Martin Goodman is Professor of Jewish Studies in the University of Oxford, a Fellow of Wolfson College, and a Fellow of the Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies. Among his books on Jewish history are Rome and Jerusalem (2007) and Judaism in the Roman World: Collected Essays (2007).

• IntroductionPart I: The Issues1: Philip Alexander: Using Rabbinic Literature as a source for the History of Late-Roman Palestine: Problems and Issues2: Fergus Millar: The Palestinian Context of Rabbinic Judaism3: Peter Schäfer: Research into Rabbinic Literature: An attempt to define the Status Quaestionis4: Chaim Milikowsky: The Status Quaestionis of Research into Rabbinic Literature5: Peter Schäfer and Chaim Milikowsky: Current Views on the Editing of the Rabbinic Texts of Late Antiquity: Reflections on a debate after twenty yearsPart II: The Rabbinic Texts6: Amram Tropper: The State of Mishnah Studies7: Romen Reichman: The Tosefta and its Value for Historical Research: Questioning the historical reliability of case stories8: Gunter Stemberger: Halakhic Midrashim as Historical Sources9: Sacha Stern: The Talmud Yerushalmi10: Richard Kalmin: Problems in the use of the Bavli for the History of Late-Roman Palestine: the example of Astrology11: Alex Samely: Literary Structures and Historical Reconstruction: the example of Amoraic Midrash12: Wout van Bekkum: The Future of Ancient Piyyut13: Robert Hayward: Targum14: Robert Brody: The Epistle of Sherira Gaon15: Peter SchäFer: Hekhalot Literature and the Origins of Jewish MysticismPart III: History16: Seth Schwartz: 'Rabbinic Culture' and Roman Culture17: Catherine Hezser: Material Culture and Daily Life18: Moshe Lavee: Rabbinic Literature and the History of Judaism in Late Antiquity: Challenges, methodology, and new approaches19: William Horbury: Rabbinic Perceptions of Christianity and the History of Roman Palestine20: Aharon Oppenheimer: Politics and Administration21: Hayyim Lapin: Economics and SocietyConclusion