstances, and not less penetrated with devotion and obedience to the Deity on their days of feasting and exultation, than they were on their days of fasting and humiliation. Iom hakippurim closed, their peace made with their God and their brethren, a season of festivity commences: But it is in accordance with the Divine command as laid down in His law, where we find the origin and institution of the feast of tabernacles thus expressed, in Lev. xxiii. 33: "Speak unto the children of Israel saying: The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the feast of tabernacles for seven days unto the Lord. On the first day shall be an holy convocation Ye shall do no servile work therein." Again, in the same chapter, verse 39:-" Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye have gathered in the fruit of the land, ye shall keep a feast unto the Lord seven days. On the first day shall be a Sabbath, and on the eighth shall be a Sabbath. And ye shall take unto yourselves on the first day the fruit of the tree Hadar, palm leaves, boughs of the tree Aboth, and willows of the brook; and ye shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days. And ye shall celebrate it as a feast to the Lord seven days in the year. An everlasting statute to all your generations, in the seventh month ye shall celebrate it. In booths shall ye dwell seven days. Every denizen in Israel shall dwell in booths: In order that your generations may know that I caused the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them outof the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.” It is repeated in Numbers xxix. 12: "And on the fifteenth day of the seventh month ye shall have an holy convocation. Ye shall do no servile work, and ye shall celebrate a feast to the Lord, seven days." Here then we find two distinct commandments given for the observance of the feast: First, the dwelling in booths, and secondly, the using (for the purpose of prayer and commemoration) four species of the vegetable kingdom. Tradition teaches us, that, they are as follow: The fruit of the tree Hadar* or Esrog, "Citron," the Capoth temarim, or Loolif, "Palm leaves," boughs of the tree aboth, "myrtles," and brook-willows. We shall treat of these two observances separately. The first dwelling in Succoth, "booths" or "tabernacles,"-gives the name to the festival. Such a Succah or 66 'booth," must be erected under the open sky. It must not be completely roofed in or covered in with any solid material, but must be thatched in such a manner as to admit the view of the sky and of the stars. During the continuance of the festival it is imperative to dwell in the succah; that is to say, all meals must be taken there; and where the climate permits, it is customary likewise to sleep there. In addition to the reason assigned in holy writ, and which we quoted above, Leviticus xxiii. 33;—“That your generations may know that I caused the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt:" and which, as some commentators say, refers to the pillar of the cloud," (Exodus xiii. 21,) that guided and sheltered them: addition to this reason there are many symbolic indications in this and the other observances of the feast. Amongst the many commentators who have endeavoured to explain these observances, and each of whom assigns to them a sublime and truly pious meaning, we confine ourselves to the Akedatht Itzchack, (folio 228–29,) where it is said, In "The general intention of the law is to liberate man from the slavery of his earthly passions, and to transform it into obedience to the king There are two different meanings assigned to the word Hadar, "goodly or beautiful," and our Rabbies derive it from ha-dar "which rests," as the fruit winters on the tree. dom of heaven. We find it said in Deuteronomy viii. 12 : "Lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses and dwelt therein; when thy herds and flocks multiply; when thy silver and gold is multiplying; and all thou hast increases; thy heart grow proud, and thou forget the Lord thy God." To guard against this fearful consequence of earthly prosperity, there is a commandment, which directs the Israelite, that, precisely at the time of the harvest, in the midst of general abundance, he is to call to mind, that he is but a sojourner here, and that his real home is another and a better world. Therefore he quits his constant and appointed residence to dwell in a booth. He abandons the roof of his abode with all the riches, comforts, and incentives to worldly passions which it contains, and resigns himself to contemplation. His booth admits the view of the sky and stars through its frail covering, in order that he may be reminded of their Creator and his own. As the Psalmist says, "The heavens proclaim the glory of God." (Psalm xix.) (To be continued.) NOTICE TO CORRESPONDENTS. WE have been favoured with several communications. To some of them we have but one general reply:-That we are merely translators, therefore not responsible for the opinions of our authors, and that we will not allow ourselves to become involved in any controversy, either religious or political. Some of these communications, however, require a particular reply, which we will endeavour to give, as our time and space may permit. "MR. presents his compliments to the Editor of the Hebrew Review, and begs to call his attention to the great inaccuracy of the paragraph in the first number of the Review, page 3, beginning with the words, 'And yet in Britain,' and ending the spirit of the age.' It is there stated, that wherever the English language prevails, the Jew dwells under laws which extend protection equally to all without distinction of creed. This would be correct if it were said of many of the dependencies of England, such as the East Indies, Jamaica, Lower Canada, or Barbadoes, or of France, Holland, Belgium, or the United States of America; for in all these different countries and colonies the laws do make no distinction between Jews and other persons. But the statement is certainly quite incorrect when applied to England, where the law, so far from making no distinction of creed, excludes the Jew, on account of his creed, from every political privilege which all other classes may possess. "The whole passage, too, appears to Mr. to convey the idea that Jews ought to be grateful for mere shelter and personal freedom; while he has no doubt that the Editor must agree with him in thinking that there is nothing in these things that can demand any extraordinary gratitude, and that the Jews are just as well entitled as other people, not only to shelter and freedom which they enjoy, but also to political privileges which they possess in the various states to which Mr. has referred, but of which they are unjustly deprived in England. "Mr. forwards a number of the Companion to the Newspaper, containing some information on the subject to which he has adverted."* Our correspondent does not seem to have sufficiently considered the difference between political privileges and the protection of the laws. They * Although this communication is marked private, we think it our duty to give publicity to its contents, in order to set the question at rest with such of our brethren as may share the opinion of the writer, whose name, however, we shall not presume to publish without his permission. |