Edinburgh Jewish Literary Society

This talk needs no introduction. We are privileged to welcome Sir Malcolm Rifkind back to the Lit for what, as always, promises to be an erudite and inspiring address from a leading statesman of our times.

Marian Oppenheim Hall, 4 Salisbury Road, 8pm

Marian Oppenheim Hall, 4 Salisbury Road, 8pm

A reading of Franz Rosenzweig’s Star of Redemption, one of the most influential Jewish works of theology of the twentieth century, with an eye to our own time. Conceived on the front line of the First World War, the book scorns the arguments both of pacifists and of their opponents. Who are the fanatics today? What does it mean to engage with the grim reality of war? Rosenzweig has some interesting answers – but his work also provokes the question: should we pay especial heed to any writer who invokes a Jewish approach to war and peace?

Marian Oppenheim Hall, 4 Salisbury Road, 8pm

This talk will discuss the practice of wet-nursing in the context of Jewish-Christian relations.  Until the development of formula for infant feeding in the 19th century, wet-nurses were the only safe alternative to maternal breastfeeding.  Generally speaking, more Jewish women needed wet-nurses than there were Jewish women who could provide this service and therefore Jews had to look outside their communities for women who could fill this need.  This raises interesting questions such as the nature of relations between employers and servants across religious and cultural boundaries, concerns about food, discussions about the moral qualities of mothers and wet-nurses and fear of pollution.  It also allows us some insight into the roles women played in establishing links with other women outside their specific culture and adds to our understanding of the complexity of Jewish-Christian relations.

Marian Oppenheim Hall, 4 Salisbury Road, 8pm

The remarkable treasure trove of manuscripts preserved by the Jewish community of medieval Cairo continues to astound researchers with the detailed picture it paints of life in the Middle Ages.  Far from being ‘nasty, brutish and short’, life for the Jews of the Genizah world encompassed a period of prosperity, relative political power and a great flowering of intellectual endeavour.  For the last hundred years, discoveries made among the nearly quarter of a million Genizah manuscripts have given us unparalleled access into the hearts and minds of a cultured, urbane and sophisticated society.

Marian Oppenheim Hall, 4 Salisbury Road, 8pm