Place of publication: United States, Ann Arbor; ISBN=978-1-339-32102-8
Ph.D.
Divinity
The University of Chicago
2015
The expansion of Islam, which brought the majority of the world's Jews into contact with the Arabic and Islamic cultural spheres, transformed medieval Jewish culture and religion. Jews adopted and contributed to the development of Arabic literature, shifting away from the thematic and formal elements of the rabbinic tradition. It was within this milieu that the first Jewish commentaries on the Bible emerged. The leaders in this dynamic cultural reorientation were the Karaites, a Jewish movement that coalesced around the principles of biblical scholarship, asceticism, and eschatology. Intent on hastening the redemption, the Karaites established a spiritual center in Jerusalem at the end of the ninth century C.E. There, they undertook a rigorous program of asceticism and devoted themselves to studying the Bible. The Jerusalem Karaites, known as the "Mourners for Zion," considered the biblical book of Lamentations to be an important source of pious and ritual instruction for their community.
Religion; Islamic Studies; Judaic studies
Philosophy, religion and theology;Social sciences;Biblical exegesis;Jerusalem;Judeo-arabic;Karaite;Lamentations;Medieval