The invocation of mesorah in contemporary Orthodox Jewish legal discourse: polysemic and reified usages. Issue 1 (2nd January 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Burman, Chaim
• Is Part Of: Journal of modern Jewish studies. Volume 20:Issue 1(2021)
• Page Start: 22
• Page End: 43
• Publication Date: 2021-01-02
• Subjects: Halakha -- Orthodox response to modernity -- mesorah -- polysemy -- Jewish studies; Jews -- Study and teaching -- Periodicals; Judaism -- Periodicals; Jews -- Periodicals; 305.8924
• DOI: 10.1080/14725886.2020.1768663
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1472-5886

Abstract

ABSTRACT: In the last century, the theme of an objectified mesorah (tradition) has been operative in, and at times central to, discussions relating to modernity within rabbinic discourse. This article traces the history of the usage of this term, principally within the Lithunanian-rabbinic tradition, from its technical halakhic antecedents to its extended invocations in modern discussions which often take place in areas of social and political significance. The emergence of the term mesorah in these contexts is traced to the kulturkampf with heterorthodox movements in nineteenth-century Europe and is shown to have been centralized within American Orthodox discourse through the teachings of one of the most important ideologues of American Modern-Orthodoxy, Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik. Although linguistically the term's extended usage is a child of modernity, this article demonstrates that the thrust of arguments from mesorah are well precedented in traditional rabbinic literature where they have been deployed for very many centuries. Special focus and analysis is given to the linguistic significance of the term and on explaining how this invocation has been used within the recent debates in American Orthodoxy regarding the potential for inclusivity in clerical roles.