THE TALMUD IS SURELY ANTICHRISTIAN

I Looked Closer

I heard about the Talmud being antiChristian some years ago. I read some supposed quotes from it that sounded antiChristian too. But some say my recent post about the Israel Fraud was unfair to the Talmud, so I decided to check a little closer. First, I found WHAT IS THE TALMUD, AND IS IT ANTI-CHRISTIAN? at https://www.messiahnj.org/talmud.htm, which was written by a Messianic Jew. He suggested that Christians who call the Talmud antiChristian don't understand the Talmud and are paranoid or something, and antiSemitic. But he also admitted that the Talmud is a very long read and he hasn't read nearly all of it.

Farther below is an article that I'm mainly quoting from for this post. It said Orthodox Jews consider the Talmud to be authoritative. So I did a search to see if that's likely true. This is what I found: How do Orthodox and Reform practices differ? at https://reformjudaism.org/learning/answers-jewish-questions/how-do-orthodox-and-reform-practices-differ, Answered by Rabbi Amy Scheinerman.

The differences in the manner in which Reform and Orthodox Jews practice their tradition is grounded in their view of the Hebrew Scripture (Bible) and the status of other sacred texts, such as the Mishnah and Talmud. There are also law codes, such as the Mishneh Torah (by Moses Maimonides) and the Shulchan Arukh (by Joseph Caro) which guide the life of Orthodox Jews. For Orthodox Jews, the Hebrew Scriptures is a divinely-authored text and therefore every commandment contained therein must be obeyed. The Mishnah and Talmud are considered to have virtually the same status and are called Oral Torah. Reform Jews, however, understand the texts to have been written by human beings -- our ancestors. In my personal opinion, the texts are certainly divinely inspired and reflect our ancestors' best understanding of God and their covenant with God, as well as their view of God's will, but that is not the same as being divinely-authored. Hence, Reform Jews read the texts through the spectacles not only of a religious person, but those of the scholar as well. Some institutions are considered to be a product of the cultural milieu and societal norms of the ancient Near East when the Hebrew Scriptures were written down, and do not speak to our lives today. In addition, Reform Jews do not ascribe to the Mishnah and Talmud the same authority which Orthodox Jews do. While the Talmud and law codes guide the lives of Orthodox Jews, it is more accurate to say that they inform the lives of Reform Jews.

Now let's hear from my main info source, The Jewish Talmud And Its Use For Christian Apologetics at https://www.equip.org/articles/the-jewish-talmud-and-its-use-for-christian-apologetics/

SYNOPSIS

The Talmud is a collection of many ancient rabbinic writings extending back even before the time of Jesus. This compilation was completed around AD 550 and includes polemics against Jesus, attempting to present Him in a negative light.

The Talmud is known also as the “Oral Law” among Orthodox Jews. They claim that it was given to Moses on Mt. Sinai along with the written law — the Torah — and that it was passed on orally from Moses to Joshua to the Prophets and finally to the Rabbis who wrote it out. Although there is absolutely no hard evidence that the Oral Law came from Moses, it nevertheless contains history and represents the primary rabbinic commentary on the Hebrew Scriptures. Orthodox Jews regard the Talmud as authoritative and look to it for guidance more than to the Hebrew Bible. {A.I. says: Orthodox Jews indeed regard the Talmud as authoritative. It holds a central place in their religious and legal framework, shaping their practices and interpretations of Jewish law. The Talmud’s discussions and commentaries provide guidance on various aspects of life, faith, and tradition.} In many ways, the Talmud provides fodder for the Christian apologist. For one thing, Talmudic thought is often at odds with the prevailing rabbinic opinions of today. As one example, today’s rabbis dismiss Jesus because He failed to set up an everlasting kingdom, as Scripture had prophesied. However, the Talmud comments that there are two separate descriptions of the Messiah. One describes Him coming humbly and even dying, while the other describes Messiah coming triumphantly. Numerous Talmudic passages also acknowledge that Jesus had been a worker of miracles. While the Talmud describes these miracles as “magic” or “sorcery,” these admissions still have apologetic value.

According to Jewish sources, the Babylonian Talmud is at the center of mainstream Judaism. It represents the commentary on the Hebrew Scriptures, a compilation of the writings of many sages and rabbis over a period of hundreds of years, perhaps even predating Jesus. However, it is much more than a commentary. Often, the rabbis inserted their own thoughts where they felt that the Scriptures had left many things unsaid. It is a massive work. By one count, it contains 6,200 pages, and is comprised of two parts: “The Talmud consists of what are known as the Gemara [compiled around AD 550] and the Mishnah [compiled around AD 200].”1 However, there are two Talmuds: the Palestinian and the more comprehensive Babylonian Talmud. When people mention “The Talmud,” they are referring to the far more popular Babylonian Talmud.

The Babylonian Talmud, also called the “Oral Law,” is claimed by many Orthodox Jews to have been given to Moses on Mt. Sinai. It has become even more authoritative in practice than the Hebrew Bible, which we know as the “Old Testament”: “Judaism has an ‘Oral Torah’ which is a tradition explaining what these scriptures mean and how to interpret them and apply the laws. Orthodox Jews believe God taught this Oral Torah to Moses, and to others, down to the present day. This tradition was maintained only in oral form until about the 2nd century A.D., when the oral law was compiled and written down in a document called the Mishnah.”2

The Talmud has even arrogated for itself a position superior to that of Scripture: “Those who devote themselves to reading the Bible exercise a certain virtue, but not very much; those who study the Mischnah exercise virtue for which they will receive a reward; those, however, who take upon themselves to study the Gemarah exercise the highest virtue.” (Babha Metsia, fol. 33a) “The Sacred Scriptures is like water, the Mischnah wine, and the Gemarah aromatic wine.” (Sopherim XV, 7, fol. 13b). “He who transgresses the words of the scribes sins more gravely than the transgressors of the words of the law.” (Sanhedrin X, 3, f.88b)

JUSTIFYING THE CLAIM

The rabbis cannot appeal to any historical evidence. Instead, they cite the Mishnah tractate, Pirke Avot 1, perhaps written 1500 years after Moses: “Moses passed it [the ‘Oral Law’] on to Joshua. Joshua gave it to the Elders. The Elders gave it to the Prophets, and the Prophets gave it to the Men of the Great Assembly [including Ezra and Nehemiah].”

Orthodox Jews believe that the Hebrew Scriptures cannot be understood and applied without the commentary from the Talmud. Therefore, they reason, the Talmud itself must also have been given to Moses on Mt. Sinai. Why? Since the Torah is incomplete by itself, there must have been other instructions given: “The Oral Torah [Talmud] is needed in order to maintain the context of the Written Torah. It therefore contains much more information than the Written Torah. The Written Torah needs the Oral Torah to make certain that the correct meaning is conveyed and understood.”3

However, there are many problems connected with this claim: The contents of the Talmud are clearly uninspired. Here’s one example: “When a man talks too much to his wife, he causes evil to himself, disregards the words of Torah and in the end will inherit Gehenna.” (Pirke Avot). The Talmud often contradicts the Hebrew Scriptures. In fact, one Talmudic Rabbi often contradicts another. Rather than declaring, “Thus says the Lord,” the Talmud is comprised of rabbinic discussions, one rabbi disagreeing with another. The Hebrew Scriptures give absolutely no support for the simultaneous existence of an Oral Law. Scripture even contradicts such a claim. For instance: “Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD and all the rules. And all the people answered with one voice and said, ‘All the words that the LORD has spoken we will do.’ And Moses wrote down all the words of the LORD” (Exod. 24:3–-4, emphasis added; all Bible quotations come from the ESV).

... In other places, the Talmud dramatically endorses the gospel narrative, albeit indirectly. In a book devoted to explaining why the Jewish rejection of Jesus was entirely reasonable, Orthodox Jewish scholar David Klinghoffer admitted: The Talmud states that from forty years before the Temple’s destruction and onward, there were supernatural omens of the disaster to come — that is, starting from the inception of the Christian religion following the death of Jesus. The eternal fire of the Temple altar would not stay lit. The monumental bronze Temple gates opened by themselves. Josephus confirms the Talmud’s account of the inner Sanctuary’s east gate and its mysterious openings. He adds other portents from these years: a bright light shining around the altar and the Sanctuary at three in the morning, a cow brought for sacrifice giving birth to a lamb, apparitions of chariots and armies flying through the sky above the whole land of Israel.”8

Renowned Jewish scholar Jacob Neusner cites these same omens from the Jerusalem Talmud: “Forty years before the destruction of the Temple, the western light went out, the crimson thread remained crimson, and the lot for the Lord always came up in the left hand. They would close the gates of the Temple by night and get up in the morning and find them wide open.”9 Amazingly, after the Crucifixion (ca. AD 30) and for the next forty years until the destruction of the Temple in AD 70, Israel was saturated with a series of miraculous omens pointing ominously to its future destruction.

... ACCORDING TO THE TALMUD, JESUS WAS A WORKER OF MIRACLES

Miracles validated Jesus’ claims, and His detractors would have to offer an alternative explanation or deny the miracles altogether. The safest thing for them to do was simply to deny that He had performed miracles. However, it is likely that Jesus’ miracles were so thoroughly accepted that the Talmud had little alternative but to ascribe them to Satan’s black magic.

Consistent with these original allegations and the Talmud’s own testimony, The Jewish Encyclopedia (1901–1906) acknowledged:

According to Celsus (in Origen, “Contra Celsum,” i. 28) and to the Talmud (Shab. 104b), Jesus learned magic in Egypt and performed his miracles by means of it; the latter work, in addition, states that he cut the magic formulas into his skin. It does not mention, however, the nature of his magic performances (Tosef., Shab. xi. 4; Yer. Shab. 18d); but as it states that the disciples of Jesus healed the sick “in the name of Jesus Pandera” (Yer. Shab. 14d; Ab. Zarah 27b; Eccl. R. i. 8) it may be assumed that its author held the miracles of Jesus also to have been miraculous cures. Different in nature is the witchcraft attributed to Jesus in the “Toledot.” {A.I. said: The Toledot Yeshu, a Jewish anti-Christian polemic, portrays Jesus (known as Yeshu) in a negative light. While it doesn’t explicitly mention witchcraft, it describes him as an illegitimate child who practiced sorcery, taught a heretical Judaism, seduced women, and died a shameful death. Interestingly, the author also paradoxically shows some respect for Jesus1. These narratives focus on how Jesus acquired his miraculous powers, fooled the masses with magic, faced excommunication by rabbis, and ultimately suffered a criminal’s burial.} When Jesus was expelled from the circle of scholars, he is said to have returned secretly from Galilee to Jerusalem, where he inserted a parchment containing the “declared name of God” (“Shem ha-Meforash”), which was guarded in the Temple, into his skin, carried it away, and then, taking it out of his skin, he performed his miracles by its means.12

Based upon their understanding of the Talmud, The Jewish Encyclopedia equates miracles with witchcraft (the power of Satan), as the Pharisees had. It therefore makes far more sense to interpret the Talmud’s charges of “magic” as referring to miraculous events. {Jesus countered that argument in the New Testament, where he said if Satan worked through Jesus to heal the sick and do other good deeds, then his house is divided against itself and cannot stand.} {A.I. said: In the Talmud Sanhedrin 106a, there’s an insult against Mary, saying: “She who was the descendant of princes and governors played the harlot with carpenters”.}

CONCLUSION

The Talmud definitely sounds antiChristian to me, although God uses the contradictions in it and in other antiChristian writings to help prove Christianity. Christianity to me means Learning to Love All. The Jews thought it was blasphemous for Jesus to say he was God's son, but we're all children of God and Jesus is like our elder brother who, like God, serves as our example. Jesus is a role model that's easier to identify with than God, who is not physically perceptible. So the charge of blasphemy is just arrogance or pettiness. If Jesus were pretending to be God to rule over people, the charge might be more serious. But Jesus does not seem to want to dictate to us, but merely to advise us. Here’s how Jesus in the Talmud sums it up.

The Talmudic stories make fun of Jesus’ birth from a virgin, fervently contest his claim to be the Messiah and Son of God, and maintain that he was rightfully executed as a blasphemer and idolater. They subvert the Christian idea of Jesus’ resurrection and insist he got the punishment he deserved in hell—and that a similar fate awaits his followers.