By
– August 30, 2011
A slew of conferences in the middle of the last decade marked the 900th anniversary of Rashi’s death, and the 800th ofMaimonides. This volume straddles both milestones, with studies that try to relate to these two very different Jewish leaders. This is not so easily achieved, since Rashi was primarily a commentator, while Maimonides was a systematic thinker. But it elicited some fascinating responses from the scholars included in this volume. Many of them focus on biblical exegesis, which can be found directly in Rashi’s works and obliquely in those of Maimonides. Only a small number treat the other realm in which the two overlapped — Talmud and Jewish law. Most of the contributors are established scholars, but there are also fascinating contributions by younger academics.
Pinchas Roth (PR) is a post-doctoral fellow at Ben Gurion University of the Negev.