Shemittah: Radical Perspectives on Society, Land and the Individual
The Biblical descriptions of Shemittah, and other laws regarding Tzedaka, pose a challenge to the normal rules that govern the structures and smooth functioning of our society. Hazal emphasized the critical significance of these ideals and at the same time created practical methods to circumvent the difficulties that they created, amplifying the cognitive dissonance already present. We will look at passages in Talmud and Midrashic texts and analyze together where these divergent patterns of thought lead us.