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Author:   Dan Ornstein
Publisher:   Jewish Publication Society
Imprint:   Jewish Publication Society
ISBN:  

9780827614673

ISBN 10:   0827614675
Pages:   232
Publication Date:   01 April 2020
Audience:   General/trade ,  General
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   To order  
Stock availability from the supplier is unknown. We will order it for you and ship this item to you once it is received by us.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments     Introduction: Reintroducing One of the World’s Oldest Crime Stories     1. Reading Cain and Abel     The “Crime Report”: Genesis 4:1–16     2. Balancing Justice and Mercy     An Admonition to the Jury     Justice and Mercy 3. Introducing Our Expert Witnesses     The Talmudic Masters     The Medieval Bible Scholars     4. Competent to Stand Trial?     Faith, Fate, and Forensics         A Forensic Moral Health Assessment for the Heavenly and Earthly Courts     5. Interrogating the Interrogator      A Deposition of God     Commentary on God’s Deposition     6. Day One of the Trial     Opening Arguments of the Prosecution and Defense     First Witness of the Day: Cain     Commentary on Cain’s Testimony I: Courtroom Poetry     Commentary on Cain’s Testimony II: Looking at Cain     Commentary on Cain’s Testimony III: What Is in a Name?      Second Witness of the Day: Rabbi Yonatan ben Uzziel     Commentary on Rabbi ben Uzziel’s Testimony     Third Witness of the Day: Rashi     Commentary on Rashi’s Testimony     Fourth Witnesses of the Day: Rabbi Stama, Rabbi Joshua, and Rabbi Judah     Second Witness Rabbi Yonatan ben Uzziel Returns to the Stand     Commentary on the Testimonies of Rabbis Stama, Joshua, Judah, and ben Uzziel     Fifth Witness of the Day: Rabbi Tanḥuma     Commentary on Rabbi Tanḥuma’s Testimony and Cain’s Response to God     Final Witness of the Day: Rabbi Eliezer Finkelman     Commentary on Rabbi Finkelman’s Testimony     Commentary: Wrapping Up Day One of the Trial     7. Day Two of the Trial     First (and Only) Witness of the Day: Sin     Commentary on Sin’s Testimony     8. Day Three of the Trial     First Witness of the Day: Eve     Commentary on Eve’s Testimony     Second Witness of the Day: Adam     Commentary on Adam’s Testimony     9. Day Four of the Trial     A Statement by the Blood of Adam Abelson (Recording)      10. Day Four Continues     The Tables Turned as God Is Put on Trial     Commentary on God’s Testimony I: What Did Cain Really Ask God?      Commentary on God’s Testimony II: Preparing for Cain’s Sentence     Sentencing of Cain     11. Beyond Cain     Commentary on Cain in Exile: Cain Rebuilds     Epilogue: Two Dreams     Notes     Bibliography     Discussion and Activity Guide      

Reviews

An engaging, provocative study of the first murder in the Torah, Cain v. Abel will have readers, like its characters, debating the human condition and how to assess human agency and responsibility. -Marilyn Francus, professor of English at West Virginia University -- Marilyn Francus Cain v. Abel masterfully leads us to contemplate the essential question by which we live: 'Am I my brother's keeper?' -Rabbi Burton L. Visotzky, Appleman Professor of Midrash and Interreligious Studies at Jewish Theological Seminary -- Rabbi Burton L. Visotzky How do you make an ancient story come to life? By making the human drama live. Bringing us the testimony and perspective of every participant, Rabbi Dan Ornstein offers us a riveting read and a chance to expand our own humanity at the same time. -Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson, dean of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies at American Jewish University -- Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson What a compelling piece of legitimate courtroom theater! I know the biblical story inside out. If challenged, I could possibly recite it by heart. And yet, as I read Cain v. Abel, it felt almost as though I hadn't ever encountered it before-that's how clever and interesting this way of reading the text struck me. -Rabbi Martin S. Cohen, Shelter Rock Jewish Center, Roslyn, New York -- Rabbi Martin S. Cohen

An engaging, provocative study of the first murder in the Torah, Cain v. Abel will have readers, like its characters, debating the human condition and how to assess human agency and responsibility. -Marilyn Francus, professor of English, West Virginia University -- Marilyn Francus Cain v. Abel masterfully leads us to contemplate the essential question by which we live: 'Am I my brother's keeper?' -Rabbi Burton L. Visotzky, Appleman Professor of Midrash and Interreligious Studies, Jewish Theological Seminary -- Rabbi Burton L. Visotzky How do you make an ancient story come to life? By making the human drama live. Bringing us the testimony and perspective of every participant, Rabbi Dan Ornstein offers us a riveting read and a chance to expand our own humanity at the same time. -Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson, dean of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies, American Jewish University -- Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson What a compelling piece of legitimate courtroom theater! I know the biblical story inside out. If challenged, I could possibly recite it by heart. And yet, as I read Cain v. Abel, it felt almost as though I hadn't ever encountered it before-that's how clever and interesting this way of reading the text struck me. -Rabbi Martin S. Cohen, Shelter Rock Jewish Center, Roslyn, New York -- Rabbi Martin S. Cohen

Author Information

Rabbi Dan Ornstein leads Congregation Ohav Shalom in Albany, New York. He blogs at the Times of Israel and Jewish Values Online, contributes essays at WAMC Northeast Public Radio, and wrote for the Mesorah Matrix book series on Judaism.  

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