Religion and Politics Among the Jewish Leadership of Early Medieval Palestine
This article investigates how the Jewish leadership in early medieval Palestine employed religious elements to consolidate its power among Jewish communities across the Muslim world. It suggests that the Palestinian Academy in Jerusalem leveraged its location to enhance its authority. The first sect...
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2025-06-01
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/16/6/783 |
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| author | Tal Laufer |
| author_facet | Tal Laufer |
| author_sort | Tal Laufer |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This article investigates how the Jewish leadership in early medieval Palestine employed religious elements to consolidate its power among Jewish communities across the Muslim world. It suggests that the Palestinian Academy in Jerusalem leveraged its location to enhance its authority. The first section analyzes the 921/922 calendar dispute between the Palestinian and Babylonian Jewish centers. I argue that this ostensibly religious conflict was fundamentally a political struggle for leadership, demonstrating how religious authority was utilized for political gain. The second section examines the Hoshana Rabbah ceremony on the Mount of Olives, a key event presided over by the Palestinian Academy and its head, the Gaon. Taking place on the final day of Sukkot, this ceremony attracted Jewish pilgrims from across the Muslim world to Jerusalem. This part analyzes how the Palestinian Academy strategically employed this significant religious gathering—acknowledged even by rival Jewish centers—as a political demonstration to assert its leadership over the Jewish world. Furthermore, the analysis delves into the ceremony’s historical origins, the motivations behind its establishment, and its deep connection to Jerusalem. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c3ad478ea11041c9b8ba09548bbf9ab0 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2077-1444 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Religions |
| spelling | doaj-art-c3ad478ea11041c9b8ba09548bbf9ab02025-08-20T03:27:32ZengMDPI AGReligions2077-14442025-06-0116678310.3390/rel16060783Religion and Politics Among the Jewish Leadership of Early Medieval PalestineTal Laufer0The Department of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Be’er Sheva 8400100, IsraelThis article investigates how the Jewish leadership in early medieval Palestine employed religious elements to consolidate its power among Jewish communities across the Muslim world. It suggests that the Palestinian Academy in Jerusalem leveraged its location to enhance its authority. The first section analyzes the 921/922 calendar dispute between the Palestinian and Babylonian Jewish centers. I argue that this ostensibly religious conflict was fundamentally a political struggle for leadership, demonstrating how religious authority was utilized for political gain. The second section examines the Hoshana Rabbah ceremony on the Mount of Olives, a key event presided over by the Palestinian Academy and its head, the Gaon. Taking place on the final day of Sukkot, this ceremony attracted Jewish pilgrims from across the Muslim world to Jerusalem. This part analyzes how the Palestinian Academy strategically employed this significant religious gathering—acknowledged even by rival Jewish centers—as a political demonstration to assert its leadership over the Jewish world. Furthermore, the analysis delves into the ceremony’s historical origins, the motivations behind its establishment, and its deep connection to Jerusalem.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/16/6/783Medieval Palestinethe Palestinian Academythe Babylonian academiesthe calendar controversyJerusalemJudaism |
| spellingShingle | Tal Laufer Religion and Politics Among the Jewish Leadership of Early Medieval Palestine Religions Medieval Palestine the Palestinian Academy the Babylonian academies the calendar controversy Jerusalem Judaism |
| title | Religion and Politics Among the Jewish Leadership of Early Medieval Palestine |
| title_full | Religion and Politics Among the Jewish Leadership of Early Medieval Palestine |
| title_fullStr | Religion and Politics Among the Jewish Leadership of Early Medieval Palestine |
| title_full_unstemmed | Religion and Politics Among the Jewish Leadership of Early Medieval Palestine |
| title_short | Religion and Politics Among the Jewish Leadership of Early Medieval Palestine |
| title_sort | religion and politics among the jewish leadership of early medieval palestine |
| topic | Medieval Palestine the Palestinian Academy the Babylonian academies the calendar controversy Jerusalem Judaism |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/16/6/783 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT tallaufer religionandpoliticsamongthejewishleadershipofearlymedievalpalestine |