EXOD255 Growing [into a fuller maturity] began, says the Torah, in the early days of the Wilderness trek, just after the Breath of Life freed ancient Israelites from the power-greedy Pharaoh who enslaves human beings and brings plagues upon the Earth. The first discovery of these runaway slaves is the Shabbat [Sabbath] that comes with manna --a taste of rest from endless toil, and a gift from the abundant Earth. For manna is the food that the Earth gives freely, so that eating it barely requires any work at all [Exod. 16:14-30]. With the manna comes the information that on the morning of each sixth day, the manna will come in a double portion so that no one will have to do even the light work of gathering it on the seventh day, Shabbat. It is as if the first realization of the people newly freed--Even before they have their Encounter with God at Sinai--is that there must be time to rest and reflect, for otherwise they are still in slavery. If the deep misstep of Eden was refusing to restrain human inclinations to gobble up the Earth, then Shabbat comes as a time for choosing self-restraint--not a grim ascetic self-restraint, but one of joyful abundance in community. And since the mistake of Eden was overeating, then this partial reversal must come with a different kind of eating. Says Isaiah (51:3): "Yayasem midbarah k'eden v'arvatah k'gan YHVH." "You turn the barren place to Eden, and the desert to a garden breathing Life." (By Arthur Waskow, "Jewish Environmental Ethics: Intertwining Adam with Adamah")

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EXOD273 Judaism's imperative of individual culpability adds an important ethical dimension to its criminal laws. Especially in times when groups, domestic or foreign, are perceived as threatening a community's safety, there is a natural inclination to judge a person on the basis of his ethnicity or affiliations, and there are times when the Torah condemns entire nations. [For example, entire nations were at times condemned in the Bible. These include Amalek (this verse, Deut 25:17-19) and the seven Canaanite nations (Num 33:50-56; Deut 7:1-6; 12:29-13:1; 20:10-18), and Midian (Num 31)]. Yet, Judaism's focus on individual culpability tempers this natural inclination to blame someone on the basis of who they are rather than what they did. Moreover, Judaism places high value on an individual's intent in deciding whether that person is criminally culpable. Generally, bad thoughts alone are insufficient for criminal culpability. As the Talmud emphasizes, no person is criminally responsible for any act unless he did that act willfully. B. Avodah Zarah 54a; B. Bava Kamma 28b; M.T. Laws of the Fundamental Principles of the Torah 5:4; Laws of Courts 20:2. (By Laurie L. Levenson, "Judaism and CriminalJustice"

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EXOD289 Judaism views criminal justice as more than just a ledger of laws. Criminal justice is a process; it's fairness depends on how the laws are ministered, not just on what they state. Thus, judges play a critical role in the Jewish justice system. Moses judged cases even before the revelation of the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai. Later, God directed Moses to appoint judges. (Deut 16:18) People, not God, determine the fate of other human beings. Indeed, perhaps the most crucial aspect of Judaism's approach to the criminal justice system is not the content of its laws, but its insistence that those who participate in the criminal justice system have the integrity and ethics to apply them honestly. To ensure the justice of judicial procedures, Judaism sets forth intricate procedural rules for criminal cases. From the nature of the oath, to what qualifies as evidence, Judaism has constructed criminal procedures that are designed to lead to honest and just verdicts. Consider just a few examples. (Continued at [[EXOD304]] Exodus 18:21 trustworthy OXFORD 481). (By Laurie L. Levenson, "Judaism and Criminal Justice"

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EXOD294 Eleazar Ha-Moda'I says: … "'that they shall do'" -- this means lifnim mishurat ha-din." (Mekhilta) The Midrashic text here lists acting beyond a letter of the law as something on a par with other acts of kindness and sociability, clearly as a value that is to be aspired to. As such it is not defined or illustrated in any more detail. In the Babylonian Talmud the phrase is called upon prominently in the context of the laws of property to describe the demonstrations of uncalled-for generosity by rabbinic sages toward others [B. Bava Metzia 30b, in the story of Rabbi Yishma'el. ben R. Yossi helping the wood carrier; B. Bava Kamma 99b-100a, in the story of Rabbi Hiyya who misjudged a monetary case; and B. Ketubbot 97a, where Rav Papa returns from a field.] or to recommend acts that would entail forgoing monetary advantage [B. Bava Metzia 24b, with regard to returning property that one could leally keep.] It is also cited twice to describe God's merciful quality as a judge of His people. [B. Berakhot 7a and B. Avodah Zarah 4b]. The statement that is often used to demonstrate the weight of the phrase is the one attributed to Rabbi Yohanan that Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans in 70 C.E. "Because they [the Jews] established their lives in accordance with the local law but did not act lifnim meshurat ha-din" (B. Bava Metzia 30b). However, this statement is clearly hyperbolic and is in line with a number of moral failures, such as sin'at hinam ("hatred without cause," B. Yoma 9b) to explain why God punished the people of Israel in that cataclysmic event. From this handful of sources it remains difficult to conclude that the rabbinic sages in charge of compiling the talmudic tradition operated with a principled idea as to the legal or ethical "status" of the concept of lifnim meshurat ha-din. [See Louis Newman, Past Imperatives: Studies in the History and Theory of Jewish Ethics (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1998), p. 33]. None of the sources explicate that acting lifnim meshurat ha-din makes one a better person, a more moral person, or a superior judge. But the fact that the talmudic corpus sites this concept a few times and the suggestive nature of the phrase itself do suggest that time and again the talmudic tradition reminds its students and sage/scholars that being correct and acting correctly in accordance with the halakhic tradition is not necessarily sufficient, that a concern for the disadvantage to other people is something to be considered. Perhaps the sum total of these texts can be described as seeds of a corrective for absolutist legalism. Halakhah is what it mediates human relations in rabbinic tradition, but concern for how it is implemented is part of that same tradition. (By Charlotte Elisheva Fonrobert, “Ethical Theories in Rabbinic Literature”)

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EXOD304 (Continued from [[EXOD289]] Exodus 18:13 magistrates OXFORD 481). Judaism embraces the use of judges, not jurors, to decide criminal cases, and so the quality of justice depends on the quality of the judges. The Torah already requires that they have high moral character and wisdom. [this verse, Deuteronomy 1:13-14]. Maimonides summarizes the later rabbinic tradition in asserting that judges must have seven fundamental qualities: wisdom, humility, fear of God,  distain of money, love of truth, love of people, and a good reputation. They must also, as he explains, have practical life and family experiences. They must be aware of the "absurdities" of idolatry and magic so as not to fall victim to them. They must be people of stature so that their judgments are excepted. And they must judge in a manner likely to lead to a just verdict. The judge must show patience, intelligence, humility, and respect for persons when sitting in court. The judge must always hear both parties to the case, and must not discriminate for or against any of the parties. The judge must deliberate with care but not delay in pronouncing his verdict. He must assume the responsibility to render an individual opinion and not rely on the opinion of even more prominent judges. M.T. Sanhedrin (Laws of Courts) 2:1-7 (By Laurie L. Levenson, "Judaism and CriminalJustice"

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EXOD325 Israel's unique status as God's chosen covenant partner theoretically provides a national"mission statement" that would motivate compliance with God's ethical demands. Acceptance of the Sinai covenant confers upon Israel the status of "a kingdom of priests and a holy nation" [this verse]. Just as a priest adopts a distinctive lifestyle dedicated to the service of God so he can minister to the needs of the laity, so Israel's mission is to serve that role for the nations. Israel's given status as a "holy people" provides the reason that they should observe the commandments (Exodus 22:30, Deuteronomy 7:6, 14:2, 21), while in Leviticus 19 Israel's potential holiness is used to inspire the people to appropriate behavior as "the entire community of the people of Israel" is commanded to "be holy for I the Lord your God am Holy" [Lev. 19:2]. In this case, Israel's status as a holy nation is not an assumption, but rather a goal, arrived at by performing a ritual assortment of ethical demands. (By Elaine Adler Goodfriend, “Ethical Theory and Practice in the Hebrew Bible)

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EXOD332 Collective reward and punishment. The context or framework of the commandments assumes God will reward and punish on a collective, national basis. This is a consequence of the collective nature of God's covenant with Israel--that is, Israel as a nation agreed to accept its role as God's covenant partner and thereby become "a kingdom of priests and a holy nation" [this verse, Exodus 24:3,7]. Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28 enumerate the blessings and curses that will come upon the people of Israel as a result of its observance or non-observance of God's laws. Rewards include sufficient rains and plenteous harvests, abundant fertility for their human and animal populations, immunity from foreign invaders, and God's continual and beneficent Presence. More detailed and numerous are the penalties for flouting the commandments: affliction by disease, agricultural infertility, lethal attacks by wild animals, invasions by foreign armies and the resultant food shortages, exile from the land of Israel, and divine rejection. The collective nature of the reward and punishment motivates individual Israelites not only to comply, but, further, to compel their fellow Israelites to observe God's laws and initiate prosecution against those who do not. Deuteronomy in particular repeats the admonition to show no toleration for evil-doers, ("show no pity" and "sweep out evil from your midst"), lest calamity engulf the nation as a whole (13:6, 17:7, 19:19, 21:21). [For author's discussion of "Individual reward and punishment," see [[EXOD684]] Exodus 22:23 your OXFORD 39] (By Elaine Adler Goodfriend, “Ethical Theory and Practice in the Hebrew Bible)

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EXOD338 While the Tanakh assumes that all nations are expected to follow a God-based universal standard of ethical behavior, Israel's uniqueness is based on its exclusive relationship with God, its status as a "kingdom of priests" [this verse]. Israel's mission is to be a "light to the nations" (Isa 49:6), and both Isaiah and Micah envision that other nations will view Zion as the source of divine instruction, which eventually will lead to universal peace (Isa 2:2-5, Mic 4:1-3; Zech 8:21-22, 14:9). (By Elaine Adler Goodfriend, “Ethical Theory and Practice in the Hebrew Bible)

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EXOD356 Another powerful motivator for observance of the commandments is gratitude for God's historical role as Israel's savior and provider. The exodus from Egypt and the conquest of a "land flowing with milk and honey," with its abundant resources for which Israel need to invest little effort (e.g., Deut 6:10-11), are used to arouse Israel's appreciation and sense of obligation. God introduces Himself in the Decalogue has He who "brought Israel out of the land of Egypt, the house of bondage," to justify the following prohibition of allegiance to other gods [this verse]. Conversely, many biblical texts assume that it is ingratitude in particular that leads to disobedience (Deut 8:11-18, 32:15; and for this idea in prophetic literature, see Isa 1:2-3, Jer 2:5-8, Ezek 16, Hos 13:4-6, Amos 2:10-12). (By Elaine Adler Goodfriend, “Ethical Theory and Practice in the Hebrew Bible)

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EXOD370 See [[EXOD684]] Exodus 22:23 your OXFORD 39

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