H-Judaic is saddened to learn of the passing of Prof. Ithamar Gruenwald (1937-2024), emeritus professor of Jewish Philosophy and Religious Thought at Tel Aviv University.My own work has been influenced a good deal by Prof. Gruenwald's work, especially on Merkavah mysticism and the Hekhalot literature.Prof. Gruenwald, a highly influential scholar in Israel, focused on the transitions from biblical to rabbinic thought and on to ancient Jewish mysticism; more recently he studied Jewish ritual behavior. Gideon Bohak explains the significance of his scholarship in "Ithamar Gruenwald -- From Apocalypticism to Mysticism, From Jewish Studies to Religious Studies," in MYTH, RITUAL & MYSTICISM, the festschrift in Prof. Gruenwald's honor edited by Bohak along with Ron Magolin and Ishay Rosen-Zvi (2014).
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May his memory be for a blessing.
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