This collection of essays by Isaiah M. Gafni reflects over forty years of research on central issues of Jewish history in one of its formative eras. Questions relating to representations of the past, beginning with Josephus but primarily in rabbinic and post-rabbinic literature, represent an axial theme in this volume. Throughout the collection the author addresses the tension between realities on the ground and the historiography that shaped the image of that reality for all subsequent generations. Two specific clusters of studies analyze the emergence and development of the Babylonian rabbinic community, as well as the complex relationship between the Judaean centre and the Jewish diaspora in Late Antiquity. A final selection of essays examines the impact of modern ideologies and revised methods of research on the image of Jewish life and rabbinic leadership in late antique Judaism.

Born 1944; BA, MA, and PhD from the Hebrew University; 1967-2012 taught Jewish History of the Second Temple and Talmudic Periods (500 BCE - 500 CE) at the Hebrew University; currently Professor Emeritus in Jewish History at the Hebrew University, and President of Shalem College, Jerusalem.