Jewish Law and American Law

It is therefore the purpose of this study to examine the ways in which American law and Jewish law, known as the Halakha, are comparable and the ways in which they are different. Three key issues will be addressed in this comparison. These are the approaches of each legal system to the reasons for obeying law, law and change, and the nexus between law and morality. A qualitative review of literature will be undertaken in the course of this study.

Rosenthal (2002), in discussing the Halakha, suggested that from earliest times, Jewish legal scholars and rabbis have called for obedience to the law because of its divine origins. From God, in the form of the original corpus of the oral law, Moses received the fundamental tenets that would thereafter shape all Jewish legal developments. It is th

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e property rights of capitalists (Hall, et al, 1996). Over time, as the labor movement in this nation gained in power and influence, many of the laws which had allowed big business to exercise virtually unlimited power have been changed (Hall, et al, 1996). Lloyd (1970) claims that laws and the judicial process in constitutional democracies based on the English common law are amenable to change as new ideas, new technologies, and new interpretations of the social contract are forthcoming. With respect to the Halakha, Brandwein (2001) argues that change is also a reality but also notes that many changes lead to increasing orthodoxy rather than the new liberalism that has been associated with the American legal system. Novak (1980) believes that two principles have regulated the growth of Jewish law in the past. The first was the necessity to respond to new external conditions while the second was the need to give recognition to new ethical insights and attitudes. Reasoned change is believed by Novak (1980) to be at the core of change in Jewish law. However, while the Halakha has changed, it has not done so without enormous controversy and extensive debate. Indeed, Novak (1980) believes that while the Rabbis who hav
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Halakha American, American Jewish, Constitution American, Torah Rosenthal, Morality Sinclair, Judaism Fishbane, Halakha Brandwein, Orthodox Jewish, Change Hall, Obeyed Rosenthal, jewish law, american law, lloyd 1970, et al 1996, corwin 1971, law morality, et al, al 1996, hall et, hall et al, novak 1980, american legal, english common law, american legal system, york oxford university,
Approximate Word count = 2370
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page)

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