Study the Torah with Academic Scholarship

By using this site you agree to our Terms of Use

Art

Abraham’s Prayer—and Ours: A Yom Kippur Illustration

In a Yom Kippur afternoon (minhah) liturgical poem (piyyut) about Abraham, the artist of the 13th century Leipzig Mahzor chooses a scene of Abraham standing up to Nimrod and God saving him from death by fire.

Prof.

David Stern

,

,

How the Forbidden Fruit Became an Apple

Wheat, grapes, citrons, figs, pomegranates, and olives have all been presented as the fruit that Adam and Eve ate, yet the apple, which only entered the scene in the 12th century C.E., became the most popular candidate.

Prof.

Azzan Yadin-Israel

,

,

The Human Face on the Divine Chariot: Jacob the Knight

Jacob the patriarch’s face is said to be carved on the divine throne. Similarly, a 13th cent. masorah figurate of the four creatures drawing Ezekiel’s chariot portrays Jacob as the human creature in the form of a knight, playing off the phrase אביר יעקב, avir Yaakov (Genesis 49:24).‎

Prof.

Sara Offenberg

,

,

Lot’s Wife Turns as an Act of Resistance: The Art of Yehuda Levy-Aldema

Lot’s wife looking back at Sodom is traditionally understood as an act of disobedience to God. Yehuda Levy- Aldema, an Israeli Orthodox-Jewish artist, offers a visual reading that instead interprets her turning as an act of resistance to her sexually violent husband.

Prof.

Susanne Scholz

,

,

No items found.