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Byzantine tales of Jewish image desecration: tracing a narrative

  • Katherine Aron-Beller*
  • *Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

4 Scopus citations

Abstract

This paper questions the significance and meaning behind the Byzantine legends of Jewish image desecration between the sixth and tenth centuries. The narrative of these tales, as historical and literary phenomena, uncover the uneasy equilibrium between the Christian theologians’ fear of idolatry and their need to gratify the Christian veneration of sacred images. It also confirms how doctrinal issues regarding types of images, their representation, real presence, worship and theological truth could be integrated into fictitious tale narratives about Jews to locate and define the Christian response to images at any given time.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)209-234
Number of pages26
JournalJewish Culture and History
Volume18
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - 4 May 2017

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2017 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Keywords

  • Byzantine History
  • Christian images
  • Eucharistic blood
  • iconoclastic controversy
  • Jewish image desecration

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