Aggadah refers to Rabbinic literature that focuses on narrative, interpretation, and reflection rather than law or legal requirements. It appears in texts such as the Mishnah, Talmud, and midrash and includes stories, parables, historical reflections, imaginative expansions of biblical scenes, and comments on ethics or belief. Aggadah does not try to establish binding practice. Instead, it explores how texts are understood, how the world is explained, and how communities reflect on identity, suffering, hope, and responsibility. Through aggadah, Rabbinic literature preserves creative and interpretive engagement side by side legal discussion.
Intertexts
References
- Chilton, Bruce, "God as ‘Father’ in the Targumim in Non-Canonical Literatures of Early Judaism and Primitive Christianity, and in Matthew" in Charlesworth, James H., and Craig A. Evans, (eds.) The Pseudepigrapha and Early Biblical Interpretation
- Amaru, Betsy H., The Killing of the Prophets: Unraveling a Midrash
- Meek, Russell L., Intertextuality, Inner-Biblical Exegesis, and Inner-Biblical Allusion: The Ethics of a Methodology
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