Ben: Sonship and Jewish Mysticism
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Published:20th Feb '08
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back

This book constitutes the first attempt to address the category of Sonship in Jewish mystical literature as a whole - a category much more vast than ever imagined. By this survey, not only can the mystical forms of Sonship in Judaism be better understood, but the concept of Sonship in religion in general can also be enriched
While many aspects of Sonship have been analyzed in books on Judaism, this book attempts to address the category of Sonship in Jewish mystical literature as a whole - a category much more vast than ever imagined. It aims to point out the many instances where Jewish thinkers resorted to concepts of Sonship and their conceptual backgrounds.While many aspects of Sonship have been analyzed in books on Judaism, this book constitutes the first attempt to address the category of Sonship in Jewish mystical literature as a whole - a category much more vast than ever imagined. Idel's aim is to point out the many instances where Jewish thinkers, especially the mystics among them, resorted to concepts of Sonship and their conceptual backgrounds, and thus to show the existence of a wide variety of understandings of hypostatic sons in Judaism. By this survey, not only can the mystical forms of Sonship in Judaism be better understood, but the concept of Sonship in religion in general can also be enriched. "The Kogod Library of Judaic Studies" aims to publish new research in all areas of Judaic studies with the potential to both enrich and deepen the understanding of Jewish culture and history and to influence and mould Jewish life and philosophy. The series reflects the existence of plural Jewish identities and streams involved in a lively and continuous multi-vocal religious discourse, and in creating a cultural mosaic.
"Moshe Idel increasingly is seen as having achieved the eminence of Gershom Scholem in the study of Jewish mysticism. Ben, his book on the concept of Sonship in Kabbalah, is an extraordinary work of scholarship and imaginative surmise. If an intellectual Judaism is to survive, then Idel becomes essential reading, whatever your own spiritual allegiances." Harold Bloom, Sterling Professor of Humanities, Yale University, USA
'With impressive scholarship and penetrating insight Moshe Idel, the foremost expert on Jewish mysticism, has excavated a long-neglected dimension of Jewish mysticism: the theme of divine sonship. Ranging from the Hebrew Bible to Freud and beyond, Idel's monumental work analyzes the distinctive character of Jewish mystical ideas of sonship, as well as their relation to Christian understandings of the incarnational sonship of Jesus. Ben: Sonship and Jewish Mysticism is a tour-de-force of intellectual history, important for both the story of Jewish mysticism and for inter-religious dialogue.' Bernard McGinn, Naomi Shenstone Donnelley Professor Emeritus, Divinity School, University of Chicago, USA
Winner of the 2007 National Jewish Book Award in Scholarship.
"In this fundamental contribution, Idel once again shows his mastery of an enormous range of Jewish mystical and related materials, along with his acuity in matters of method and interpretation. Summing up: Highly recommended. Libraries supporting Jewish Studies and religion programs; upper level undergraduates and above." - S. T. Katz, CHOICE, September 2008 -- S. T. Katz * Choice *
ISBN: 9780826496652
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: 300g
744 pages