Physical Description |
xvi, 476 pages : maps ; 24 cm |
Summary |
God appears to Abraham and Sarah, Jacob and others; He buttonholes Moses and Isaiah and Jeremiah and tells them what to say. Then Israelites stop seeing God or hearing His voice. Instead, later Israelites are 'in search of God,' reaching out to a distant, omniscient deity in prayers, as people have done ever since. What brought about this change? Using answers from the Bible and other ancient texts, archaeology and anthropology and recent advances in neuroscience, Kugel leads readers to the most basic matter of all: the nature of humanity's encounter with God from earliest times to our own day. |
Contents |
Part I: "A thousand ages in Thy sight ...". Seeing biblically ; Joseph and his brothers ; The last wills of Jacob's sons -- Part II: Divine encounters. Adam and Eve and the undifferentiated outside ; The fog of divine beings ; Eternity in ancient temples ; Imagining prophecy ; The Book of Psalms and speaking to God -- Part III. Transformations. To monotheism ... and beyond ; A sacred agreement at Sinai ; The emergence of the biblical soul ; Remembering God ; The end of prophecy? -- Part IV. In search of God. The elusive individual ; Humans in search ; Outside the Temple ; Personal religion ; Some conclusions. |
Note |
Includes bibliographical references (pages [413]-441) and index. |
Subject |
Bible. Old Testament -- Criticism, interpretation, etc.
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God (Judaism)
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Spirituality -- Judaism.
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