After the Redemption of the Jewish People

Who hasn't wondered, upon learning about the Jewish belief in the resurrection of the dead (called techiyat hameitim in Hebrew), whether people are resurrected in the physical condition in which they died or at some other age? There are Jewish teachings about the Messianic Age, but we have only limited access to material that tells us anything significant about what life will be like in the time period after the arrival of Mashiach, the long-awaited redeemer of the Jewish people.

 

In 2001,Tzvi Fishman published a collection of short stories set in the period after the arrival of Mashiach. The book, called Days of Mashiach, was recently reprinted. In addition, Rabbi Pinchas Winston published Not Just Another Scenario and Not Just Another Scenerio 2, novels that suggest how current events could lead to the Final Redemption.

 

Although it also takes us into the territory of life after redemption, The Princess of Dan, a new novel by Nechama Sarah Gila Nadborny-Burgeman, differs from these books in several important ways. It's a much more intricate rendering of daily life in the future. And it is also a book of tremendous feminine spiritual power.

 

The Princess of Dan is a complex book that exists on multiple levels simultaneously. At its core, the novel alternates between the stories of two main characters, Sarah Danborne and Danya. Sarah Danborne grew up in America in the 1960s and began a spiritual search for meaning that eventually led her to Israel. Danya is a young woman who is alive after the Redemption. Danya attends the Sacred Space School where, among other things, she studies the Princess of Dan manuscript, written by Sarah Danborne. Immediately, the reader senses that these two characters, Sarah and Danya, have a mystical connection that transcends time.

 

The Princess of Dan manuscript is appended to the novel, as are 18 full-color paintings by the author. This novel is a full spiritual meal.

 

The most intriguing parts of the novel are the descriptions of Danya's life after the Redemption. She lives with her extended family from the Tribe of Dan, including our forefather Jacob's son Dan and Dan's wife Aflalla, who have been resurrected. Early in the novel, Danya's grandparents attempt to explain how life is different now that the Jewish people have been redeemed.

The book bears the kabbalistic influence of its author, Nechama Sarah Gila Nadborny-Burgeman, who is also a spiritual healer living in Israel. The main characters are young women who grow spiritually through the novel. For the attentive reader, opportunities for growth, and for expanded spiritual vision, exist among the pages of The Princess of Dan.

 

The Princess of Dan is available from Menorah Books as well as in ebook formats.