The Virgin Body and the Body Politic in Medieval Jewish-Christian Polemics

Wtorek, 7 maja 2024 r. godz. 15:00

Instytut Historii UJ, sala 17

Dr. Avital Davidovich Eshed

The Virgin Body and the Body Politic in Medieval Jewish-Christian Polemics

This lecture explores the profound significance of virginity in medieval Jewish tradition, serving as both a prism for understanding gender dynamics and a lens for deciphering Jewish-Christian interreligious debates. 

While extensively studied in Christianity, virginity's role in the Jewish context has often been underestimated or narrowly viewed. Focusing on the martyrdom of Sarit in a Hebrew chronicle of the First Crusade, this study unveils virginity's intrinsic importance in Jewish religious thought and social fabric. Sarit's narrative encapsulates the preservation of communal boundaries through the safeguarding of the virgin female body. 

This episode sheds light on both internal and external struggles within Jewry and underscores the intricate interplay between Judaism and Christianity.

Bio:

Dr. Avital Davidovich Eshed is a senior lecturer (Assistant professor) at the Jewish Philosophy and Talmud Department and the Women and Gender Studies Program at Tel Aviv University. 

Her research concerns the cultural history and religious thought of Medieval Ashkenazi Jews and the history of Ideas in Jewish culture. 

Her work also concerns the various ways in which Ideas about gender were incorporated into Jewish-Christian social dynamics and was used in inter-religious polemics.

Her research integrates the study of Jewish law, ritual, theology, and myth. 

Dr. Davidovich Eshed is a former WSRP Fellow and visiting scholar and lecturer on Women's Studies and Judaism at Harvard Divinity School (2017-18).