Category Archives

Science & Religion

How Judaism Engages Science: My Conversation with Geoff Mitelman

…in Jewish discussion of texts, such as the Torah and the Talmud, there’s a good deal of argumentation—“show me the text”—it’s like science (and to some degree, like Canon Law in Catholicism). We call this havruta or “pairs,” since two people learning together are better than one learning alone. It’s therefore not lectio divina—a silent reflection on Scripture. Instead, there’s lots of gesticulations and textual work. Traditionally, in the Jewish school or yeshiva, it’s cacophony.