Death of Death PB [Paperback]

Neil Gillman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2000

RESURRECTION AND IMMORTALITY IN JEWISH THOUGHT...WINNER OF THENSTIONAL JEWISH BOOK AWARD

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Jewish Lights Pub (April 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580230814
• ISBN-13: 978-1580230810
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #953,888 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Enlightening history of resurrection/immortal soul doctrine, June 4, 2002

By 

T. Nelson (Warren, Michigan United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Death of Death PB (Paperback)

Professor Gillman gives us an excellent history of the origin and development of two doctrines relating to the afterlife, bodily resurrection and the concept of the immortal soul. In the use of Hebrew biblical reference, (before reading his book I never realized there were so few), he reviews the seeming contradictions between the more numerous texts which describe immediate human fate after death versus bodily resurrection. He also reviews the Platonic/Hellenist origin of the immortal soul doctrine which has high influence on current Jewish thought in reformed and conservative circles to this day. He reveals however that there is recent development among Jewish scholars challenging this concept and reviews these arguments as well. There are various interesting side topics touched on such as the Noahide commandments and the suffering servant of Isaiah 53. As a non-Jew, I found it refreshing that in Prof. Gillman's conclusions he finds the doctrine to be universally applicable to all peoples; not a salvation exclusive only to one who is born Jewish. This book is certainly worth reading to anyone interested in the subject. The only area I found somewhat scanty was the time period from Daniel to Josephus as far as the doctrinal position of the developing pharisaic movement (perhaps because there is not much available writing on the doctrine from that time).

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating Survey of Jewish Development of Afterlife, July 2, 2000

By 

David E. Levine (Peekskill , NY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Death of Death PB (Paperback)

Rabbi Gilman starts out with the proposition that an afterlifeis a Jewish concept but that the development of this concept is postbiblical. In other words, for the most part, the Jewish Bible implies that the soul does not live on after death with the possible exceptions of references made in the books of Daniel and Ezikiel. However, in post Biblical tradition, the concept of after life takes two forms, first, the body and soul die but are later resurrected. The second concept is that of the soul living on in an afterlife. Rabbi Gilamn concludes his fascinating study by giving a view of each of the branches' of Judaism stands on the issue. Each branch, even the Reform, acknowledge some form of afterlife. This book is fascinating and I highly recommend it to those interested in the subject.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An Objective Consideration of Immortality, April 24, 2005

By 

A. J. Valasek (Clemmons, NC United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Death of Death PB (Paperback)

I liked this book because it presented a fairly objective historicist approach of the subject of immortality and the afterlife throughout the age of literature.

The author discusses the impact that Platonian and Socratic thought had on the subject of the immortality of the soul and how this notion in conjuction with the Hebraic notion of resurrection gave rise to a whole new theology.

The beginning few chapters dealing with the "original sin" and the purpose of death were intriguing and would be a great subject of debate in any arena of thought.

Medieval thought through the influence of Maimonides is disussed in fairly comprehensive terms and the adoption of logical thought and the age of reason becomes obvious as its influence is spread throughout the centuries.

Overall, a decent argument is presented on how the transformation of religious thought to answer questions introduced through critical thinking of the afterlife.