Women are exempt from the obligation to study the Torah in rabbinic Judaism. This exemption is derived from the exegesis of Deuteronomy 11:19 and is discussed in rabbinic sources, including midrashim, the Mishnah, and the Talmud. The issue is also addressed by Maimonides in the Mishneh Torah. This article traces the development of the religious norm concerning women’s Torah study from rabbinic literature to Maimonides’ legal codification. It argues that Maimonides integrates elements of Aristotelian philosophy into earlier rabbinic arguments. At the same time, historical evidence suggests that the lived reality could differ from the normative ideal. This is demonstrated through two twelfth-century responsa from Cairo that refer to a woman teaching the Torah. The article provides a Czech translation of these responsa and compares the normative position articulated by Maimonides with the social reality reflected in this specific case of a female Torah teacher.
Recenzované dílo: Glomb, Tomáš. Connecting the Isiac cults: formal modeling in the Hellenistic Mediterranean. First published. London: Bloomsbury Academic, 2023. xiii, 178 p. Scientific studies of religion: inquiry and explanation. ISBN 978-1-350-21069-1.
