The only English-language translation of the Tosefta ("supplement"), which contains explanations and discussion not included in the Mishnah and is organized according to the same six divisions. Materials in the Tosefta are attributed to rabbinic authorities in the first and second centuries C.E., the same ones cited in the Mishnah, and as such the Tosefta is crucial to the study of formative rabbinic Judaism and early Christianity. This two-volume edition, by renowned rabbinic scholar Jacob Neusner, contains the complete text of the original six-volume set. The following features enhance the usefulness of this new the text is continuously paginated, with a new preface, a single general index, and a full index of biblical and talmudic references.

Comparison is held to be one of the central methods of the academic study of religion. While many ostensibly engage in the comparative act, often overlooked is what it actually means to do this. What is comparison? Why engage in it and for what purposes? Can there be such a thing as a valid or invalid comparison? Can comparison itself be compared to anything? This book starts with the premise that while there are good comparisons and bad comparisons, what is common to both is the sheer artificiality of the enterprise and develops an analytical framework for using the method in the context of religious studies. After briefly tracing the history and genealogy of the category, Hughes draws on his own extensive work in Judaism and Islam to argue that comparison can be a useful method, but only under strictly controlled conditions.