Which text is central to Rabbinic Judaism?

• A. Torah
• B. Zohar
• C. Mishnah
• D. Talmud

Answer: (D)

In Rabbinic Judaism, authority rests in the ongoing interpretation of the Written Torah through the Oral Law, carried forward in a comprehensive legal and interpretive tradition. The Talmud is the central text because it collects the Mishnah’s concise legal rulings and then expands them through extensive discussion, analysis, and argument among sages. This combination of codified law with layered commentary shows how commandments are understood, debated, and applied in daily life, ritual practice, and communal governance across generations. The Torah provides the foundational written law, but its practical application is clarified and developed within the Talmud, making it the primary source that shapes Rabbinic Judaism. The Zohar belongs to later mystical traditions and is not central to the standard Rabbinic legal framework, while the Mishnah, though crucial as an early codification of the Oral Law, becomes most influential in its role inside the larger Talmudic discussion.