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Synopsis of Judith: Wise Woman of Bethulia In this retelling of the classic biblical story of Judith, the beautiful young woman single-handedly saves her people from annihilation by the Assyrians, the greatest political and military power on earth. During the reign of Sennacherib (705 BCE - 681 BCE) the Jews refuse to abandon their God to worship the Assyrian monarch as demanded by the king’s general, Holofernes. As the last fortified city defending the road to Jerusalem and the sacred Temple, Judith’s hometown of Bethulia becomes the stage for an epic battle between her faith and General Holofernes’ force of over 100,000 warriors. As Judith waits in dread for the arrival of the Assyrians, her beloved husband dies of heatstroke. Judith fasts and prays but finds little solace. She seeks out Zipporah, Bethulia’s wise woman in hopes of healing her spirit. Judith discovers that she has a gift for guiding others to solve their problems creatively. Eventually she becomes a member of the ancient women’s guild of wise women and finds that only by bringing peace to Bethulia will she find inner peace. When Holofernes and his army appear “like an eager, thick-horned bull wandering the yard, ready to gore,” Judith prepares an intricate plan to save her people. Boldly she leaves Bethulia and walks directly into the Assyrian camp to seduce Holofernes. Judith assures him that she is a traitor and promises to reveal the weakness of her people. “Who am I, that I should refuse my Lord?” He does not catch that she is speaking of her God rather than of himself. Stricken by her exquisiteness, Holofernes invites Judith to a banquet. She plies him with cheese and other foods to draw out his thirst. He drinks heavily from his strong wine. Just as he is about to ravish her, he passes out. She seizes his sword and cleaves his head from his torso and then absconds to Bethulia with the bloody trophy. She prepares a battle plan and instructs the town elders to place Holofernes’ head upon the battlements. At dawn the Israelite fighters emerge from the gates of Bethulia with swords drawn and trumpets blasting and descend upon the sleeping Assyrians. At the sight of their general’s head upon Bethulia’s walls, the Assyrians panic. Those not slaughtered by the Israelites run for their lives, pronouncing Judith’s God the most powerful of all the gods. After being honored by the High Priest in Jerusalem, Judith returns to Bethulia to establish a wisdom school for all those who come to “partake of the bread of insight and the waters of understanding.” For the rest of her long life, peace reigns in the land.
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