The Art of Conversion

Christianity and Kabbalah in the Thirteenth Century
Erscheinungsjahr 2000
ISBN: 978-90-04-11715-0
Verlag: Brill

Buch, Englisch, Band 26, 334 Seiten, Format (B × H): 166 mm x 245 mm, Gewicht: 776 g

Reihe: The Medieval Mediterranean

This book discusses Ramon Llull (ca. 1232-1316), the Christian missionary, philosopher and mystic, his relations with Jewish contemporaries, and how he integrated Jewish mystical teachings (Kabbalah) into his thought system so as to persuade the Jews to convert.
Issues dealt with include Llull's attitude towards the Jews, his knowledge of Kabbalah, his theories regarding the Trinity and Incarnation (the Art), and the impact of his ideas on the Jewish community. The book challenges conventional scholarly opinion regarding Christian knowledge of contemporary Jewish thought and questions the assumption that Christians did not know or use Kabbalah before the Renaissance. Further, it suggests that Lull was well aware of ongoing intellectual and religious controversies within the Jewish community, as well as being the first Christian to acknowledge and appreciate Kabbalah as a tool for conversion.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Hames, Harvey

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Jüdische Studien Geschichte des Judentums Geschichte des Judentums: Mittelalter
• Geisteswissenschaften Christentum, Christliche Theologie Systematische Theologie
• Geisteswissenschaften Jüdische Studien Jüdische Studien Jüdische Spiritualität & Mystik (Kabbala, Chassidismus)
• Geisteswissenschaften Religionswissenschaft Alternative Glaubensformen Okkultismus und andere religiöse Praktiken
• Geisteswissenschaften Christentum, Christliche Theologie Kirchengeschichte

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Acknowledgments --
Note on Nomenclature and Transliteration --
Abbreviations --

Introduction -- 1
1. Between Innovation and Tradition -- 31
2. The Jew in Llull's Eyes -- 83
3. Into the Gates of Wisdom -- 118
4. The Lullian Trinity: A Means to an End? -- 190
5. Unity and Trinity: A Jewish Response -- 246
Conclusion -- 284
Appendix: A Reply to "One of the Wise Men of the Gentiles": The Textual Tradition -- 289

Bibliography -- 293
Index -- 325

Über Autor(innen)

Harvey J. Hames, Ph.D. (1996) in History, Cambridge University, is Lecturer in Medieval History at Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beersheba, Israel. He has published various studies including, Conversion via Ecstatic Experience in Ramon Llull's Llibre del gentil e dels tres savis, in Viator and Jewish Magic with a Christian Text: A Hebrew Translation of Ramon Llull's Ars brevis, in Traditio.