Kabbalah and Jewish Modernity

by Roni Weinstein

Overview

This sociological reading of the kabbalistic ideas of the early modern period suggests that they gained acceptance because they responded to the needs of contemporary Jewish society. Although they were presented as continuing a tradition, their goal was reformation: few aspects of Jewish life were not changed in consequence. This broadly based and innovative study challenges accepted ideas on the origins of Jewish modernity, and also shows how Counter-Reformation Catholicism affected these developments. The Hebrew edition of the book was awarded the Goren-Gottstein Prize for the Best Book in Jewish Thought 2010-2012

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781837640546
Publisher:	The Littman Library of Jewish Civilization in association with Liverpool University Press
Publication date:	06/01/2024
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 1.25(h) x 9.00(d)

About the Author

Roni Weinstein teaches at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and has published extensively on various aspects of Jewish life in Renaissance and early modern Italy. In recent years he has been researching processes of modernization among the Jews of the Mediterranean basin, and particularly as related to migration, religious reform, mystical activity, halakhic innovations, and the spread of new ideas.

Table of Contents

Note on Transliteration xiii

Introduction: A Social Historian Looks at Early Modern Kabbalah 1

1 A New God: Theological Innovation 11

2 'Like giants sitting on the shoulders of dwarfs': The Rise of the Kadosh 44

3 Kabbalah, Halakhah, and Ritual 67

4 Religious Confraternities 83

5 'From my body I shall envision God': The Body and Sexuality 101

6 Sin and Repentance: Jewish Confession 123

7 Catholic Traditions in Safed Kabbalah: Sephardim and Conversos 146

Summary: Safed Kabbalah and Modernity 166

Bibliography 177

Index 203

Editorial Reviews

'This book is essential for understanding early modern Jewish religious thought and would be a valuable addendum for studies on the broader impact of early modern movements in Christianity. The English is polished and no previous knowledge of kabbalah is necessary for full comprehension. The concise text is rich in content and stimulating in its broad outlook. This study is not only a useful tool for crosscultural comparisons but it itself is a model for such a study. It could only be written by a person who has mastery both in early modern history and in early modern thought both Jewish and general. Luckily, the author meets these requirements and the result is a model monograph.' — Shaul Stampfer, Religious Studies Review

From the Publisher