Curriculum Track #1: Time Traveling Through Jewish History
Journey # 8: Scholars and Martyrs: Rabbi Akiva, Rabbi Hanina, Rabbi Meir and Bruria
Mural Description From the Lectures of Rabbi Edgar F. Magnin, 1929-1930: Akiba ben Joseph (seen in the mural behind bars in prison and being killed by the Romans below) was great scholar who died the death of a martyr for helping to bring about the Bar Kochba revolt against the Romans in Palestine in 135 C.E. Rabbi Hanina is seen wrapped in a Torah scroll with the flames enveloping him. He was also a great teacher and one of the "ten martyrs", arrested and killed by the Romans for teaching Torah in defiance of a Roman rule against practicing Judaism. The rabbi sitting at his desk is Rabbi Meir, the favorite pupil of Rabbi Akiva, and his wife standing over him is Beruriah, daughter of Rabbi Hanina. She was known as a great scholar and is one of several women quoted as a sage in the Talmud."
Enduring Understandings
Activity #1: SEE-THINK-WONDER--Insights from Ballin's Mural
Drawing upon visual thinking strategies students will look closely at this section of Ballin's mural image in order to develop greater insights about the the motivations and experience of the great Jewish scholars represented here. Before explaining what this image depicts, or reading the Scharfstein text, have your students encounter, and grapple with, the image itself.
Project the image above and print out color copies for students to look at in pairs.
The See-Think-Wonder activity above is inspired by the book Making Thinking Visible: How to Promote Engagement, Understanding , and Independence for all Learners, Ron Ritchart, Mark Church and Karin Morrison. 2011
- The extreme repression of Jewish practice by the Romans during this time led to an intense and unwavering expression of Jewish faith, worship and teaching by the great Rabbis and scholars of this time. Their teachings still inspire us today.
- The Mishnah, or Oral Law, was developed as a means to categorize and access commentary on the Torah. It is a teaching tool we can use today to understand how the commandments of the Torah are to be carried out in daily life.
- Why might rulers who conquer a land demand that the people they rule over stop practicing their religion?
- After reading about Beruriah, why are there so few women mentioned in Jewish texts and how can we change that?
- How do the Mishnah and Torah go hand in hand when learning about Judaism?
Activity #1: SEE-THINK-WONDER--Insights from Ballin's Mural
Drawing upon visual thinking strategies students will look closely at this section of Ballin's mural image in order to develop greater insights about the the motivations and experience of the great Jewish scholars represented here. Before explaining what this image depicts, or reading the Scharfstein text, have your students encounter, and grapple with, the image itself.
Project the image above and print out color copies for students to look at in pairs.
- What do you see? Start with a Think-Pair-Share. In pairs ask students to look closely at the the details in the image and then describe and discuss together what they observe (i.e.what could they actually "touch" in the picture). Start the class discussion with what their partners noticed that they did not. Try not to interpret what you are seeing here.
- What do you think is going on? Ask students what do they think is going on here. Based on what we are seeing, what does it makes you think? What does it makes you feel? What emotions are present in the figures in the mural. How did Ballin convey that? Push students to go more deeply into their interpretations, i.e. ask, "What else is going on here?" In response to the students, ask, "What do you see that makes you say that?" Encourage students to really listen to each other and build on each others contributions. Consider the artistic choices Ballin made in this section of the mural.
- What does it make you wonder? Ask students what they are now wondering about based on what they have seen and have been thinking. Wondering is about asking broader questions that push us to consider the bigger issues and ideas raised by the image. As students speak collect their "wonderings" on the board or flip chart.
The See-Think-Wonder activity above is inspired by the book Making Thinking Visible: How to Promote Engagement, Understanding , and Independence for all Learners, Ron Ritchart, Mark Church and Karin Morrison. 2011
Ideas to Discuss:
What Was Going On? Faith, Wonder and Sacrifice
After the students do their own visual interpretation of the mural image, have them read the story of Rabbi Akiva in their primary text Understanding Jewish History 1, Sol Scharfstein, Ktav, 1996. "Rabbi Akiva and the Mishnah", pg. 106 and "Bar Kochba's Revolt", pg. 108-109, as well as the text below.
This section of the mural illuminates the intense faith of four great Jewish scholars: Rabbi Akiva, Rabbi Hanina, Hanina's daughter Beruriah, who is one of the few women scholars to be mentioned in the Talmud, and her husband the Rabbi Meir, pictured beside her.
The time that these heroic Jewish scholars lived was a time of great change in the land of Judea. The Roman's continued to rule the region, while the Jews devised new prayers and new ways of worshipping in the synagogues and houses of study that replaced the Holy Temple.
We know about Rabbi Akiva, Hanina, Meir and Bruriah through stories we read about them in the Talmud, which are the volumes of text containing the Mishnah and the commentaries and explanations by generations of Rabbis and scholars. We will explore this further in the next lesson.
Ask students to take turns reading the short introductions to the four scholars below:
What Was Going On? Faith, Wonder and Sacrifice
After the students do their own visual interpretation of the mural image, have them read the story of Rabbi Akiva in their primary text Understanding Jewish History 1, Sol Scharfstein, Ktav, 1996. "Rabbi Akiva and the Mishnah", pg. 106 and "Bar Kochba's Revolt", pg. 108-109, as well as the text below.
This section of the mural illuminates the intense faith of four great Jewish scholars: Rabbi Akiva, Rabbi Hanina, Hanina's daughter Beruriah, who is one of the few women scholars to be mentioned in the Talmud, and her husband the Rabbi Meir, pictured beside her.
The time that these heroic Jewish scholars lived was a time of great change in the land of Judea. The Roman's continued to rule the region, while the Jews devised new prayers and new ways of worshipping in the synagogues and houses of study that replaced the Holy Temple.
We know about Rabbi Akiva, Hanina, Meir and Bruriah through stories we read about them in the Talmud, which are the volumes of text containing the Mishnah and the commentaries and explanations by generations of Rabbis and scholars. We will explore this further in the next lesson.
Ask students to take turns reading the short introductions to the four scholars below:
RABBI AKIVA was an old man by the time the Roman leader Hadrian came to power in 129 C.E., but he was full of rage against the Romans. Hadrian turned the Holy Temple site into a pagan city with an alter dedicated to the god Jupiter, and issued new laws limiting Jewish practice. This oppression motivated rebellion and anger.
When Simon Bar Kochba and his band of Jewish fighters rose up against Rome, there was a glimmer of hope. However, this didn't last long. The rebellion was crushed, tens of thousands lost their lives. The Romans were determined to crush the Jewish people by outlawing Judaism and killing their religious leaders. Rabbi Akiva and Rabbi Hanina who were two of ten great Jewish scholars who were cruelly and publicly killed for continuing to practice their faith and teach others despite the warnings from the Romans. There faith and sense of purpose was so deep, it is said that Akiva died repeating the word, "One" the last word of the Shema. |
RABBI HANINA was another great scholar who was condemned to death by the Romans for practicing Judaism when it was forbidden. He was It is written that the Romans killed him by burning, first wrapping him in in a Torah scroll. A man of such great faith, as the flames grew higher, he told his heartbroken students, "I see the parchment (Torah scroll) burning, while the letters of the Law soar upward..." Talmud, Avodah Zarah, 17a
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BERURIAH was the wife of Rabbi Meir, a Jewish sage who lived during the time of the Mishnah. Though Rabbi Meir is one of the most often cited rabbis in the Mishnah, his wife was also known for her learning and wisdom.
Beruriah was the daughter of the Palestinian sage Rabbi Hananiah ben Teradion, another one of the "Ten Martyrs." According to stories, even as a young child her intelligence was evident to anyone who spent time with her. In the Babylonian Talmud it is said that she learned “three hundred laws from three hundred teachers in one day” (Pesachim 62b) and even dared to challenge her father on the topic of ritual purity. Given her love of knowledge, it was no surprise that Beruriah was matched with a great sage when she reached a marriageable age. However, she was highly respected for her knowledge, wit and wisdom. |
RABBI MEIR was a Jewish sage who lived during the time of the Mishnah. Rabbi Meïr's greatest merit in the field of the Halakah was that he continued the labors of Akiba in arranging the rich material of the oral law according to subjects, thus paving the way for the compilation of the Mishnah by Judah ha-Nasi.There are three hundred and thirty five laws in the Mishnah that are explicit quotes in the name of Rabbi Meir. In addition there is a rule in the Talmud that all anonymously authored opinions in the Mishnah are attributed to Rabbi Meir.
"He opened the eyes even of the wise in the Law" is said of him in the Talmud ('Er. 13b). An amora said: "The Creator of the world knows that Meïr had not his equal in his time" (ib.) |
Source: Joseph Teluskin, Jewish Literacy: The Most Important Things to Know About the Jewish Religion, Its People and Its History, 1991.
A Conversation through the Generations: The Oral Law is Collected and Preserved
Rabbi Akiva is described as the first compiler of the Oral Torah (Torah Shebal Peh). The Written Law is another name for the Torah. The Oral Law is a commentary on the Torah, explaining how in daily life its commandments are to be carried out. This is also known at the Misnah.
After the failed Bar Kochba Revolt, which resulted in the death of many students and a large portion of the Jewish population, the need to compile and organize the Torah Shebal Peh became urgent. Akiva set his brilliant mind the task of initiating this project. For generations, the rabbis and sages sought to communicate the Oral Law from teacher to student. Each generation learned from the previous one and students learned by repeating what they heard. During the Roman period in Judea, (beginning in 63 B.C.E.) restrictions were placed on the study of Torah—both written and oral. As Torah study became more uncertain and dangerous, rabbis and others in the community were concerned that the teachings would not survive if the Oral Law was not written down.
Akiva's work was continued by other great scholars, most notably Judah Hanasi. After the Great Revolt and the Bar Kochba rebellion over a million Jews were killed, including thousands of rabbinical scholars and students. By 200 C.E. it was clear that if the Oral Law were not recorded in writing it could be lost and forgotten. These collected writings came to be called The Mishnah. It includes 63 tractates into which every law in the Torah is organized by topic. For example if a person wanted to find all laws about the Sabbath in the Torah, he would have to read through many books of Torah. Judah Hanasi made it easier by compiling all texts about the Sabbath into a tractate or section called Shabbat. It includes the text from the Written Torah as well as all the discussion and knowledge from the Oral Torah. The word Mishna means “repetition” and refers to the collection and editing of the oral traditions of the Jews. These traditions were passed down from generation to generation until finally completed after 550 years by Judah Hanasi in the third century C.E.
The Mishnah categorizes all Jewish knowledge into different topics and makes it easy to locate and learn about Jewish teaching and practice.
What is the difference between what the Torah and Mishnah say? For example, the Torah commands: "Remember the Sabbath day" (Ex. 20:8). The Mishnah describes how to "remember"- with kiddush and havdalah rituals marking the beginning and the ending of the Sabbath day. The Torah commands "Observe the Sabbath day" (Deut. 6:12) while the Mishnah specifies 39 categories of forbidden labor which are prohibited by this commandment.
Source: http://www.reformjudaism.org/mishnah
After the failed Bar Kochba Revolt, which resulted in the death of many students and a large portion of the Jewish population, the need to compile and organize the Torah Shebal Peh became urgent. Akiva set his brilliant mind the task of initiating this project. For generations, the rabbis and sages sought to communicate the Oral Law from teacher to student. Each generation learned from the previous one and students learned by repeating what they heard. During the Roman period in Judea, (beginning in 63 B.C.E.) restrictions were placed on the study of Torah—both written and oral. As Torah study became more uncertain and dangerous, rabbis and others in the community were concerned that the teachings would not survive if the Oral Law was not written down.
Akiva's work was continued by other great scholars, most notably Judah Hanasi. After the Great Revolt and the Bar Kochba rebellion over a million Jews were killed, including thousands of rabbinical scholars and students. By 200 C.E. it was clear that if the Oral Law were not recorded in writing it could be lost and forgotten. These collected writings came to be called The Mishnah. It includes 63 tractates into which every law in the Torah is organized by topic. For example if a person wanted to find all laws about the Sabbath in the Torah, he would have to read through many books of Torah. Judah Hanasi made it easier by compiling all texts about the Sabbath into a tractate or section called Shabbat. It includes the text from the Written Torah as well as all the discussion and knowledge from the Oral Torah. The word Mishna means “repetition” and refers to the collection and editing of the oral traditions of the Jews. These traditions were passed down from generation to generation until finally completed after 550 years by Judah Hanasi in the third century C.E.
The Mishnah categorizes all Jewish knowledge into different topics and makes it easy to locate and learn about Jewish teaching and practice.
What is the difference between what the Torah and Mishnah say? For example, the Torah commands: "Remember the Sabbath day" (Ex. 20:8). The Mishnah describes how to "remember"- with kiddush and havdalah rituals marking the beginning and the ending of the Sabbath day. The Torah commands "Observe the Sabbath day" (Deut. 6:12) while the Mishnah specifies 39 categories of forbidden labor which are prohibited by this commandment.
Source: http://www.reformjudaism.org/mishnah
The stories and laws that were handed down were organized under different subject headings called "orders" (Hebrew: sedarim, singular seder סדר) which deal with a broad area of Jewish life. These are:
- Zera'im ("Seeds"), dealing with prayer and blessings, tithes and agricultural laws
- Mo'ed ("Festival"), pertaining to the laws of the Sabbath and the Festivals
- Nashim ("Women"), concerning marriage and divorce, some forms of oaths
- Nezikin ("Damages"), dealing with civil and criminal law, the functioning of the courts and oaths
- Kodashim ("Holy things"), regarding sacrificial rites, the Temple, and the dietary laws
- Tohorot ("Purities"), pertaining to the laws of purity and impurity, including the impurity of the dead, the laws of food purity and bodily purity
Activity #2 Your Comments Count: Understanding Rabbi Akiva and Beruria by Working in Hevruta
For more information on the life and Talmudic texts about Beruruah click here
- We know about Rabbi Akiva and Beruruah because stories of their words and deeds are recorded in the Mishnah and in the Talmud-- the texts that document scholarly discussions which took place over centuries. We'll learn more about the Talmud in the next lesson.
- Read the short bios above.
- Using the Hevrutah study method described on this attached sheet, have student pairs "think out loud" to understand and comment on one of the two texts from Rabbi Akiva and Beruriah. Provide each pair with the Hevruta study guide.
- After 20 minutes of discussion in Hevruta pairs, bring the class together.
- Discuss: How did working in pairs increase your understanding of the text? On the study guide it stated, "Hevruta is based on a model that nobody has a complete understanding of an idea; we depend on discussion with others to help us get to our truth." How did you experience this with your partner? What could you have done differently to increase your understanding?
- Through the texts, and learning together in Hevruta, what more did you learn about how Rabbi Akiva and Beruiah think and what they value? What can their wisdom teach us today?
For more information on the life and Talmudic texts about Beruruah click here
