Memory, Trauma, and Liturgies of Exile in Baruch 1:1–3:8

Abstract

Abstract The book of Baruch describes a set of penitential rituals ostensibly established early in the exilic period to be performed by worshipping assemblies in Babylon and Jerusalem. Prominence is assigned to the ceremonial recitation of a book composed by Baruch in Babylon, which becomes the basis of a letter sent by the exiles to the priests in Jerusalem for use in temple liturgies (1:1–14). As they hear the first part of the book (1:15–3:8), worshippers develop reflexive modes of awareness as they encounter various configurations of time and space, thereby performing exilic subjectivities through which they internalize “prosthetic” memories of loss, subjugation, and disaffection.