A Lamp Unto My Feet, A Light Unto My Path

A Lamp Unto My Feet, A Light Unto My Path

Matthew Fortin
12.8.24 & 1.12.25 | 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm | In Person

A Two-Part Series on Jewish Kabbalah

“Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path” Psalm 119:105

What can we learn about Kabbalah by exploring the history of Israel and examining the development of Jewish Mysticism?  This two-part series seeks to explore these questions and more. Scholar Robert M. Seltzer suggests that “although [Kabbalah is] usually considered a phase of Jewish mysticism, the purely mystical element in the Kabbalah is only part, albeit a central part, of a vast and complex mental world, which includes a speculative metaphysics, a theory of human nature, distinctive rituals, and considerable folklore.” Topics include this vast and complex mental world and how it is informed by Jewish Mysticism and Kabbalah. Participants are invited to engage in text-based discussions.

Part One | A Lamp Unto My Feet: A historical survey of the origin of ancient Israel, Biblical heritage, Hellenistic Diaspora, Rabbinic Judaism, and Medieval Jewish theology and philosophy.

Part Two | A Light Unto My Path: A historical survey of the early phases of Jewish Mysticism, the Hasidei Ashkenaz, Pietists of Medieval Germany, and key texts of the Kabbalah.

Matthew Fortin is an independent scholar of the metaphysics of letters within the_Sefer Yetzira (Book of Formation),_and the relationship between Kabbalah and Western Esotericism. He presents original research at conferences, most recently “Hypnagogic Consciousness and the Fire of Azrael” at the Occulture Conference in Berlin, Germany, and “In Defense of Ancient Rabbis” at the Southwest Popular American Culture Association (SWPACA) in Albuquerque, NM.