In his recent book, Halakhah: The Rabbinic Idea of Law, Chaim Saiman asks why Judaism has traditionally seen the study of the intricacies of tort law, or the minutiae of long-defunct sacrificial rituals, as the highest form of religious devotion. Saiman argues that halakhah in fact provided ancient rabbis with a rubric for discussing the profoundest questions about God and the human condition in a way that never departs from concrete reality. He discusses these ideas, the future of talmudic education, and the meaning of Jewish law in the state of Israel in conversation with Mark Gottlieb. (Audio, 46 minuntes.)
Read more on Tikvah: https://tikvahfund.org/library/podcast-chaim-saiman-rabbinic-idea-law/