Ekaterina E. Kozlova

Ekaterina E. Kozlova first surveys recent grief studies that identify maternal grief as the strongest and the most enduring among various types of bereavement. She then provides an overview of ancient Near Eastern cultures that viewed maternal grief as paradigmatic of all mourning and used ritual vis mere actions performed by mothers in contexts of large-scale catastrophes as mechanisms for dealing with a collective trauma. Against this background, Kozlova discusses Hagar (Gen. 21), Rizpah (2 Sam. 21), the Tekoite (2 Sam. 14), and Rachel (Jer. 31), all of whom perform rites for their dying or dead children and exhibit a form of advocacy for society at large. vis mindre