This is a translation of a Spanish poem by Joao Pinto Delgado (c. 1585-1653) that is based on the biblical book of Esther. His choice of subject here was not accidental; the murderous persecution of the biblical Jews by the Persian King Haman stands as an obvious analogue to their sufferings at the hands of the Inquisition. Today, it also resonates with the events of the Holocaust. At the same time, this virtually unknown work is an elegant piece of Renaissance writing that bears stylistic and thematic affinities to important poems of the English Renaissance, such as those of Spenser, Sidney, and Marlowe. Slavitt's skillful translation approximates the rhyme scheme of the original and wonderfully evokes the lavishness and sensuousness of Pinto Delgado's suave descriptions. Also included in this volume is a translation of Pinto Delgados shorter poem In Praise of the Lord.
A stunning art book, but far more. In addition to glittering reproductions, details and working drawings of the ten mammoth pieces in this award-winning series about Esther of the Bible, the book features the artist's own story, illuminating her journey from war-torn Romania to Israel to Canada, what drew her to Esther and mosaics as a medium, and how she employed ancient techniques with a contemporary sensibility. An art historian provides a chapter comparing Broca's interpretation of Esther to that of such past artists as Rembrandt and Artemisia Gentileschi. The book finishes with a provocative, lyrical prose-poem written in the imagined voice of Esther by a prominent rabbi and scholar. An appendix provides the full text of Esther in beautiful calligraphed Hebrew with an accompanying English translation.
This book is the first edition and detailed study of a recently discovered 14th-century Judeo-Provençal poem on the story of Esther. The book makes an important contribution in several fields of studies, especially Jewish Studies, Romance Philology, History of Provençal Jews.
The poems in Birthright embody multiple legacies: genetic, historical, religious, and literary. Through the lens of one person's experience of inheritance, the poems suggest ways in which all of us may be influenced by how we perceive and process our lives and times. Here, a poet claims what is hers as a child of her particular parents; as a grandchild of refugees from Nazi Germany; as a Jew, a woman, a Gen Xer, and a New Yorker; as a reader of the Bible and Shakespeare and Flaubert and Lucille Clifton. This poet's birthright is as unique as her DNA. But it resonates far beyond herself. Erika Dreifus's poems in Birthright are about the skull and the heart, the bone, and the muscle. They are poems about holiness and everydayness and, in part, about the convergence of these two movements as a way to embrace and discover mercy, love, and honesty. What they illustrate is the beauty that happens in that space, when both elements are embraced and when forces collide: "I've always remembered the Sabbath day; I just haven't kept it holy." Birthright is a book that explores connectedness and connective tissue. These are poems that embrace faith, family, and the forest of good intention in all of its contradictory forces. It's about the expensive nature of coloring one's hair and the expansive nature, which explodes in the beaming colors of the Diaspora. Every time I come back to Birthright I am born again out of the little pieces in me that have died. This is the magic of Erika Dreifus's poems. They are the flame in the darkness of Deuteronomy; they are the spellbound silence of history that helps to bind you with the people right next to you and to the "ancestral spirits that mingle above." -Matthew Lippman, author of Mesmerizingly Sadly Beautiful and A Little Gut Magic. Full of humor and history, the personal and the painful, Erika Dreifus's Birthright is a thoughtful reflection on life and loss, on inheritance and the individual, collective, and intergenerational nature of Jewish experience. The book's midrashic reflections challenge readers to reconsider ancient texts and their modern resonances. Some of its more political poems, while offering a perspective that is not always easy to hear, add a critical voice to the dissonant chorus that composes today's commentary on Israel-Palestine. At its most moving moments, Birthright relays intimate and familial experiences with an earnest and generous vulnerability. With its honest, accessible language and straightforward storytelling, Erika Dreifus's first full-length collection is a welcome addition to the modern American poetry canon-narrative, Jewish, feminist, or otherwise.-Sivan Butler-Rotholz, Managing Editor, "Saturday Poetry Series," As It Ought to Be Magazine. These clear, unvarnished poems take us deeply into a life engaged with history, family, tradition, politics, and contemporary culture. -Richard Chess, author of Love Nailed to the Doorpost, Third Temple, and other books.
This interdisciplinary commentary ranges from early midrashic interpretation to contemporary rewritings introducing interpretations of the only biblical book not to mention God. Unearths a wealth of neglected rewritings inspired by the story’s relevance to themes of nationhood, rebellion, providence, revenge, female heroism, Jewish identity, exile, genocide and ‘multiculturalism’ Reveals the various struggles and strategies used by religious commentators to make sense of this only biblical book that does not mention God Asks why Esther is underestimated by contemporary feminist scholars despite a long history of subversive rewritings Compares the most influential Jewish and Christian interpretations and interpreters Includes an introduction to the book’s myriad representations in literature, music, and art Published in the reception-history series, Blackwell Bible Commentaries
The most prominent woman in Renaissance Florence, Lucrezia Tornabuoni de' Medici (1425-1482) lived during her city's golden age. Wife of Piero de' Medici and mother of Lorenzo the Magnificent, Tornabuoni exerted considerable influence on Florence's political and social affairs. She was also, as this volume illustrates, a gifted and prolific poet. This is the first major collection in any language of her extensive body of religious poems. Ranging from gentle lyrics on the Nativity to moving dialogues between a crucified Christ and the weeping sinner who kneels before him, the nine laudi (poems of praise) included here are among the few such poems known to have been written by a woman. Tornabuoni's five storie sacre, narrative poems based on the lives of biblical figures-three of whom, Judith, Susanna, and Esther, are Old Testament heroines-are virtually unique in their range and expressiveness. Together with Jane Tylus's substantial introduction, these poems offer us both a fascinating portrait of a highly educated and creative woman and a lively sense of cultural and social life in Renaissance Florence.
Queen Vashti is relaxing with her friends when the king demands that she dress up and entertain him and his friends, but she refuses, making him very angry. Includes author's note about the queens of Purim.
William Francis, author of The Stones Cry Out (1993), presents a worthy examination of the Jewish feasts and fasts established by God in Leviticus 23 and those inaugurated after the Babylonian exile. With studied skill Francis first explains the historical background of each feast, then offers its meaning and practice among Jews, and lastly makes clear its significance for modern Christians. The book reveals how Jesus participated in the feasts and how their meaning was fulfilled. The author's numerous visits to Israel and his precise probing for cultural insights into the Hebraic heritage of the Christian Church distinguish Francis as a preeminent voice among contemporary authorities on the Holy Land. Celebrate the Feasts is a valuable and informative book that combines a lucid writing style with careful scholarship, yet it avoids the intrusion of multiple citations and footnotes. Study guides follow each chapter, and a helpful bibliography lists Old Testament feasts in greater depth and detail. Celebrate the Feasts reminds us that uniting in joyful worship nourishes our souls, our social relationships, and, on occasion, our bodies. As you turn the pages, you will find yourself seated at the banquet table, enjoying the Feasts of the Lord!
