Balder Ex-Libris

Author : Scholem Gershom Gerhard
Title : Jewish gnosticism, merkabah mysticism, and talmudic tradition Based on the Israel Goldstein lectures, delivered at the jewish theological seminary of America, New York
Year : 1965

Link download : Scholem_Gershom_Gerhard_-_Jewish_gnosticism_merkabah_mysticism_and_talmudic_tradition.zip

Preface. This little book consists of the slightly enlarged text of the Israel Goldstein lectures delivered under the auspices of The Jewish Theological Seminary of America in New York during the spring term of 1957. They are supplemented by four appendices, the last of which was kindly contributed in Hebrew by my friend, Professor Saul Lieberman. I owe a debt of gratitude to Professor Lieberman, who took up the point I made in Section VI of this book concerning the age of Shiur Komah and established, by an additional thorough analysis of talmudic and midrashic statements on Canticles, the Tannaitic origin of this esoteric teaching. My thanks are also due to Professor Louis Finkelstein, Chancellor of The Jewish Theological Seminary, for his willingness to u ndertake the publication of this highly technical little book, which, I hope, will shed new light on aspects of early rabbinic J udaism sorely neglected by earlier Jewish scholars and by students of Gnosticism. Finally, I wish to express my gratitude to Mrs. Stanley Friedman, who contributed greatly to making my English readable. GERSHOM SCHOLEM Jerusalem The Hebrew University April, 1959. ...