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| Document Type: | Book |
|---|---|
| All Authors / Contributors: |
Susan Weissman |
| ISBN: | 1906764972 9781906764975 |
| OCLC Number: | 1222785318 |
| Description: | viii, 443 pages ; 24 cm |
| Contents: | IntroductionPart I. The Dead of Sefer Hasidim1. The Dangerous Dead2. The Sinful Dead3. The Holy Dead4. The Neutral Dead and the Pietist DeadAppendix I. Burial in Talit of TsitsitPart II. The Afterlife in Sefer Hasidim5. Status in the Hereafter6. On Sin, Penance, and Purgation7. Bonds Between the Living and the Dead I8. Bonds Between the Living and the Dead IIAppendix II. A Report Regarding Prayer for the Undeserving Dead in the Name of R. Judah the Pious9. ConclusionBibliographyIndex |
| Responsibility: | Susan Weissman. |
Reviews
Publisher Synopsis
'This exceptional piece of work demonstrates almost beyond question that elements of Sefer Hasidim's perception of key aspects of the afterlife were influenced by an array of beliefs current in the larger society involving both theology and folklore... The theses proffered are persuasive, grounded in a command of rabbinic material and familiarity with both Christian doctrines and European folktales... This is an eye-opening work that will have a significant impact on medieval Jewish studies.David Berger, Yeshiva University 'Weissman's work is a masterpiece of history, splendidly written. It displays a rare maturity and a high degree of mastery of the sources cited, but more important, a high degree of historical intuition and intelligence in their interpretation ... I am confident that it will become a classic of medieval Jewish studies; by the same token, I am sure that medieval researchers and students of Christian cultural space will also find in this book both matters of substance and stimulation that will enhance the general understanding of the period'.Sylvie Anne Goldberg, cole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales 'Weissman's study, as remarkable for its erudition as for its precision in textual analysis, sheds new light on key concepts that the Ashkenazi Jews of the high Middle Ages shared with local Christians. It shows how Sefer {h.}asidim reflects ideas that contradict rabbinic and talmudic tradition, a development that Weissman attributes to Jewish contact with the dominant Christian culture. ... An outstanding work likely to be of enduring importance'.Jean Claude Schmitt, Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales A superb study of how Germanic and even Christian ideas about the nature and time of divine judgment and the complex relationship between the living and the vibrantly alive dead influenced Jewish thought. It is the first serious proof of common cultural notions of an entire area of human experience (and not simply of an idea or ceremony or two) since Trachtenberg's Jewish Magic and Superstition. It makes a major contribution to our understanding of medieval Ashkenaz.Haym Soloveitchik, Yeshiva University 'A fascinating examination of ghost tales in Sefer Hasidim.'Rabbi Dr. Stu Halpern, Straus Center Read more...
