Rabbinic Judaism Debunked: Debunking the myth of Rabbinic Oral Law (Quick-Read Collection)

I have long been interested in the Jewish background of Christianity as a way of understanding my faith. When I discovered Eitan Bar and Golan Brosh’s Rabbinic Judaism Debunked: Debunking the Myth of Rabbinic Oral Law (2019), the snappy title peaked my curiosity, even more so than books whose titles sounded scholarly and slightly stuffy. Their short book made me think that I might find quick answers to longstanding questions about Jewish belief. When I read the book, it more than did that; it thoroughly exposed the hold of the rabbis over historic Judaism and the Pharisaic tradition that had entered Israelite religion before the time of Jesus. It also explained certain beliefs, chiefly found in the Oral Law, that had crept into Jewish thought from the time after Alexander the Great had conquered the Levant (332 B.C.) and after he had gone on to defeat and destroy the Persian Empire. And it was the Oral Law that Jesus himself had “debunked” in the New Testament; the authors tell us why.The two authors, who apparently are Messianic Jews of Israel, have sifted through a vast amount of literature in Hebrew and English to write an exposé of the rabbinic usurpation of ancient Israelite practice and belief found in the Old Testament (Tanakh) and how the rabbis became the heirs of the Pharisees. One might say that the rabbis almost completely replaced ancient belief with a new set of beliefs and standards; the O.T. was marginalized. Then they appointed themselves as the only source of interpretation of what they had introduced in the Talmud, which contains the Oral Law. It was a clever ploy that permanently displaced the Aaronic priesthood and the Levite servitors in the temple. Again, this is what Jesus inveighed against in his condemnation of the lawyers, scribes and Pharisees.Of course, once the temple had been destroyed and Jerusalem leveled by the Romans in 70 A.D., the priesthood and the Levites no longer held the position of authority since they could no longer carry out the ancient form of worship. Yet they should have been the leaders of the scattered Jews to continue the regular practice of reading and teaching the Torah and celebrating in modified form the ancient festivals. Still I can’t help but think that historic Judaism could only have survived in the Diaspora by the great addition of the Oral Law and its voluminous interpretation by the rabbis and that Jewish communities could not have remained intact and cohesive unless something like we know as contemporary Judaism had been introduced and expanded through the course of centuries. Rabbinic Judaism acted like a glue to keep communities together in the face of horrifying persecution, even though the ancient leadership had been eliminated and new customs established.Rabbinic Judaism Debunked comprises an introduction, 12 short chapters and an English and Hebrew bibliography in 105 pages. The authors discuss in some detail the advent, development and imposition of the Oral Law under such chapter headings as “The Ancestors of the Rabbis,” “Game of Thrones,” “The Rabbis’ New Covenant,” “The Philosophy behind Studying the Oral Law,” “The Pagan Roots of the Rabbinic Customs,” “The Rabbinic Atheistic Revolution” and so on. These titles themselves engage the searching mind and invite one to want to know more. The authors fulfill their intention that they state in the introduction: “to present a vigorous critique of traditional-rabbinic Judaism.” Toward the end of the introduction they let the reader know precisely what he or she will find their in their essay: “...if the divine origin of the Oral Law is nothing but a myth, then rabbinic Judaism has no leg to stand on.” It is then up to the reader to pursue their well-documented trail and to discover how they reach their conclusion. In the final chapter, “Conclusion: The Oral Lie,” p. 98, the authors sum up in a single paragraph what they have covered in the preceding text: “A specter has been haunting the Jewish world for over two millennia–the specter of rabbinic authority; a man-made religion which has developed its own particular system of laws, distinct and separate from the Bible–one which has placed its shackles of legalism on the Jewish people, at least since the destruction of the Second Temple.”As interesting and readable as this small volume is, I offer a short critique of their effort. At times their English is a little awkward and rough around the edges. Occasional misspelling, misusage and unnecessary punctuation mar the ease of reading. The footnotes that appear at the bottom of a page and that accompany the text sometimes are not on the page where they belong and appear on the next page. Some authors and titles of works that appear in the footnotes do not appear in the bibliography. Hence the authors might have benefitted from the aid of a good proofreader and adviser in the writing. Finally, it would be very helpful for the reader to know modern and/or biblical Hebrew because many of the footnotes and some of the text are in that language. Perhaps this book is really intended for literate Jews who may be intrigued by the title and question the origins of historic and contemporary Judaic belief and practice.Despite these shortcomings these two authors have written a valuable book in a short space that summarizes much other material that few would have access to; it is a mind-opening work for Jew and Christian alike. I recommend it highly to those who have an interest in the Bible and Judaism in particular.G.B.

Great book to learn how and why 'oral torah' is a self-serving fabrication of rabbinic judaism. some statements about pagan practices were not accurate. but overall an informative book.

Book is very important for Gentile Christians as well as Jewish Christians to read. Book is made very well.

This book is one of two of your books I recently finished. I would say, this book is the coup de grâce, along with, "Why Don’t Jews Believe in Jesus", that foundationally lays out precisely what’s missing in Christian ministries. You have left me no choice but to buy everything your have written and read every letter. It more than stands to reason that you will be consistent in continuing to develop the groundwork for further development of the roots of Christianity including the rudimentary Hebrew linguistic mindset. You have more than adequately reinforced the fact that the Hebrew bible has depth that must be incorporated in the development of the singular reality of the whole truth.

This book reviews information that modern Talmudic Judaism is really not what it claims to be, but is instead a faith made up after the fall of the Second Temple. The author asserts that there was never an Oral Law given to Moses on Sinai, only the written Torah. The Oral Law is the basis of the Talmud.I had heard some of this information before so it was not brand new to me. If you were unfamiliar with this claim some of this information might be confusing. The Talmudic religion made up by the rabbis is just an anti-Jesus religion from the second through the fifth centuries. The book is a quick easy read; I read the whole thing in a couple of evenings, but you could read it all in one afternoon. The chapters are short, usually 2-5 pages and you can speed right through them. Thank you to Mr Bar for being bold enough to bring this forward.

Be careful not to read between the lines in the title - this book is not an attack on the Jews. In fact, quite the contrary: as the authors state in the introduction, "It should not be understood as an attack on the Jewish people, but rather as a dispute between different sects within Judaism, over the interpretation of the Tanakh and the authority thereof".Where did Rabbinic Judaism start?Why did Rabbinic Judaism spring up?What caused it to grow into the powerful sect it is today?Didn't God give Moses the oral Law along with the written Law?Does the Tanakh support or contradict the oral Law?Drs. Bar and Broshi answer each of these questions - and others - thoughtfully and concisely in this short book using Biblical, historical, and scientific evidences as well as passages from the oral Law itself to back their claims. At the very least - if you do not get anything else out of this short book - I expect that you will find the history of and reasoning behind Rabbinic Judaism thought-provoking.

I have known for many years that modern Judaism is nothing but the religion of the Pharisaic rabbis, based upon their anti-Biblical, anti-Christ teachings. What "Rabbinic Judaism Debunked" did for me, was present deeper details coming from someone who has lived under its influence, or at least has been exposed to its ungodliness. This would be an excellent introduction for anyone who is under the delusion that Rabbinic Judaism, i.e., the modern synagogue, is based upon the Old Testament writings. Eitan and Golan did a very good job of hitting the main points that every person who is exposed to Rabbinic Judaism's influence should know, whether living as a Jew or as a Christian bewitched by its teaching. It is a very short read. I will be making it into an outline and keeping it for future reference. Good work, my brothers. Keep it up.