Jesus in the Talmud

50 Chapter 4mean: She is not in heaven? R. Yirmeya said: “Since the Torah hasalready been given at Mount Sinai we pay no attention to a heavenlyvoice, because you [God] have long since written in the Torah atMount Sinai: After the majority must one incline (Ex. 23:2).” 42What is going on here? An initially routine halakhic dispute among rabbison a not particularly important question veers off course. R. Eliezer cannotassert himself in this dispute and resorts to the strongest means that hehas at his disposal: magic. 43 He moves a carob tree, lets a stream of waterflow backward, threatens to destroy the schoolhouse in which the rabbisare gathered, and finally gets an approval from heaven. But to no avail.His colleagues are not impressed by his magic and declare coolly that halakhicmatters are not decided by magic. And as far as the heavenly voiceis concerned, they declare even more coolly that God better does not interferein these matters because he has given the Torah to his creatures—and the power to decide in case of conflict to the rabbis. 44So what is at stake here is sober halakhic reasoning according to the decisionof the majority versus magic, and the message is: rabbinic authorityrests on rabbinic rules of the game, not on magic, not even when approvedby heaven. In trying to overrule the halakhic consensus of his colleagueswith his magical tricks and the intervention of heaven, R. Eliezer infringesthe essence of rabbinic authority. Accordingly, he is most severely punishedwith the worst punishment the rabbis have at their disposal (andwhich, as many scholars have observed, is completely out of proportion tothe importance of the halakhic dispute)—excommunication: “It was said:On that very day all objects which R. Eliezer had declared clean werebrought and burnt in fire (as unclean). Then they took a vote and excommunicatedhim.” 45 The rabbis send R. Aqiva, one of the greatest scholars ofhis generation, to inform R. Eliezer of their horrible decision becausesomeone less respected and tactful might provoke his unbridled wrath andcause him to release his magical powers and to destroy the world. R. Aqivadoes a great job in carrying out his delicate mission, but still, whenR. Eliezer realizes what his colleagues did to him,he too rent his garments, 46 put off his shoes, removed [his seat], saton the earth, and tears streamed from his eyes. The world was then