Elijah and the Rabbis: Story and Theology

During the Talmudic period of 50-500 C.E., Elijah became a recognizable character quite different from the Elijah of the Bible. The Elijah of the Talmud dispenses wisdom and advice and, like the Elijah of Jewish folklore, helps people directly, even with material gifts. Through an innovative synthesis of narrative critique, oral-formulaic study, folkloric research, and literary analysis, Kristen H. Lindbeck reads all of the Elijah narratives in the Babylonian Talmud, detailing the rise of a distinct Elijah who takes pleasure in ordinary interaction.Lindbeck’s method highlights features of the Elijah stories, allowing them to be grouped into generic categories. She then considers them alongside legends of Rabbinic figures, Rabbinic literary motifs, and non-Jewish cultures of late antiquity. Lindbeck compares the Bavli Elijah to a range of characters-angels, rabbis, wonder workers, the angel of death, Christian saints, and even the Greek god Hermes. She concludes with a survey of Elijah’s diverse roles from medieval times to today. Traditional folktales and liturgy show him bringing benefits and blessings, appearing at circumcisions and Passover, and visiting after the Sabbath. Employing her innovative method in the interpretation of these later stories, and drawing on current Israeli folklore scholarship, Lindbeck throws the complex relationship between ancient and modern Elijah traditions into thrilling relief.