Takkanot Ha-Kahal: Communities Creating Halakhah with Dr. Rachel Furst

This season of Turn it & Turn it is on the topic of: "Halakhic History"

Throughout the medieval and the early modern periods, autonomous Jewish communities around the world used the legal mechanism known as takkanat ha kahal to shape the culture and character of their societies by enacting new legislation on a wide array of civil, criminal, and public matters.  What gives a community the authority to create law?  Who is bound by these communal directives?  What is the relationship between local  takkanot and universally recognized  halakhah?  After examining this legal phenomenon in historical context, we will also consider its utility and  value to Jewish communities today.

Click here to view the accompanying source sheet. 

This audio was originally recorded on 06/05/2013 as part of Drisha's Wednesday Night Open Beit Midrash and Guest Series Lecture on the topic of “Halakha and Meta-Halakha: Rethinking the Path”