Responsa
Responsa (plural of
In the Roman Empire
A particularly well-known and highly influential example of such responsa was the Digesta (or Digests), in 90 books, the principal work of the prominent second century jurist Salvius Julianus. This was a systematic treatise on civil and praetorian law, consisting of responsa on real and hypothetical cases, cited by many later Roman legal writers.[2]
In the Catholic Church
In the
Some responsa are given in
In Judaism
In rabbinic literature, the responsa are known as She'elot u-Teshuvot (Hebrew: שאלות ותשובות "questions and answers"), and comprise the body of written decisions and rulings given by poskim ("deciders of Jewish law"). A modern term, used mainly for questions on the internet, is "Ask the rabbi".
Judaism's responsa constitute a special class of
which delineate the rules for ordinary incidents of life.The responsa literature covers a period of 1,700 years—the mode, style, and subject matter have changed as a function of the travels of the Jewish people and of the development of other halakhic literature, particularly the codes.
Responsa play a particularly important role in
In addition to requests for halakhic rulings, many of the questions addressed were theoretical in character, particularly among the earlier responsa. The responsa thus contain rulings on ethics, business ethics, the philosophy of religion, astronomy, mathematics, history, geography, as well as interpretations of passages in the Bible, the Mishnah, the Talmud, and the Midrash. Thus, while early Jewish literature has few historical works, many notes on the history of Judaism have been introduced into the responsa.
Responsa thus contain valuable information about the culture of the Jews and the people among whom they lived. Information may also be gleaned about the moral and social relations of the times, occupations, the household, customs, expressions of joy and of sorrow, and recreations, and even games. Older responsa are also important for readings and emendations of the Mishnah and the Talmud.
In Islam
A similar use of responsa (here called
See also
- Papal rescript
- Rescript
References
- ^ "Roman law | Influence, Importance, Principles, & Facts | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2021-12-21.
The chief forms of imperial legislation were edicts or proclamations; instructions to subordinates, especially provincial governors; written answers to officials or others who consulted the emperor; and decisions of the emperor sitting as a judge.
The last type of written law was the responsa prudentium, or answers to legal questions given by learned lawyers to those who consulted them. - ^ "Salvius Iulianus" in Adolf Berger, Encyclopedic Dictionary of Roman Law, American Philosophical Society, 1953, p. 552
- ^ ISBN 978-1-000-17926-2.
- ^ Bullivant, Stephen (2016-11-24). "Submitting dubia is a standard part of Church life. It's not unreasonable to expect a clear answer". Catholic Herald. Retrieved 2021-12-20.
- ^ "Notitiae Responses". notitiae.ipsissima-verba.org. Retrieved 2021-12-20.
- ^ Pentin, Edward (February 8, 2022). "Traditional Latin Mass: Canonists Question the Legislative Force of Recent Vatican Guidelines". NCR. Retrieved 2022-02-10.
- ^ "[no title]" (PDF). Notitiae. 5: 323. 1969.
Solutiones quae proponuntur non induunt vestem officialem, sed habent valorem orientativum: solutiones 'ex officio' publici iuris fient in Acta Apostolicae Sedis
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: Cite uses generic title (help) - ^ "Responsa ad dubia proposita" (PDF). Notitiae. 33: 138. 1997.
Licet solutiones quae proponuntur potestatem legislativam non habeant, induunt tamen vestem officialem quia actuale magisterium et praxim huius Congregationis exprimunt
External links
- She'elot U-Teshubot, Jewish Encyclopedia
- Cowley, Arthur Ernest (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 13 (11th ed.). pp. 169–176. .
- The Responsa Project
- Orthodox Responsa Index (in Hebrew). Accessed October 22, 2012
- .
- Masorti and Conservative Jewish responsa (in Hebrew). Accessed October 22, 2012
- Topical index of non-binding Reform Jewish responsa
- Ask the Rabbi—The Jewish Responsa