The Signifying Creator: Nontextual Sources of Meaning in Ancient Judaism - Couverture souple

Swartz, Michael D.

 
9781479855575: The Signifying Creator: Nontextual Sources of Meaning in Ancient Judaism
Couverture souple
ISBN 10 : 147985557X ISBN 13 : 9781479855575
Editeur : New York University Press, 2014

Synopsis

For centuries, Jews have been known as the "people of the book." It is commonly thought that Judaism in the first several centuries CE found meaning exclusively in textual sources. But there is another approach to meaning to be found in ancient Judaism, one that sees it in the natural world and derives it from visual clues rather than textual ones. According to this conception, God embedded hidden signs in the world that could be read by human beings and interpreted according to complex systems.

In exploring the diverse functions of signs outside of the realm of the written word, Swartz introduces unfamiliar sources and motifs from the formative age of Judaism, including magical and divination texts and new interpretations of legends and midrashim from classical rabbinic literature. He shows us how ancient Jews perceived these signs and read them, elaborating on their use of divination, symbolic interpretation of physical features and dress, and interpretations of historical events. As we learn how these ancient people read the world, we begin to see how ancient people found meaning in unexpected ways.

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À propos de l?auteur

Michael D. Swartz is Professor of Hebrew and Religious Studies at the Ohio State University. His books include Scholastic Magic, Mystical Prayer in Ancient Judaism, Hebrew and Aramaic Incantation Texts from the Cairo Genizah (with Lawrence H. Schiffman), and Avodah: Ancient Poems for Yom Kippur (with Joseph Yahalom). He also served as Judaica Editor for the second edition of The Encyclopedia of Religion.

Les informations fournies dans la section « A propos du livre » peuvent faire référence à une autre édition de ce titre.

Éditeur
New York University Press
Date d'édition
2014
Langue
anglais
ISBN 10 
147985557X
ISBN 13 
9781479855575
Reliure
Broché
Nombre de pages
132
Coordonnées du fabricant
non disponible
Personne responsable
non disponible

Autres éditions populaires du même titre

9780814740934: The Signifying Creator: Nontextual Sources of Meaning in Ancient Judaism

Edition présentée

ISBN 10 :  0814740936 ISBN 13 :  9780814740934
Editeur : New York University Press, 2012
Couverture rigide