 |
THE PASSIONS OF THE MATRIARCHS,
by Shera Aranoff Tuchman and Sandra E. Rapoport. KTAV
Publishing. 2004, Hardcover, 376pp, $35
The
Bible is spare in its use of dialogue when it comes to
the biblical matriarchs – Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah.
The written biblical text records at length, and in minute
detail, the religious and national history of the Jewish
people. Yet it only affords us a mere glimpse of the private
and intimate lives of these strong and prophetic women.
On the surface, these women--the biblical matriarchs--lived
difficult and flawed lives. They endured childlessness,
abduction, wearisome marriages, envy of the "other woman,"
and difficult children. We are left wondering what they
thought and how they felt, as they lived their personal
lives and built a nation.
This
book, for the first time ever, answers these questions
by drawing extensively upon classical biblical commentaries
and Talmudic and Rabbinic writings which reveal the underlying
emotions of the matriarchs. The reader enters the world
of the matriarchs, experiencing the agony of infertility,
the ecstasy of passionate love, and the pain of being
unloved. Their thoughts, feelings, words and actions are
fleshed out, and the women emerge not as one-dimensional
figures, but as complex women possessing an array of universal
passions. At the same time, these women remain grounded
in Godliness, building the "House of Israel" as partners
with the patriarchs.
The Passions of the Matriarchs is a riveting and readable
book that tells the story behind the passions that ruled
the lives of these laudable women.
About
the Authors
Shera Aranoff Tuchman is a physician in
Manhattan, and teaches at Lenox Hill Hospital. In addition
Shera has been teaching weekly classes in biblical commentary
at Congregation Kehilath Jeshurun in Manhattan for the past
twelve years. Besides studying and teaching Bible, which
has been her passion, she and husband Alan Tuchman, are
the parents of three children.
Sandra
E. Rapoport met her co-author while a student
in Shera's women's Bible class ten years ago. Sandra,
who had been an attorney practicing litigation, has written
for law reviews and Commentary magazine. She presently
consults to an auction house specializing in rare Hebrew
books and manuscripts. With this book, Sandra combines
her love for Bible study with her passion for writing.
She and her husband, Sam, are the parents of three children.
|
