Tree of Souls (Schwartz)

645 texts · Page 72 of 72

Texts from Howard Schwartz's Tree of Souls: The Mythology of Judaism, a landmark anthology gathering myths and legends spanning the full arc of Jewish tradition, from the creation of the world to the coming of the Messiah.

The Ingathering Of The Exiles

Tree of Souls

It’s a concept that has pulsed through the heart of Jewish longing for centuries: the return of all scattered Jewish communities to the Holy Land. Jewish tradition paints a breatht...

CreationHeavenTorahMoses

The Birth Of Armilus

Tree of Souls

It’s about the birth of Armilus, a figure who looms large in Jewish messianic mythology as something akin to the Anti-Christ. The story starts in Rome. Not just any Rome, but a Rom...

CreationDemonsMessiahCreatures

Satan And The Messiah

Tree of Souls

Jewish tradition offers some fascinating glimpses, and one particularly dramatic scene involves Satan himself getting a sneak peek at the Messiah. The story goes that even before t...

CreationDemonsHeavenHell/Gehenna

The Arrival Of The Messiah

Tree of Souls

Jewish tradition paints a pretty vivid picture, actually. It's not subtle. According to Pesikta Rabbati 36:2, a Midrashic collection of homilies, the whole world is going to be shr...

MessiahNoah & FloodTempleHoly Land

God Reprimands The Universe

Tree of Souls

Jewish tradition, particularly in esoteric texts, grapples with this very question. Imagine a cosmic courtroom, a beth din, in the time to come. God, seated on His Throne of Justic...

CreationAngelsHeavenAdam & Eve

A New Torah

Tree of Souls

Jewish tradition has a pretty wild idea about that very thing: a brand-new Torah, delivered by the Messiah himself! The notion of a Torah Chadashah, a new Torah, pops up in some fa...

MessiahTorahHoly Land