Dave*'s Introduction to the First Edition of The Golem

INTRODUCTION

         Welcome to The Golem, the first issue of the Allegheny Creative Writing Group's literary journal. You're probably wondering exactly why it's called The Golem (and for that matter, what a golem is), so that's this subject of this introduction.

        A golem is a creature out of Jewish legend. When danger threatened a Jewish community, the rabbi could make a golem by constructing a man out of clay and placing a parchment with a word written on it in the clay man's mouth. The word was the Tetragrammaton, the Ineffable Name of God, and it turned the clay man into a golem, with the ability to walk and act like a real man. If the golem threatened to escape his creator's control and run wild, the rabbi needed only to command the parchment to come out, and the golem would be reduced to its original clay.

        So why is this journal called the Golem? On the face of it, there's no real reason. We were looking for a name for our collective computer account, and Josh Atkins suggested golem, which was the first thing that jumped into his head. The rest of the Creative Writing Group liked it, and so we adopted it, not only as the name of our computer account, but also as an unofficial use-name for the group. There is no relation between the Jewish legends and this journal's name.

        Or is there?

        As writers, we too are trying to use words to create new life. Our words are slightly less exalted than the Tetragrammaton, and we use more of them, but the end result is the same: something that lives and breathes. The best stories and poems are those that take on a life of their own, to be seen and felt differently by each reader. Inside this journal are some of the attempts Allegheny students have made at creating their own golems.

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