King David The Paedophile Chapter 1

Methodology, Criteria and Sources

Objections

In the battle arena of polemics and apologetics there are frequent and often justified criticisms of the methodology and arguments used. I consider it reasonable to consider the objections raised by Talmud apologists and I will make a genuine attempt to accommodate them. I believe the following quotes are a fair and valid representation of typical protestations by apologists by which I will proceed:

Despite Dr. Brown listing numerous insults and ad hominem against his good self and Jews in general in his Christian Antisemitism book, he is not above responding in kind and describes Talmud, Judaism and Jewish critics as being: "vulgar", "venomous", "vile", "ugly", "liars", "irrational", "insane", "pathetic", "hysterical", "ludicrous" and "liars" etc. Innately, he questions the motives of everyone making unfavourable assertions. It did not occur to Dr. Brown to simply say: "I believe you are misinformed here, and your arguments are not convincing." Dr. Brown's trusted researchers, Jan Irvin and Lloyd De Jongh also resort to meaningful labelling of Talmud critics as "brain damaged" and having a "hate agenda". Regardless of the hypocrisy of mutual name-calling, there are legitimate issues raised in the above grievances and they certainly deserve to be taken into consideration. Thus:

Criteria

1. The Importance of Context

It is important to see a quote or topic in its original context, both in its position within the immediate surrounding text and within any interrelated text found elsewhere. Consequently, this publication contains many long and contiguous "verse" quotations from the Talmud specifically to avoid the charge of any one or more statements being labelled as inaccurate or non-contextual. In addition, multiple quotations are presented thematically and shown to be clearly related and relevant using authoritative commentary and legal decisions based on the quotes. The downside of this approach is that several points of interest will appear in lengthy quotations and there will be some repetition whereby various aspects of this inquiry will be addressed in their relevant chapters.

2. Accuracy of Material Quoted

Is the quote accurate and verbatim and correctly referenced? All quoted material in this publication is simply copied and pasted from valid and trusted sources that no Talmud apologist could honestly object to. Mistakes can happen, and even the source material may contain errors or typos. Any redactions or excluded material, sentences or words are indicated in the usual formal fashion. A source and/or URL are provided for every quote which can be therefore verified. The only liberty I take is to occasionally format the material differently and to use emphasis where I deem appropriate.

3. It's All Greek To Me!

A typical objection is, as used by Dr. Brown above: Can you read and understand the original language? This applies to any translation of any Hebrew, Aramaic, Arabic, Sanskrit or Greek religious texts into any other language including of course English. The pitfalls and difficulties are well-known in translations of any type or language. The objection is often raised to score cheap points and is often done selectively. (I.e., An issue made about knowing Hebrew when questioning the Talmud, but the same demand is not made when quoting the New Testament (Greek) or, as a pertinent comparison, when Jan Irvin and Lloyd De Jongh "criticise and expose" the Arabic language written Quran and Haditha. If any critic of this publication wants to take issue with any English translation of Hebrew or Aramaic sources, then their issue is really with the translators such as renowned scholars Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz and Rabbi Eliyahu Touger. I suggest Dr. Brown et. al. would find difficulty in dismissing these "expert", "authoritative" and "respected" individuals in their academic, scholarly, and Judaic domains. Why? Dr. Brown and his approved "researchers" have no qualms using the Talmud translation by Rabbi Steinsaltz and Rabbi Maimonides Mishneh Torah translation by Rabbi Touger themselves.

4. Identifying Genre in the Talmud

Is it myth, memories, case law, literal, allegorical, anecdotal, hypothetical, rhetorical or a legal decision? The Talmud is a rich and diverse collection of various literary types and the difficulty, which is true of many religious texts, is identifying accurately the genre of particular interest. What is of primary interest here is identifying which specific texts within the Talmud pertain to being the normative legal decisions of the Rabbis, specifically about the laws pertaining to sex with "minors" . The methodology used in this publication is explained in the following point.

5. Argument From Authority

Expert Knowledge of a subject. This can be a contentious issue, but in the context of the objective of this publication, I believe its use is legitimate and essential. Normally, an "argument from authority" is used in the sense that if an authority says X is true, it fallaciously suggests that X must be true simply on the strength of that "authority. Sometimes we must admit to needing assistance in unfamiliar territory. As Dr. Brown correctly points out, just because a proposition is stated in the Talmud, it does not follow it leads to, or is, a judicial and lawfully binding conclusion. It does not necessarily mean a single isolated sentence is normative Judaic law. Dr. Brown helpfully suggests the solution to this dilemma in that there are later Law Codes, extracted from the Talmud, which provide the standard and accepted legal rulings that define Jewish law and practice. Dr. Brown specifically mentions the Mishneh Torah by Rabbi Maimonides (aka Rambam) and the Shulchan Aruch by the lesser-known Rabbi Joseph Karo. It must be noted that Dr. Brown et. al. admits these law codes contain the definitive rulings followed by "traditional Jews". I agree!

6. The Sin of Omission Bias

There are several ways to illustrate and describe how this is done. It could be the strawman misrepresentation of an opponent's view and/or an argument made by omitting their most relevant and powerful evidence. Positions can be sustained by selective quote mining or cherry-picking. With Talmudic issues, both attackers and defenders are often guilty of deliberately suppressing material which disconfirms their hypothesis or assertions. It can also be more subtle in the sense that further enquiry is discouraged by such as the "you won't understand" or "it's too complex" tropes. Many books may appear scholarly, with copious endnotes and references given, but it is known by scholars that many people are either too lazy, too busy, or too trusting to check and verify the original quotes, sources and references given. Most of all, and unfortunately a prevalent practice in many walks of life, individuals simply exclude what they don't want you to know. This publication hopes to honestly present many examples of germane texts and sources for readers to assess where the weight of evidence lies for themselves.

Authoritative Sources, Rabbis, and Scholars Used in This Publication

1. The William Davidson Babylonian Talmud

This translation of the Talmud can be found online at Sefaria.org. On the site it says this about the translation:

2. Rabbi Adin Even-Israel Steinsaltz

Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz not only translated into English the huge Babylonian Talmud over many decades, but also provided incisive and detailed commentary, including clear references to the two most important sources of Halakhic (Jewish Law Codes) works recognised by Judaism and by Dr. Michael L. Brown, these being the Mishnah Torah and Shulchan Arukh. Introductions to each tractate of the Talmud and their chapters can be found at Introductions to the Babylonian Talmud.

3. The Koren Talmud Bavli

The 42 individual volumes contain Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz's Talmud translation, all introductions of tractates and chapters, with summaries, and page by page notes, background information and crucially highlights the Talmud text used to establish the Law Codes (Halakha) established in the Mishnah Torah and Shulchan Arukh.

4. Mishneh Torah by Rabbi Maimonides (Moshe ben Maimon) Also known by the acronym: Rambam

The Mishneh Torah used in this publication is translated by the renowned scholar Rabbi Eliyahu Touger who also provides the endnote explanations, and this law code can be found in its entirety at two websites:

Mishneh Torah at Chabad.org and Mishneh Torah at Sefaria.org

5. Shulchan Arukh by Rabbi Joseph Karo

6. Other

The Jewish Encyclopaedia.

20th and 21st century secondary sources by various Jewish rabbis, scholars, and academics.

Pitfalls and Difficulties For The Unwary

Spelling Conventions

Hebrew words with a phonetic translation can sometimes have several different English spellings and the unwary can sometimes be misled by a word search returning no results, or no results with the word in the expected context for example. There is nothing nefarious about this and the reason this happens, including with other languages translated from a non-Roman alphabet, can be found on online. In addition, sometimes one may think a reference given to the Talmud tractate spelt Hullin, is not the same source as a reference labelled tractate Chullin. (They are one and the same.) The point being, it is necessary to be aware of this reality and not be confused, or allow others to confuse, or dismiss, an accurate quote from the genuine source. This publication, in the main because different platforms use different spellings, will present quotes and references containing different spellings as and when they occur. It is the nature of the beast.

Similarly, the word for Jewish Law and/or Jewish Code, can be spelled in the following ways: halakha, halacha, halakhah and even halocho. If one searches the internet with any of these variations, most search engine algorithms are programmed nevertheless allow relevant results regardless of spelling. This is because "Halakha" is a commonly used term.

However, a search for the more controversial Hebrew term, Mi'un, also spelt Miun, Me'un, Meyun, or M'un, will probably find no relevant results on the mainstream search engines. The Presearch search engine will show the Jewish Encyclopedia entry for Mi'un. There are two reasons why this happens. 1. It is not a concept readily discussed in the wider public domain. 2. It is highly problematic for Talmud apologists. Briefly, Mi'un is the Hebrew word and rabbinical technical term, for refusal, denial or protest and gives the right to a 'minor girl' who had been married off to later, due to an 'aversion' to her husband, leave her husband without the formal need for a legal 'divorce' or get. (The exact criteria is discussed below.) All the nuances of this and other words will be explained in detail within this publication.

Definitions

Definitions of words are useful of course but can differ, not only over time, but have different uses or intent depending on context. Within this publication it will be seen that an orphan in the Talmud is defined as one without a living father (not also a mother). However, it is possible for a 'minor girl' to be considered an orphan in her father's lifetime depending on certain criteria.

Mostly, 'Minor girl' and 'minor boy' are clearly used in a typically lawfully defined manner with set parameters. However, exceptions include certain male or female adults being designated minors (because they show no signs of physical sexual maturity), and 'minor girls' being considered no longer minors but mature adults, if they become pregnant and give birth.

Betrothal and marriage are typically defined as two different stages, but the words can be used interchangeably for the same stage and can be combined into one stage.

The pitfall with Talmudic definitions is that an apologist for example can take one quote and legitimately claim a 'minor' includes a 20-year-old 'woman'. If the reasons for why a 20-year-old 'woman' is considered a 'minor' is not admitted or made clear, the normative definition of "minor" can be clouded with uncertainty. The short answer is that a 20-year-old woman, (or man) who show no signs of halachically defined sexual maturity, such as having two pubic hairs and/or breast development, are considered 'minors' (sexually immature physically) .

Unfamiliar words and terms will be defined within the flow of this publication.

References and Hyperlinks

All Talmud, Mishneh Torah and Shulchan Arukh quotes are hyperlinked to trusted sources. The Talmud URL links will take you to the specific texts at Sefaria.org. There you can also open a side bar where you can find most of the referenced Mishneh Torah and Shulchan Arukh parallels relevant to the topic discussed by the Talmudic Rabbis. The Mishneh Torah and Shulkhan Aruch can also be found in their complete form at that site. Some of Maimonides Mishneh Torah relevant parallels are not found at Sefaria.org but can also be found at Chabad.org.

A potential difficulty is that Sefaria.org, Chabad.org and the Koren Talmud Bavli volumes reference Maimonides Mishneh Torah using different language and wording for the exact same text. This publication will accommodate the problem consistently in the following way:

On Sefaria.org for example you will see:

"Mishneh Torah, Divorce 11:16"

On Chabad.org and in the Koren Talmud Bavli volumes for example you will see:

"Mishneh Torah (Rambam) – Sefer Nashim – Gerushin – Chapter 11:16"

To resolve this potential confusion for those wishing to verify quotes, this publication will always introduce a Mishneh Torah quote in the following way. First the heading:

Mishneh Torah – Gerushin 11:16

Followed by:

Sefer Nashim (The Book of Women) Gerushin (Divorce) 11:16

And then followed by the Mishneh Torah quote and any accompanying notes with a URL to the Chabad.org source text. The Chabad.org text will match the Sefaria.org text but is formatted and presented differently with a clearer list of the translators note for reference. This is preferable because Sefaria.org does not always parallel all the relevant Mishneh Torah texts with certain Talmud paragraphs.

Published: 10 April 2024

 

Notes

Note 1

Talmud: The Real Truth About The Talmud

Rabbi Gil Student's website providing apologetics addressing various accusations against the Talmud.

Gil Ofer Student (born August 8, 1972) is an Orthodox Jewish blogger who writes about the boundary between different aspects of Judaism, specifically Orthodox Judaism and Modern Orthodox Judaism. He is an ordained non-pulpit serving Orthodox rabbi who serves as a member of the Director of the Halacha Commission of the Rabbinical Alliance of America. Student was raised in Teaneck, New Jersey. In his minority, he attended a Conservative Jewish synagogue. He is a 1994 graduate of Yeshiva College.

Talmud: The Real Truth About The Talmud

Note 2

Christian Antisemitism by Dr. Michael L. Brown (2019)

Amazon Blurb: The Jewish people and Israel have been described as “a dominant and moving force behind the present and coming evils of our day”; “a monstrous system of evil…[that] will destroy us and our children” if not resisted; and a group that seeks “the annihilation of almost every Gentile man, woman, and child and the establishment of a satanic Jewish-led global dictatorship.” What’s worse is that these comments were all made by professing Christians.

Respected Messianic Bible scholar Michael L. Brown, PhD, documents shocking examples of modern “Christian” antisemitism and exposes the lies that support them. Carefully researched, this book shows that church-based antisemitism is no longer a thing of the past. Rather, a dangerous, shocking tide on the rise, and it could be present in your church today. Dr. Brown shows you how to stem this tide now and overcome its evil with the powerful love of the cross!