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Martin Buber Library
Gog and Magog: A Novel
Gog and Magog is a religious chronicle in fictional form. Its heroes are Hasidic rapbis. Its background is the Napoleonic wars at the end of the eighteenth century. Its scene is laid in Poland and Hungary. Although magic and superstition play their parts in the story, it is really Buber's effort to articulate two approaches to the May men use evil to accomplish good? May men take power in their own hands—even to do the work of redemption—without submitting first to the will of God? More particularly Buber unfolds the inner world of messianic longing and expectation that characterized Judaism then and continues to characterize it to the present day.
- GenresJudaismPhilosophy
316 pages, Paperback
First published January 4, 1984
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About the author
Martin Buber
426 books481 followersMartin Buber was an Austrian-born Jewish philosopher best known for his philosophy of dialogue, a religious existentialism centered on the distinction between the I-Thou relationship and the I-It relationship.
Buber came from a family of observant Jews, but broke with Jewish custom to pursue secular studies in philosophy. In 1902, Buber became the editor of the weekly Die Welt, the central organ of the Zionist movement, although he later withdrew from organizational work in Zionism. In 1923 Buber wrote his famous essay on existence, Ich und Du (later translated into English as I and Thou), and in 1925 he began translating the Hebrew Bible into the German language.
In 1930 Buber became an honorary professor at the University of Frankfurt am Main, and resigned in protest from his professorship immediately after Adolf Hitler came to power in 1933. He then founded the Central Office for Jewish Adult Education, which became an increasingly important body as the German government forbade Jews to attend public education. In 1938, Buber left Germany and settled in Jerusalem, in the British Mandate of Palestine, receiving a professorship at Hebrew University and lecturing in anthropology and introductory sociology.
Buber came from a family of observant Jews, but broke with Jewish custom to pursue secular studies in philosophy. In 1902, Buber became the editor of the weekly Die Welt, the central organ of the Zionist movement, although he later withdrew from organizational work in Zionism. In 1923 Buber wrote his famous essay on existence, Ich und Du (later translated into English as I and Thou), and in 1925 he began translating the Hebrew Bible into the German language.
In 1930 Buber became an honorary professor at the University of Frankfurt am Main, and resigned in protest from his professorship immediately after Adolf Hitler came to power in 1933. He then founded the Central Office for Jewish Adult Education, which became an increasingly important body as the German government forbade Jews to attend public education. In 1938, Buber left Germany and settled in Jerusalem, in the British Mandate of Palestine, receiving a professorship at Hebrew University and lecturing in anthropology and introductory sociology.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
July 23, 2024
Incredibile work by Martin Buber. Martin gives us an important inside view of the early days of Hasidism.
A fictional account of the early great rabbis of the movement which takes place during the Napoleonic wars in the region of Poland. Glad I read it - concerned that I didn't catch all the nuances. And feel that a second, third, and forth reading might be necessary. Highly enlightening as the rabbis of this era seemed to have been taken with a similar apocryphal thinking as that found in fundamentalist America's dispensational community; hence the title Gog and Magog - a reference to Ezekiel 38 and 39. It is refreshing to realize that this sort of silliness is not limited to the Christian community.
Apparently, they observed Napoleon's various campaigns as a fulfillment of scripture.
On the other hand reference to Kabbalah and Jewish mysticism only makes me want to delve deeper into this time and the origin of these people. Next on the list will be 'Tales of the Hasidim Later Masters' by Buber
I feel like a slower read would be better to put geography and characters and historical timeline in its place.
A fictional account of the early great rabbis of the movement which takes place during the Napoleonic wars in the region of Poland. Glad I read it - concerned that I didn't catch all the nuances. And feel that a second, third, and forth reading might be necessary. Highly enlightening as the rabbis of this era seemed to have been taken with a similar apocryphal thinking as that found in fundamentalist America's dispensational community; hence the title Gog and Magog - a reference to Ezekiel 38 and 39. It is refreshing to realize that this sort of silliness is not limited to the Christian community.
Apparently, they observed Napoleon's various campaigns as a fulfillment of scripture.
On the other hand reference to Kabbalah and Jewish mysticism only makes me want to delve deeper into this time and the origin of these people. Next on the list will be 'Tales of the Hasidim Later Masters' by Buber
I feel like a slower read would be better to put geography and characters and historical timeline in its place.
December 29, 2019
Da leggere come il Vangelo. Una storia al giorno,
March 14, 2014
це безперечно одна з най-книг.фікшн,котрий не відпускає мозок на перекур,котрий змушує судомно думати.і стратегічною помилкою було читати її під седативами в потязі.
перечитати.і обов'язково в оригіналі.
перечитати.і обов'язково в оригіналі.
August 10, 2015
I really wanted to like this book but couldn't get into it.
December 16, 2018
Stilted in the English translation. ...will have to reread in the Hebrew translation that Buber himself was involved in after WWII.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews