Jeffrey L. Rubenstein


Jeffrey L. Rubenstein is an American scholar and academic, serving as the Skirball Professor of Talmud and Rabbinic Literature in the Department of Hebrew and Judaic Studies at New York University. His main research focuses on Talmudic narratives, especially the stories of the Babylonian Talmud.

Education

Rubenstein graduated from Oberlin College in 1985 with a degree in Religion and subsequently received a Master’s degree in Jewish Studies from the Jewish Theological Seminary in 1987. He earned his Ph.D. in Religion from Columbia University in 1992 under the supervision of David Weiss Halivni.

Academic career

Rubenstein holds the Skirball Professorship of Talmud and Rabbinic Literature at New York University, where he teaches courses on Talmud, rabbinic literature, Jewish ethics, and “Great Books of the Western Tradition”  in the NYU CORE curriculum.
He is active in scholarly associations such as the Society for Jewish Ethics, the Association for Jewish Studies, and the Jewish Law Association.
Rubenstein’s scholarship is frequently cited in academic studies of rabbinic narrative and law. His narrative-focused approach to the Babylonian Talmud has shaped contemporary understanding of rabbinic storytelling as both literary and cultural phenomena.

Research interests

Rubenstein specializes in Talmudic stories, Midrash, the historical development of Jewish law and liturgy, and the study of ethical ideas in rabbinic texts. His scholarship also includes work on the Dead Sea Scrolls and Syriac Christian literature from late antiquity.

Selected bibliography

Books authored

The History of Sukkot in the Second Temple and Rabbinic Periods..Talmudic Stories: Narrative Art, Composition and Culture..Rabbinic Stories. In “The Classics of Western Spirtuality” series..The Culture of the Babylonian Talmud.Stories of the Babylonian Talmud.The Land of Truth: Talmud Tales, Timeless Teachings.

Books translated and edited

The Formation of the Babylonian Talmud NYU Arts and Science.Creation and Composition: The Contribution of the Bavli Redactors to the ''Aggada. Edited by Jeffrey L. Rubenstein..Nominalism and Realism in Halakha Revisited, special volume of Diné Yisrael 30.The Aggadah of the Bavli and its Cultural World''. Ed. Jeffrey L. Rubenstein and Geoffrey Herman..
  • Studies in Rabbinic Narratives, Volume 1.
  • Studies in Rabbinic Narratives, Volume 2.