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How might a poem acquire divine forgiveness? Ariel Zinder’s book Arise and Sing follows medieval Jewish poets from Iraq and al-Andalus as they seek answers to this pressing question. The book presents close readings of liturgical poems (piyyutim) written in the 10th and 11th centuries, and brings them into contact with contemporary literary theory as well as modern philosophical discussions of the possibility of forgiveness.
"This volume is not an exhaustive study but provides an excellent point of entry for thinking seriously not only about what liturgical poems do, but also why and how. Each chapter is grounded in specific texts, which Zinder carefully and subtly explicates, while ample annotations enable readers to follow his line of thinking in a variety of new directions. Far from being a final word, this volume is an invitation to continue a conversation." - Laura Lieber, Speculum 101/2, April 2026
"[...] the book’s theoretical sophistication, grounded in careful ritual analysis and sensitive close reading, establishes new possibilities for approaching medieval Jewish poetry as both literary achievement and theological intervention. Zinder takes his two opening questions and demonstrates how different paytanim answer them in varied ways, revealing liturgical poetry’s capacity to address foundational religious questions through poetic creativity and intellectual rigor while engaging essential concerns of selfhood, community, and affective vulnerability." - Oren Yirmiya, Review of Biblical Literature, September 2025