Purity and the forming of religious traditions in the ancient Mediterranean world and ancient Judaism /
:
Purity is a cultural construct that had a central role in the forming and the development of religious traditions in the ancient Mediterranean. This volume analyzes concepts, practices and images associated with purity in the main cultures of Antiquity, and discusses from a comparative perspective their parallel developments and transformations. The perspective adopted is both synchronic and diachronic; the comparative approach takes into account points of contact and mutual influences, but also includes major transcultural trends. A number of renowned specialists contribute a large variety of perspectives and approaches, combining archaeology, epigraphy and social history; in addition, particular attention is given to concepts of purity in ancient Israel and early Judaism as a 'test-case' of sorts. Through its extensive coverage, the volume contributes decisively to the present discussion about the forming of religious traditions in the ancient Mediterranean world.
:
1 online resource (601 pages) : illustrations, mappages. :
Includes bibliographical references and indexes. :
9789004232297 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Ancient Readers and their Scriptures, Engaging the Hebrew Bible in Early Judaism and Christianity.
:
explores the various ways that ancient Jewish and Christian writers engaged with and interpreted the Hebrew Bible in antiquity, focusing on physical mechanics of rewriting and reuse, modes of allusion and quotation, texts and text forms, text collecting, and the development of interpretative traditions. Contributions examine the use of the Hebrew Bible and its early versions in a variety of ancient corpora, including the Septuagint, Dead Sea Scrolls, New Testament, and Rabbinic works, analysing the vast array of textual permutations that define ancient engagement with Jewish scripture. This volume argues that the processes of reading and cognition, influenced by the physical and intellectual contexts of interpretation, are central aspects of ancient biblical interpretation that are underappreciated in current scholarship.
:
1 online resource. :
9789004383371
Jewish identity in early rabbinic writings /
:
Jewish Identity in Early Rabbinic Writings is more than a question of legal status: it is the experience of being Jewish or of 'Jewishness' in all its social and cultural dimensions. This work describes this experience as it emerges in Talmudic and Midrashic sources. Besides the question of "who is a Jew?", topics include the contrast between Israel and the non-Jews, the physical embodiment of Jewish identity, the 'boundaries' of Israel and resistance to assimilation. Jewish identity, it is argued, hinges essentially on the Divine commandments ( mitzvot ) and on Israel's perceived proximity with the Divine. Drawing on a variety of disciplines, including the theories of William James and Merleau-Ponty, this study raises important issues in anthropology, as well as accounting for central aspects of early rabbinic Judaism.
:
Rev. version of the author's thesis (D. Phil.)--Jews' College. :
1 online resource (xxxix, 269 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 260-266) and index. :
9789004332768 :
0169-734X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Judaism in the Roman world : collected essays /
:
Judaism in the Roman World deals with the religious lives of Jews in the Roman world from late Second Temple times to the Later Roman Empire. *** The studies collected here analyse a series of issues important in the development of Judaism in this period: the role of the Temple and pilgrimage in the first century CE; the attitude of Jews to the physical texts of the Torah and to the scribes who produced them; the extent of variety and change within Judaism before and after 70 CE and the nature of the evidence for particular types of Judaism; the role of synagogues and images in Jewish worship; and relations between Jews and Christians in the early centuries. *** This book should be particularly useful to students of ancient Judaism and those interested in Christian origins.
:
1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and indexes. :
9789047410614 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.