Brian Pollick provided the audience
gathered at the synagogue last Tuesday with an interesting and informative
overview of the use of animals in Jewish medieval manuscripts. He led an entertaining
and insightful romp through medieval Jewish manuscripts and offered lots to
ponder about in Jewish art and culture.
There was a somewhat climactic moment
after Brian projected a manuscript illustrated with a leopard, an eagle, a deer
and a lion that was inspired by the words of Yehuda ben Tema, “Be bold as a
leopard, light as an eagle, swift as a deer and strong as a lion, to carry out
the will of your father in heaven”…—
Immediately, Rabbi Harry drew the
audience’s attention to the curtain (parokhet) in front of the aron hakodesh
where, inscribed in Hebrew, was the same statement, accompanied by Vancouver
Island animals—two bald eagles, a cougar and a deer. (For more about the
design of Emanu-El’sparokhet see http://jewishmuseum.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/TheScribe2012.pdf
)
For more photos of the event, click here.
This was an engaging talk and a wonderful segue into The Revelation
Project event scheduled for Sunday, June 5, 2016.
