Frymer-Kensky, Tikva 1943-2006

OBITUARY NOTICE—

See index for CA sketch: Born 1943, in Chicago, IL; died of breast cancer, August 31, 2006, in Wilmette, IL. Historian, educator, and author. Frymer-Kensky was a Hebrew Bible professor whose research interests also included women's roles in religion. A 1965 graduate of the City College of New York, she earned her master's at Yale in 1967, followed by a doctorate in Sumerology and Assyriology in 1977. While still attending graduate school, she was a lecturer at Mt. Vernon College from 1969 to 1971 and an assistant professor at Wayne State University through 1982. Frymer-Kensky directed the biblical studies department at Reconstructionist Rabbinical College from 1988 to 1995, after which she joined the University of Chicago as professor of the Hebrew Bible. An erudite scholar with an admirable knowledge of ancient tongues, Frymer-Kensky was also an avid fan of romance novels, soap operas, and programs such as American Idol. Her knowledge of popular culture sometimes gave students pause, as they did not expect it from a professor who lectured on ancient history and the Bible. Frymer-Kensky was also an editor and translator, and her interest in women's studies and religion led to three books: In the Wake of the Goddesses: Women, Culture, and the Biblical Transformation of Pagan Myth (1992), Motherprayer: The Pregnant Woman's Spiritual Companion (1995), and Reading the Women of the Bible (2002).

OBITUARIES AND OTHER SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Chicago Tribune, September 8, 2006, section 3, p. 8.