Thank you for the question on the Torah and the Talmud, “Why do some people accept the possibility that the written Torah is the word of the Creator, but not the Talmud? Don’t they realize the thousands of contradictions/ ambiguities that exist in the plain reading of the verses, without the Talmud?
The Talmud is a composition and interpretation of the Torah. The sayings of Jewish rabbis were written down known as the Babylonian Talmud (6th century CE) and Palestinian/Jerusalem Talmud (3rd century CE).
In my view of the Talmud, it would be equivalent of the early church fathers writing on the Old and New Testament. Are the words of the early church father considered as canon? Nearly all Christians do not accept their writings as canon, but may provide understanding at the time of their discussion of the Biblical text as to the deity of Jesus Christ or the Godhead. This would equally apply to the Talmud as Jewish scholars gave their understanding of the text in regards to religious or civil laws as it applies to the Jewish interpretation of the Torah.
I wouldn’t necessarily agree that there are thousands of contradictions or ambiguities of the Torah. The Torah gives the guiding principle while the exact application is not completely stated in the Torah. For example on the law of divorce and the grounds of divorce has been debated by famous rabbis as whether the wife can divorce the husband and who will have custody of the children. The application of the Torah in modern society is complicated with its various nuances.
The heart of the question is this, “Would the saying of a rabbi be equivalent as the saying of a prophet of the Lord?” One’s answer will determine one’s view of a rabbi.
SUMMARY: The Talmud are compositions of rabbis interpretations of the Torah. They provide the rabbi’s insight into the Torah and its application to Jewish life.
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