1 / 20

Judaism I

Judaism I. Ancient Traditions to the Roman Period. The Modern Dilemma.

azure
Télécharger la présentation

Judaism I

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Judaism I Ancient Traditions to the Roman Period

  2. The Modern Dilemma • “The liberal wing of Judaism accepts modern canons of history and reserves the right to question aspects of the accuracy and historicity of the biblical text . . . They distinguish among myth, legend, and history in the biblical text.” (Alan Segal, in Oxtoby, p. 37) • “. . . the traditional wing of Judaism believes every word in the text to be literally true, often in a historical sense. They take it to have been dictated to Moses and the various prophets by divine inspiration.” (ibid)

  3. Early Historical References • Mer-ne-Ptah (Israel) stela, 1230 BCE: “Plundered is Canaan with every evil . . . Israel is laid waste, his seed is not . . . All lands together, they are pacified.” • “Hapiru” or “Habiru”, 18th-12th cent. BCE • “. . . you shall make this response before the Lord your God: ‘A wandering Aramean was my ancestor; he went down into Egypt and lived there as an alien, few in number, and there he became a great nation, mighty and populous.’” --Deuteronomy 26:5 (NRSV) • The decline in Mycenean civilization (ca. 1200 BCE).

  4. Early Narratives: Myth, Legend, & History

  5. “Myth” in the Bible • Myth is a genre; these are tales that express a cultural order • Not “what happened” but “what always happens” • Israel’s myths seem to be both derivative of and contradictory to other ANE myths: • creation • flood • plagues

  6. “Adam” and “Eve” • “Adam” -- “human” • “Eve” -- “living” • nakedness (arom) vs. shrewdness (arum) • “knowledge of good and evil” • “curse”-- work, sexual attraction, pain in childbirth, etc. • humans are “in God’s image” (Genesis 1:26)

  7. Abraham • Resembles the life and context of (semi-) nomadic contemporaries • Covenant with God • Founder/patriarch of both Israel (via Isaac) and Islam (via Ishmael) • Promised a land • “Sacrifice” of Isaac (Gen. 22) • Abraham (Sarah), Isaac (Rebecca), Jacob (Leah & Rachel et al), Joseph (et al)

  8. Moses & the Exodus • “Foundational” narrative (Passover) • Historically probably only represents a portion of Israel • The Divine Name • Sinai/Horeb • Ten Commandments • “Conquest” occurs unevenly, over time, and probably includes a lot of assimilation; also, other Bronze Age civilizations collapse during this period

  9. The Monarchy • “Judges” or “shofetim” (charismatic leadership) • Saul, David, and Solomon • Philistines, iron, and bronze • Jerusalem (ca. 1000 BCE) • The Divided Kingdom (Rehoboam [Judah], Jeroboam [Israel])

  10. Northern Kingdom fall to Assyria in 722 BCE Southern Kingdom (Judah) falls to Babylonia in 587/86 BCE

  11. The Documentary Hypothesis

  12. Prophetic Tradition: Let Justice Flow • The future of a people depends on the justice of their society • Thus, individuals are responsible for their own dealings with others and for the general justice of society • Prophets • Prophetic Guilds (1 Samuel 9-10) • Individual Oral-Only Prophets (e.g., Nathan and Elijah) • Written prophets (e.g., Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel)

  13. The Exile • 586-538 BCE • Also a “foundational” event • “National cult” to “religious heritage” of a dispersed people • more urban than agricultural • Aramaic replaces Hebrew • King (melekh) to prince (nasi) to ????-- Messiah (Cyrus of Persia) • Temple rebuilt in 515 BCE

  14. Hellenism • Alexander conquers Persians (331 BCE) • Septuagint (3rd cent.) • Alexandrian Community • Maccabean Revolt (166 BCE) • Antiochus Epiphanes • Gymnasia • Social Tensions • Hanukkah • Greek Diaspora

  15. Sects, Revolts, Innovations • Essenes/Qumran • Sadducees • Pharisees • Zealots • Jewish War 66-70 C.E. • Destruction of Temple 70 C.E. • Christians

  16. Second-Temple Theology • Diversity • “Shema” theology unites Judaism(s) & appeals to many Greeks • Allegorical Interpretation • Chosen-ness involves responsibility • Apocalyptic theologies emerge • Messianic expectations emerge • Dualism emerges • Belief in after-life emerges

More Related