Everyday Bible Study in Late Medieval Ashkenaz

Ariella Lehmann, PhD student, Department of Jewish History, Hebrew University of Jerusalem

This video presents the portrayal of Bible study from a will written by Eliezer ben Shmuel HaLevi of Mainz in 1357. Bible study was integral to Jewish life and identity in medieval Ashkenaz, even beyond the Rabbis and scholarly circles who were involved in exegesis and polemics. This video considers Eliezer’s description of how, when, and where ordinary Jewish men and women should study the Bible, situating his suggestions against the backdrop of religious reading practices amongst Christian laity of the period. 

Video

Primary Source Reading 

Ethical will of Eliezer b. Shmuel HaLevi, in Hebrew Ethical Wills, eds. Israel Abrahams and Lawrence Fine, 207-18. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 2006.

Further Reading

Baumgarten, Elisheva, Biblical Women and Jewish Daily Life in the Middle Ages. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2022.

Kanarfogel, Ephraim. “On the Role of Bible Study in Medieval Ashkenaz.” In The Frank Talmage Memorial Volume, ed. Barry Walfish, 151-166. Haifa: Haifa University Press, 1992.

—. “Prayer, Literacy and Literary Memory in the Jewish Communities of Medieval Europe.” In Jewish Studies at the Crossroads of Anthropology and History: Authority, Diaspora, Tradition, eds. Ra’anan S. Boustan, et al., 250-270. Philadelphia: Penn Press, 2011. 

van Liere, Frans. An Introduction to the Medieval Bible. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2014.

Discussion Questions

  1. How does Eliezer’s will reflect the relationship between individual piety and communal practices and spaces in medieval Jewish life?
  2. In what ways did Eliezer’s approach to Bible study differ from Christian practices of the time, and what might these differences suggest about the role of religious texts in each community? 

Cite

Lehmann, Ariella. "Everyday Bible Study in Late Medieval Ashkenaz," Middle Ages for Educators, November 11, 2024. Accessed [date]. https://middleagesforeducators.princeton.edu/everyday-bible-study-late-medieval-ashkenaz