Siddur Hatefillah

The Jewish Prayer Book. Philosophy, Poetry, and Mystery

Academic Studies Press
Eliezer Schweid, translated by Gershon Greenberg, introduction by Gershon Greenberg
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Hebrew University Professor Emeritus and Israel Prize recipient Eliezer Schweid (1929-2022) is widely regarded as one of the greatest historians of Jewish thought of our era. In Siddur Hatefillah, he probes the Jewish prayer book as a reflection of Judaism's unity and continuity as a unique spiritual entity; and as the most popular, most uttered, and internalized text of the Jewish people. Schweid explores texts which process religious philosophical teaching into the language of prayer, and/or express philosophical ideas in prayer’s special language – which the worshipper reflects upon in order to direct prayer, and through which flows hoped-for feedback. With the addition of historical, philological, and literary contexts, the study provides the reader with first-time access to the comprehensive meaning of Jewish prayer—filling a vacuum in both the experience and scholarship of Jewish worship.

Contributor Bio

Eliezer Schweid (1929-2022) was widely recognized as one of the foremost historians of Jewish thought of this era. He was Professor Emeritus at Hebrew University and an Israel Prize recipient.

Gershon Greenberg is a visiting professor in the history of Jewish religious thought through the Holocaust at Hebrew and Bar Ilan universities in Israel. He is based at American University in Washington, D.C. where he created and directed the Jewish Studies Program and serves as Professor of Philosophy and Religion.

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