Around the year 200 CE, Rabbi Judah, the head of the Sanhedrin or rabbinic high court, compiled a vast number of rabbinic teachings into a work known as the Mishnah. The Talmud, composed centuries later, is structured as a commentary on this text. As Shaye Cohen explains in conversation with J.J. Kimche, the Mishnah lacks any sort of introduction, is impenetrable to anyone not already familiar with the rudiments of Jewish law, and cannot be understood as history, theology, or even as a legal code. Cohen discusses what can be known about this work, and why it was without precedent in the history of Judaism. (Audio, 68 minutes.)
Listen to “12. The Mishnah | Dr. Shaye J.D. Cohen” on Spreaker.
Read more on Podcast of Jewish Ideas: https://www.spreaker.com/user/14602805/shaye-cohen-episode-mp3