X Introduction

which dealt with every aspect of life. This meant that scholars had the luxury of discussing criminal proceedings without con­cern for the practical realities of human nature. They could gen­eralize; they were able to avoid the difficult and often expensive problems of enforcement; they did not need to worry themselves over the consequences of excessive leniency. They sought an ideal solution to problems in which compromise is inevitable. On the other hand, the rabbinic scholars who had to answer spe­cific questions which dealt with critical issues in their respective communities were forced to be practical and did not hesitate to go beyond the traditional halakhah in order to protect the com­munity or to rid it of criminals.

This mixture of idealism and reality shape the later rabbinic discussions. The discussions are valuable for us as they present another set of insights into problems which are much debated in the contemporary world. This area of the halakhah is very broad and has been little studied. The essays and responsa of this vol­ume explore a limited number of facets of this subject. We hope that they will stimulate further efforts.