How did the Prague Golem become the story we know today? Join Jewish studies scholar Ira Robinson for a talk on Rabbi Yudel Rosenberg, whose 1909 book helped bring the Maharal and his legendary creation to readers far beyond Prague.
REGISTERJméno pražského rabína Jehudy Löwa, známého jako Maharal, je s legendou o Golemovi neodmyslitelně spojeno. Na podobě příběhu, která se rozšířila ve 20. století, se však významně podílela Rosenbergova kniha The Golem and the Wondrous Deeds of the Maharal of Prague. Čím Maharal Rosenberga zaujal a proč si jeho vyprávění získalo tak silný ohlas?
Rabbi Judah Loew, known as the Maharal of Prague, has been associated with the Golem for generations. But the familiar telling of their story owes much to Rabbi Yudel Rosenberg’s The Golem and the Wondrous Deeds of the Maharal of Prague. What drew Rosenberg to the Maharal, and why did his portrayal resonate so strongly with Jewish readers in the early twentieth century?
Professor Robinson will place the book in the context of Rosenberg’s other writings and explore how it helped turn a Prague legend into a lasting work of modern Jewish storytelling.
Ira Robinson is Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Jewish Studies at Concordia University. The author, editor, or translator of nineteen books, he has written extensively on Jewish history and culture, including A Kabbalist in Montreal: The Life and Times of Rabbi Yudel Rosenberg.
Organized by the Society for the History of Czechoslovak Jews with support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, Czech Center New York, and the Bohemian Benevolent & Literary Association.
