The Sanhedrin Chronicles

J.S. Gold describes in his introduction how Black Panther inspired him to write a specifically Jewish superhero. And this character definitely qualifies. Arthur Rose takes little interest in his dead father’s Hassidism. However, Rifka, a haunted young woman, reveals that she killed his father and seeks the Tzohar stone he owned, because it can heal and revive the dead. Rifka, it turns out, has summoned a demon, Igrat, daughter of Malat. She is taking over Rifka as a dybbuk. Some of the story follows this dual villainess as Igrat plots and Rifka suffers. 

For Arthur, the story pattern is classic hero’s journey as Levi and his people try recruiting Arthur as his father’s heir, inheritor of the best powers. Arthur’s father, a Bondsman, joined himself to many angels including the Archangel Raphael. It’s quite a legacy. He’s ancestrally one of the Sanhedrin, who since the oldest days battled demons. However, their public life led to their being conquered and finally destroyed. 

The power is also rising in Arthur during the Days of Awe, even as he surprises himself by embracing more Jewish practice. Through it all, Arthur jokes about Obi-Wan and Hagrid, not to mention Joseph Campbell. As he retorts sarcastically, “In all those anime, the heroes are all wearing a tallis to defend against the villains. What was it Hagrid said? ‘You’re an ultra-orthodox Jew, Harry” (46). The pop culture references are obviously modern and fun. Arthur has read all the classic stories and he’s aware how this one fits into them. But that’s the catch—he’s heavily skeptical because he doesn’t equate his father’s pushy traditions or his uncle’s holiday-only practice with heroism. At their institution, they study Torah, which Arthur finds a letdown:

“There’s something sexy about a demon-hunting priest. The righteous man of the collar hunting vampires and things that go bump in the night, armed only with his cross, his faith, and a precious vial of holy water. Yet you take that same religious man and call him a Rabbi, arm him with a shofar and Hebrew, and to Arthur, what was once a haunting tale turns comical in the telling. Arthur’s buying the magish and demons and everything else, so why is it so hard for him to digest the Jewishy parts? Here he’s found himself in a world as dark and mysterious as any Stoker novel, yet a hesitancy lingers.” (89)

In fact, they have magical tallit and drive off demons by blowing a shofar. They harness different types of kishef, magic, or the older term magish, inherent to each. Arthur’s guide tells him that God bestows on them a particular ability: “Speaker or Bondsman? Binder or Mender or Namer: it’s in your soul that we will find out who you are. And to see to it, we must go to the realms of the Sefiros, You and I. The Tree of Life” (66). However, when Arthur journeys, he finds he has the very rare talent of seeing all the sephirot emanations – he has all five talents. Those through history who have done so have generally been called Ha’Ari, the lion. Among the chosen people, he’s a more gifted chosen one. 

Levi urges him to reclaim his Jewish practice, because it’s the key to the mysticism behind his abilities. Accordingly, the Sanhedrin give him a Living Shawl, an animated garment created to protect his bloodline. Arthur prefers to forge a sword of fiery light. In this case, however, his trainer tells him, “We are Jews, son. We don’t just go waving swords around like we’re the damn Knights Templar” (152). Arthur is disappointed that culturally they are scholars not warriors. However, the trainer says that he is supposed to heal the world, not kill or conquer. Torah and charms are meant to purify demons and restore their holiness. The subversion of the chosen one story thus emphasizes Jewish values and Jewish culture. 

Magic is based in true names, from Arthur’s true name to the words that predate Hebrew. Levi tries training him in belief, dedication to creating the magic through the will of the mind. As he protests, there’s a part of Arthur “that refuses to believe in the ‘Jewishness’ of it all. When you speak Hebrew, there’s incredulity behind your teeth” (100). Arthur agrees that after his father let his mother die and kept all of this past a secret, he’s always been skeptical of it. Levi counsels him to fight past his resentment. 

Though furious about his father’s secret life, Arthur eventually discovers his compassion, doing great deeds notable for their kindness as he saves others, even those condemned to darkness and punishment. Through this transformation, he learns to become a worthy hero. The book provides an interesting twist on how Jews fit into the chosen one pattern. Certainly, the use of lore and history is believable and clever. This could even encourage readers to find the heroic and spiritual aspects of their own practice. It’s not the only book with a secret society of Jewish superheroes, but it stands out among the few available. 

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