The Passover Seder: An Anthropological Perspective on Jewish Culture / Edition 1

by Ruth Fredman Cernea

Overview

Each spring Jewish people throughout the world celebrate Passover with the ritual of the Seder. Through a detailed anthropological and symbolic analysis, Cernea shows why the Seder continues to be a fundamental part of the process by which Jewich society creates and defines itself. In an age in which ritual observance among Jews is on the decline, this ancient ritual is still vital. In this cohesive volume, Cernea uses anthropological theories, history, folklore, religious writings, and personal observation to explain how the Seder permits participants to see their current experience through the prism of society's history. The Seder plate, with its ordinary foods presented in an extraordinary manner, gives voice to other concepts vital to Jewish culture long after the Seder is over. Originally published in 1981 by the University of Pennsylvania Press.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780819199263
Publisher:	University Press of America
Publication date:	07/25/1995
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	200
Product dimensions:	6.52(w) x 9.02(h) x 0.62(d)

Editorial Reviews

...will continue to be read by all interested in the Seder ritual, whether as scholars or as ritual performers.

Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal Of Jewish Studies - Nathan Katz

It is wonderful news that The Passover Seder is available once again! This was a groundbreaking work when it was first published, and it remains a refreshing and eye-opening analysis of the seder that casts new light on an age-old ritual.

Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal Of Jewish Studies - Dr. Jacob J. Staub

A marvelously readable blend of scholarship and celebration; provides a thoughtful guide to the ancient Jewish ritual meal.

Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal Of Jewish Studies - Egon Mayer

I believe that it is the best sustained discussion of Jewish ritual and liturgy employing an anthropological framework which is currently available.

Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal Of Jewish Studies - D. Bruce Rosenstock

...a detailed anthropological and symbolic analysis...

Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal Of Jewish Studies

A marvelously readable blend of scholarship and celebration; provides a thoughtful guide to the ancient Jewish ritual meal.--Egon Mayer, Ph.D, CUNY Graduate School "Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal Of Jewish Studies "

It is wonderful news that The Passover Seder is available once again! This was a groundbreaking work when it was first published, and it remains a refreshing and eye-opening analysis of the seder that casts new light on an age-old ritual.--Dr. Jacob J. Staub, Dean, Reconstructionist Rabbinical College "Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal Of Jewish Studies "

I believe that it is the best sustained discussion of Jewish ritual and liturgy employing an anthropological framework which is currently available.--D. Bruce Rosenstock, University of California, Davis "Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal Of Jewish Studies "

From the Publisher

...a detailed anthropological and symbolic analysis...

Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal Of Jewish Studies