HEBREW 235 / HDS 1808 – The Binding of Isaac (Aqedah): Seminar

HEBREW 235 / HDS 1808 – The Binding of Isaac (Aqedah): Seminar

Semester: Fall
Offered: 2023
Instructor: Jon Levenson
Meeting Time: Th 3:00pm – 5:00pm

An examination of Genesis 22 in multiple contexts – its settings in the Hebrew Bible and various forms of its afterlife in Second Temple Judaism, early Christianity, Rabbinic Judaism, and the Qur’an. Emphasis placed on the interpretation and expansion of the story in rabbinic midrashim, read in Hebrew. Some discussion of the use of the story in modern theology (especially Kierkegaard’s Fear and Trembling) and of rationalist and feminist critiques.

Offered jointly with: Harvard Divinity School as HDS 1808

Recommended Prep: Three years of Hebrew or the equivalent, and acquaintance with historical critical methods.

For more details please visit the Harvard Course Catalog.