"Who Can Recount the Mighty Acts of the Lord?": Cosmology and Authority in "Pirqei deRabbi Eliezer" 1-3
In research on Pirqei deRabbi Eliezer, much attention has been paid to parallels with "Old Testament pseudepigrapha." This article explores the possibility that some of these apparent parallels may reflect engagement with traditions closer to the author's own time, such as those found...
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
HUC
2011
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| In: |
Hebrew Union College annual
Year: 2009, Volume: 80, Pages: 115-141 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | In research on Pirqei deRabbi Eliezer, much attention has been paid to parallels with "Old Testament pseudepigrapha." This article explores the possibility that some of these apparent parallels may reflect engagement with traditions closer to the author's own time, such as those found in Hekhalot and related writings. As a test-case, it takes the approach to cosmology, angelology, and epistemology in the introductory chapters of the work. First, it considers PRE 3 in relation to rabbinic and Hekhalot traditions about the nature and limits of human knowledge. Then, the celebration of the expertise of R. Eliezer in PRE 1—2 is compared to claims made about R. Ishmael and other "Hekhalot Rabbis." The possibility is raised that some elements of Pirqei deRabbi Eliezer may have been shaped in response to claims concerning angelic adjuration, cosmological knowledge, and mastery of Torah such as those found in the Chapter of R. Neḥunyah ben haQanah and Seder Rabbah diBereshit. If so, Pirqei deRabbi Eliezer may preserve an interesting transitional moment in the reception of "mystical" traditions within rabbinic culture. |
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| Contains: | Enthalten in: Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, Hebrew Union College annual
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