Binding [Aqedah] and its Transformations in Judaism and Islam. The Lambs of God
| Author: | Caspi, Mishael Cohen, Sascha | |
| Year: | 1995 | |
| Pages: | 188 | |
| ISBN: | 0-7734-2389-3 978-0-7734-2389-3 | |
| Price: | $159.95 + shipping | |
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Little serious research has been undertaken to examine the story of the binding as it appears in Jewish and Islamic traditions, to see whether the parallel components could be found in the binding of Isaac vis a vis the binding of Ishmael. This volume presents a comprehensive examination of the two traditions and analyzes the process of how the colorful tapestry of oral tradition transformed into more rigid religious doctrine, showing the interactions and transformations of the tale as it grows within the constraints, and across the bounds, of these differing traditions. This research will be useful to all students of the Bible, encouraging them to view the Aqedah through the fascinating and fluid aesthetic of the oral tradition in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
Reviews
"This close reading of the Genesis story and the mishna relating to the sacrifice of Abraham of his only son has unique reverberations in the Islamic context because of the retelling of the story by the Prophet Mohammed, preserved in a hadith. . . . The first chapter presents a translation of the biblical narrative, followed by a compendium of the Jewish oral traditions that developed over a period of more than fifteen centuries. . . . following chapters show the tale's transition from its Jewish roots into other religious milieu. Chapter two attempts to scrutinize the actual process of transition, drawing in materials related thematically across three traditions and more than five centuries. Recommended." - Word Trade
"Caspi and Cohen have performed a valuable service for scholars interested in the way oral configurations develop across religious traditions. As the authors aptly remind us, new readings are a constant part of traditions. What they have created is an interreligious reading, simple in its focus on the aqedah, complex in its cross-traditional comparisons." -- Kenneth J. Kramer
"Caspi and Cohen have performed a valuable service for scholars interested in the way oral configurations develop across religious traditions. As the authors aptly remind us, new readings are a constant part of traditions. What they have created is an interreligious reading, simple in its focus on the aqedah, complex in its cross-traditional comparisons." -- Kenneth J. Kramer