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The Enigma of Joseph Ben Uzziel (and of the ‘Secret Library’)

The Enigma of Joseph Ben Uzziel (and of the ‘Secret Library’) © Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2011 ZUTOT 7.1 Also available online – brill.nl/zuto THE ENIGMA OF JOSEPH BEN UZZIEL (AND OF THE ‘SECRET LIBRARY’) Gili Orr University of Amsterdam The common practice of Jewish mystics, from the Hekhalot and Merkavah literature to the Kabbalists, was to attribute their revelations of ‘heavenly secrets’ to well-known Sages, thereby providing their new ideas with the authority of a long tradition. The twelfth-thirteenth century ‘Unique Cherub’ circle of Jewish mystics, however, attributed their tradition to the apparently fictional figure of Joseph ben Uzziel (presented as the Barayta of Joseph ben Uzziel ). 1 This character was most likely invented by the author of Alpha Beta de-Ben Sira I (hereafter: ABDS ), the second part of a unique anonymous medieval book, scholarly referred to as pseudo-Ben Sira . 2 The raison d’être of this book has been a matter of dispute. Eli Yassif, whose doctoral dissertation concerned this book, regards its first part (the second Alpha Beta or Toledot Ben Sira ) 3 as mere story-telling and its second part ( ABDS ) as a straightforward commentary on a collection of Aramaic proverbs, attributed to the ancient poet Ben Sira (second century BC). http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Zutot Brill

The Enigma of Joseph Ben Uzziel (and of the ‘Secret Library’)

Orr, Gili
Zutot , Volume 7 (1): 17 – Jan 1, 2010
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Publisher
Brill
Copyright
© 2011 Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands
ISSN
1571-7283
eISSN
1875-0214
DOI
10.1163/187502111795240430
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

© Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2011 ZUTOT 7.1 Also available online – brill.nl/zuto THE ENIGMA OF JOSEPH BEN UZZIEL (AND OF THE ‘SECRET LIBRARY’) Gili Orr University of Amsterdam The common practice of Jewish mystics, from the Hekhalot and Merkavah literature to the Kabbalists, was to attribute their revelations of ‘heavenly secrets’ to well-known Sages, thereby providing their new ideas with the authority of a long tradition. The twelfth-thirteenth century ‘Unique Cherub’ circle of Jewish mystics, however, attributed their tradition to the apparently fictional figure of Joseph ben Uzziel (presented as the Barayta of Joseph ben Uzziel ). 1 This character was most likely invented by the author of Alpha Beta de-Ben Sira I (hereafter: ABDS ), the second part of a unique anonymous medieval book, scholarly referred to as pseudo-Ben Sira . 2 The raison d’être of this book has been a matter of dispute. Eli Yassif, whose doctoral dissertation concerned this book, regards its first part (the second Alpha Beta or Toledot Ben Sira ) 3 as mere story-telling and its second part ( ABDS ) as a straightforward commentary on a collection of Aramaic proverbs, attributed to the ancient poet Ben Sira (second century BC).

Journal

Zutot – Brill

Published: Jan 1, 2010

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