On Jews and Judaism in Crisis: Selected Essays

Front Cover
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 1976 - History - 306 pages
Includes articles on Walter Benjamin, S.Y. Agnon, Martin Buber, and on Israel and the diaspora.

From inside the book

Contents

Jewish Youth Movement
49
The GermanJewish Dialogue
65
S Y AgnonThe Last Hebrew Classic?
93
Copyright

6 other sections not shown

Other editions - View all

Common terms and phrases

About the author (1976)

Gershom Scholem's contribution to the understanding of Jewish mysticism is so dramatic that it warrants a separate introduction. As a young student of mathematics, he became a Zionist and his interest shifted to Jewish history. Scholem moved from Germany to become the librarian of the new University and National Library in Jerusalem in 1923 and served as a professor at Hebrew University from 1935 to 1965. Before him, Jewish historians during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries scorned the ignored mystical dimension of Judaism as a relic of premodern superstition and ignorance. Scholem's erudition and deep insight gave Cabala a scholarly audience. His writings are often difficult to read, but they are indispensable for any thorough knowledge of the subject of Jewish mysticism.

Bibliographic information