Body, Gender and Purity in Leviticus 12 and 15 - (Library of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Studies) by Dorothea Erbele-Küster (Hardcover)

About the Book

Explores the ways in how the male and female body is constructed in Leviticus 12 and 15 and how its reception history unfolds.

Book Synopsis

The so-called purity laws in Leviticus 11-15 reflect a cultic and social view on the male and female body. These texts do not give detailed physiological descriptions. Instead, they prescribe what to do in the cases of skin disease, delivery and wo/man's genital discharges, but the particular way of dealing with the body and the language used in Leviticus 12 and 15 ask for clarification: How do these texts construct the male and female body? Which roles does gender play within this language?

By means of themes like menstruation and circumcision, the author unfolds the language used for the body in Leviticus and its interpretation history. The study provides material for a contemporary anthropology of bodies which relates the human sexed body to God's holiness.

Review Quotes

On the whole there is much here to appreciate ... There are observations aplenty to debate ... It would not be safe for anyone working in the area to ignore this book.
The Expository Times

About the Author

Professor Dorothea Erbele-Küster, PhD, teaches Hebrew and the Hebrew Bible at the Protestant Faculty in Brussels (B) and in Kampen (NL).