Prof. René Bloch is Professor of Jewish Studies at the University of Bern (Switzerland), where he holds a joint appointment in the Institute of Jewish Studies and the Institute of Classics. He obtained his Ph.D. (Dr. phil.) as well as his “habilitation” from the University of Basel. Bloch’s most recent publications include: “Bringing Philo Home: Responses to Harry A. Wolfson’s Philo (1947) in the Aftermath of World War II,” “Dying in Egypt: Philo’s Joseph as a Cosmopolitan Citizen,” and “Jüdische Bibelkritik in Antike und Mittelalter: Von Philon von Alexandrien bis Spinoza.”
Last Updated
March 31, 2024
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Partzufim, “faces,” is the original term for Purim masks. Modern Hebrew uses the biblical term masekhah instead, which sounds suspiciously like the English term “mask,” whose etymology is itself a riddle. Thus the mask succeeds in staying anonymous.
Partzufim, “faces,” is the original term for Purim masks. Modern Hebrew uses the biblical term masekhah instead, which sounds suspiciously like the English term “mask,” whose etymology is itself a riddle. Thus the mask succeeds in staying anonymous.
Sukkot was a festival of paramount importance to Jews in Greco-Roman antiquity, and was well-known to non-Jews. In fact, its processions with festive palm branches (lulavim) reminded pagans of Bacchic rituals with the thyrsos carried by the votaries of Dionysus/Bacchus and used in his festivals.
Sukkot was a festival of paramount importance to Jews in Greco-Roman antiquity, and was well-known to non-Jews. In fact, its processions with festive palm branches (lulavim) reminded pagans of Bacchic rituals with the thyrsos carried by the votaries of Dionysus/Bacchus and used in his festivals.
