A Study of Jewish Worship: from Sacrificial Cult to Rabbinic Benedictions and Prayers

A Study of Jewish Worship: from Sacrificial Cult to Rabbinic Benedictions and Prayers
Author: Dr. Martin Sicker
Publisher: Xlibris Corporation
Total Pages: 207
Release: 2022-10-19
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1669852342

Judaism, the origin of which dates from the rejection of polytheism by the patriarch Abraham nearly four thousand years ago, is committed to the worship of the one and only God. In the course of that long period of devotion, the character of that worship has evolved from a primitive form to progressively more sophisticated approaches necessitated by historical circumstances. The present study is concerned primarily with the original concept of worship of the divine in the form of a sacrificial cult, conducted by a priestly hierarchy, as described in the biblical Pentateuch, and the later transition to a democratized form of verbal worship conducted by the laity in a synagogue or by the individual in one’s home, as described in the rabbinic literature. One of the significant difficulties encountered in such a study is the translation of biblical and rabbinic Hebrew texts into English, which employs terminology such as ‘worship’ and ‘prayer’, terms which have no reliable biblical or rabbinic Hebrew equivalent. Accordingly, the common equation of worship, in the general sense of reverence paid to a god, with prayer, in the more precise Jewish sense of supplication or petition, can be misleading. Indeed, prayer, understood in the latter sense, constitutes a rather small segment of the voluminous liturgy of Jewish worship, much of which is drawn directly from Scripture, whereas prayer as petition, both formal and personal, is primarily the product of individuals confronting a variety of challenges to their and their coreligionists’ social and physical wellbeing. The principal focus of this study is on prayer, understood in the latter sense, which is traditionally interconnected with benedictions intended to give hope to those petitioning for divine beneficence.

A Study of Jewish Worship

A Study of Jewish Worship
Author: Martin Sicker
Publisher: Xlibris Us
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2022-10-19
Genre:
ISBN: 9781669852353

Judaism, the origin of which dates from the rejection of polytheism by the patriarch Abraham nearly four thousand years ago, is committed to the worship of the one and only God. In the course of that long period of devotion, the character of that worship has evolved from a primitive form to progressively more sophisticated approaches necessitated by historical circumstances. The present study is concerned primarily with the original concept of worship of the divine in the form of a sacrificial cult, conducted by a priestly hierarchy, as described in the biblical Pentateuch, and the later transition to a democratized form of verbal worship conducted by the laity in a synagogue or by the individual in one's home, as described in the rabbinic literature. One of the significant difficulties encountered in such a study is the translation of biblical and rabbinic Hebrew texts into English, which employs terminology such as 'worship' and 'prayer', terms which have no reliable biblical or rabbinic Hebrew equivalent. Accordingly, the common equation of worship, in the general sense of reverence paid to a god, with prayer, in the more precise Jewish sense of supplication or petition, can be misleading. Indeed, prayer, understood in the latter sense, constitutes a rather small segment of the voluminous liturgy of Jewish worship, much of which is drawn directly from Scripture, whereas prayer as petition, both formal and personal, is primarily the product of individuals confronting a variety of challenges to their and their coreligionists' social and physical wellbeing. The principal focus of this study is on prayer, understood in the latter sense, which is traditionally interconnected with benedictions intended to give hope to those petitioning for divine beneficence.

To Worship God Properly

To Worship God Properly
Author: Ruth Langer
Publisher: Hebrew Union College Press
Total Pages: 302
Release: 1998-11-29
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0878201033

A major influence on the development of rabbinic liturgical custom after the destruction of the Temple was the need to establish that this innovative worship of the heart was as acceptable to God as biblically prescribed sacrificial worship. Later Jewish communities and their leaders continually refined the details of the system they inherited to reflect their changing understandings of acceptable, meaningful, and constructive worship. These understandings have in turn been shaped not only by liturgical halakhah and active custom, but by new intellectual and social currents and by the vicissitudes of Jewish history. Ruth Langer uses the tools of historical scholarship and anthropological study of ritual to analyze some of the dynamics that have shaped Jewish liturgical law and determined the broader outlines of the prayer life of the Jews. After a consideration of the talmudic issues upon which the acceptability of prayer depends, she offers a basic list of legal principles derived by later generations from talmudic literature to ensure that prayer takes the form of blessings composed according to a very specific pattern and invoking God in a very precise way. She then investigates the development and implementation of the corollary that invoking this blessing formula in ways that deviate from the specific directions of the Talmud constitutes precisely inefficacious and even dangerous prayer. Questions about appropriate prayer language go beyond the blessing formula to the contents of the prayers themselves. Langer analyzes the battles fought over the legitimacy of inserting liturgical poetry into the fixed texts of the statutory liturgy and over the requirement of community for the proper recitation of certain prayers, specifically those that include the angelic liturgy. Although in each of these controversies the rabbis compromised by reinterpreting either legal theory or custom-or both-to bring them into harmony, their solutions have never been monolithic or simple. In its lucid illumination of those complexities, To Worship God Properly adds to our understanding of the history of Jewish liturgy and the general history of rabbinic leadership and law.

On Wings of Prayer

On Wings of Prayer
Author: Nuria Calduch-Benages
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
Total Pages: 424
Release: 2019-07-22
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 3110630281

The contributors and editors dedicate this volume of research to Professor Stefan C. Reif on the occasion of his 75th birthday. Together these twenty papers reflect our appreciation for his exemplary scholarship and lifelong commitment to acquaint our world with the theological and cultural riches of Jewish Studies. This collection reflects the breadth of Prof. Reif’s interests insofar as it is a combination of Second Temple studies and Jewish studies on the roots of Jewish prayer and liturgy which is his main field of expertise. Contributions on biblical and second temple studies cover Amos, Ben Sira, Esther, 2 Maccabees, Judith, Wisdom, Qumran Psalms, and James. Contributions on Jewish studies cover nuptial and benedictions after meals, Adon Olam, Passover Seder, Amidah, the Medieval Palestinian Tefillat ha-Shir, and other aspects of rabbinic liturgy. Moreover, the regional diversity of scholars from Israel, continental Europe, the United Kingdom, Ireland and North America mirrors Stefan’s travels as a lecturer and the reach of his publications. The volume includes a foreword of appreciation and a bibliographic list of Professor Reif's works.

Judaism and Hebrew Prayer

Judaism and Hebrew Prayer
Author: Stefan C. Reif
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 456
Release: 1995-03-23
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9780521483414

A scholarly but readable guide to the history of Jewish prayer from biblical times to the modern period.

Sacrifice, Cult, and Atonement in Early Judaism and Christianity

Sacrifice, Cult, and Atonement in Early Judaism and Christianity
Author: Henrietta L. Wiley
Publisher: SBL Press
Total Pages: 451
Release: 2017-09-28
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 088414190X

Critical and creative studies that offer fresh perspectives on ancient ideas and practices The contributions to this volume deal in various ways with the cult at the Jerusalem Temple that epitomized the religious, cultural, and socio-political identity of Judaism for many centuries. Some essays examine ancient constitutive practices and concepts, such as purification rituals, sacrifices, atonement, or sacred authorities at the temple, with the goal of interpreting their meanings for modern readers. Other essays explore alternatives to ancient cultic meaning and practice. Essays critique established traditions, attempt to renegotiate them, or use metaphor and spiritualization to expand the potential of these phenomena to serve as terminological and ideological resources. Thus they examine and affirm the continuing relevance of ancient Jewish cultic notions long after the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE. An international group of scholars representing different fields and diverse religious backgrounds A thorough examination of traditions as through the lens of contemporaneous interpretive traditions such as Jewish prophecy, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and Early Christian literature Examination of topics such as purification, sacrifice, and atonement, and the depiction and development of sacred authority throughout the Bible

Worship of the Heart

Worship of the Heart
Author: Joseph Dov Soloveitchik
Publisher: KTAV Publishing House, Inc.
Total Pages: 236
Release: 2003
Genre: Prayer
ISBN: 9780881257717

The Rav here explores the crucial interface between living religious experience and halakhic norms. He analyzes the Amidah, the Shema and other liturgical texts, and considers the tension between human dependence and exaltation.

Studies in Jewish Prayer

Studies in Jewish Prayer
Author: Tzvee Zahavy
Publisher: Zohar Media
Total Pages: 166
Release: 1990
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0819178373

In this collection of essays, Professor Zahavy explores the origins and early history of prayer in Judaism. He examines the growth of rabbanic liturgy from immediately after the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE until the close of the Talmud of the Land of Israel. Zahavy shows how rabbanic rules for prayer reflect the historical circumstances of the Jews in late antique Israel. He argues, based on close textual analysis, that rabbis had little influence over the governance of synagogues in the first and second centuries.

Worship and Ethics

Worship and Ethics
Author: Max Kadushin
Publisher: Global Academic Publishing
Total Pages: 368
Release: 2001
Genre: Literary Criticism
ISBN: 9781586840921

Describes how Halakah, or Jewish Law, enables the individual to achieve religious experience.

Jewish Liturgy

Jewish Liturgy
Author: Ruth Langer
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 281
Release: 2015-03-06
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0810886170

How do Jews pray and why? What do the prayers mean? From where did this liturgy come and what challenges does it face today? Such questions and many more, spanning the centuries and continents, have driven the study of Jewish liturgy. But just as the liturgy has changed over time, so too have the questions asked, the people asking them, and the methods used to address them. Jewish Liturgy: A Guide to Research enables the reader to access the rich bibliography now available in English. In this volume, Ruth Langer, an expert on Jewish liturgy, provides an annotated description of the most important books and articles on topics ranging historically from the liturgy of the Second Temple period and the Dead Sea Scrolls to today, addressing the synagogue itself and those gathered in it; the daily, weekly, and festival liturgies and their components; home rituals and the life cycle; as well as questions of liturgical performance and theology. Introductions to every section orient the reader and provide necessary background. Christians seeking to understand Jewish liturgy, either that of Jesus and the early church or that of their Jewish contemporaries, will find this volume invaluable. It’s also an important reference for anyone seeking to understand how Jews worship God and how that worship has evolved over time.