A Skirball Academy Class
Dr. Diane M. Sharon:
Murder, Mayhem, and Flawed Leadership in the Book of Judges
The Book of Judges bursts with tales that seem straight out of today’s tabloids: The illegitimate son of a judge goes down in flames and a high-powered demagogue has a liaison with a prostitute. One flawed leader is found cowering in a cave when he is called to action, another slaughters his 70 brothers before being crowned and a third, who doesn’t know his own strength, resists all efforts to control his impulses. Even if human nature hasn’t changed much over the past thousands of years, what theological message could possibly be encoded in these scandalous headlines?
We will bring fresh eyes to a close reading of selected sections of this ancient biblical book, paying special attention to the ways literary devices such as satire, hyperbole, humor and poetry are used to highlight divine will and human perversity in these troubling tales.
Mondays, 11:00 – 12:30 PM
October 28, November 4, 11, 18, 25, December 2
$220 | $150 Temple Emanu-El members
Free for Friends of Streicker
Dr. Diane M. Sharon is a scholar and teacher of the Hebrew Bible, Comparative Religion and Ancient Near Eastern Literature who has taught at the Academy for Jewish Religion, the General Theological Seminary of the Episcopal Church, Fordham University and the Jewish Theological Seminary. She writes about the Hebrew Bible in its ancient Near Eastern context, comparative religion, literary analysis and women’s studies.
Mondays, 11:00 – 12:30 PM
October 28, November 4, 11, 18, 25, December 2
$220 | $150 Temple Emanu-El members
Free for Friends of Streicker
The Book of Judges bursts with tales that seem straight out of today’s tabloids: The illegitimate son of a judge goes down in flames and a high-powered demagogue has a liaison with a prostitute. One flawed leader is found cowering in a cave when he is called to action, another slaughters his 70 brothers before being crowned and a third, who doesn’t know his own strength, resists all efforts to control his impulses. Even if human nature hasn’t changed much over the past thousands of years, what theological message could possibly be encoded in these scandalous headlines?
We will bring fresh eyes to a close reading of selected sections of this ancient biblical book, paying special attention to the ways literary devices such as satire, hyperbole, humor and poetry are used to highlight divine will and human perversity in these troubling tales.
Dr. Diane M. Sharon is a scholar and teacher of the Hebrew Bible, Comparative Religion and Ancient Near Eastern Literature who has taught at the Academy for Jewish Religion, the General Theological Seminary of the Episcopal Church, Fordham University and the Jewish Theological Seminary. She writes about the Hebrew Bible in its ancient Near Eastern context, comparative religion, literary analysis and women’s studies.