How Do the Rishonim Read the Talmud and the Geonim?

Abstract

This chapter seeks to sketch and describe the relationship between the Talmud and its geonic and other medieval interpreters known as the Rishonim. It does so via a case study involving aspects of apostasy from Judaism and reversion. The Talmud itself contains relatively little explicit material on these issues. It was the task of the Geonim and Rishonim to locate and carefully interpret this material, and to further expand and shape it to derive well-based legal opinions which could be applied to post-Talmudic periods. Through this discussion, the relationship between the writings of the Geonim and the corpus of the Rishonim is also clarified.