Introduction Issues in Jewish History 11 51 00 05 12 2012 Imposing Order on a Random Past We use the past to structure the present The goal is critical self awareness o Objectivity Critical distance Specific Problems of Jewish Historical Research Biblical perspectives Laws of religious causality Nineteenth Century Innovation Bible no longer the exclusive metaphor to God s will and spiritual development Trends to study all Jews in all periods Heinrich Graetz 1817 1891 The totality of Judaism can be understood only through its history Every vital idea must create for itself a tangible existence it must emerge from its slumbering ideal state and assert its ruling principle in the pulsating world of reality Idealism Today Non normative All inclusive Non apologetic The Patriarchal Age 05 12 2012 11 51 00 Purpose to history just look at the way God responded to the specific actions of the Jewish people Jews were making a new argument to meaning not in some remote set of stories it was in watching how the Jewish people worked out the significance of commands Shift of the study of the book to the actions of the Jewish people The Bible the single largest historical narrative What is it s historical value Faith vs Science Taking the Bible and evaluating how to read the bible itself It is important to look at the Bible because of its geography it talks primarily about the land of Israel Geography Lived in Heran sp and then moved to Canon The Fertile Crescent is the cradle of Western Civilization Israel is the only land bridge of Europe Asia and The 1st major problem is the improbability The Bible appears to indicate that lots of people live a very long time The Bible is self contradictory Genesis 37 verses 25 28 refer to the selling of Joseph Ishaelites people who have descended from Ishamael Two traditions referred to in Bible example of self contradictory nature 2nd problem inconsistency in text 3rd problem chronology Example According to the bible Solomon built the temple in 996 BCE There is no independent evidence for the existence of the people mentioned in the Bible no archeological evidence Earliest evidence we have is a stone tablet the Marnekta 1224 1210 BCE A group is Canon called Israel by roughly the end of the 13th century o Israel is laid West and his seed is not o According to the Bible the Jews entered the land in 1406 o Pharaoh the Second 1290 1224 o The Jews built the city of Ramsey o Link to the story of the Exodus and the Bible o How do we know the historical value of the Biblical text o Bible is a composite text layered together The Benjamanites the sons of the right hand There were various legal documents that were found in Maury The covenant that God makes with Abraham Maury indicates that there are prophets in society that are not attached to any specific The status of women parallels to how the wife and the sister have parallel statuses The sister is given a higher status than the wife o Pretend you are my sister The story of Hagar use my maid servant and have a baby Rachel steals the Harthgod Rachel gets away with stealing Harthgod because she had her period The original story is rooted from the social and economic situation Sprizer s argument using archaeology to back up the history of the bible His work was based on interpretations 9 8 11 Lecture Continued Composite Text History of Traditions Noth Albrecht o Stories develop in a certain direction o How traditions are constructed Documentary Hypothesis J Jehova or anything that starts with J o JEPD E Elohim P Priestly source D Deuteronomy second law tells the same story Jehovah is another reading in English for YHWH The four letter name of God YHWH Hashem the name YAWEH God o Julius Wellhausen tries to summarize and comes up with a documentary hypothesis Composite Text when o Made up of earlier sources o The question is when they were turned into an edited text Crucial Features of the Account Family group definition tensions of family life insists on family as the unifying principle The idea of family links is very important Example Isaac s wife is brought from the old country Non Canaanite in origin the ancestors being talked about are not part of the local population you better not associate with the local Attachment to the land this story emphasizes the link between the land and the people Image of God creator involved with man responds to claims for justice covenant images of imperial powers that influence local people kings o The relationship between God and man understands a deal a mutual deal The story of Abraham and God God is the representation of justice o The primary universal message of the Bible The Patriarchal Age Discussion 1 11 51 00 05 12 2012 TA Kate Aras Kras umd edu Office Hours Monday 1 2 Thursday 2 3 Read for the larger message and issues but also know the facts Focus Can we believe everything that the bible says Historical facts vs problems with the bible Problems with the Bible o Chronology o Self Contradictory o Inconsistency in the Text Should we focus on the facts or the message Social Customs and Traditions The traditions of the time when the Bible was written The Israelites focus on God follow in God s path good things will happen The covenant that the Jews have with God The role of women the difference between the wife and sister Not marrying out of the faith The way women are treated in the early bible questionable things pawning off daughters Example Hagar and the mistress Before women become wives they have no power Relates to how women are treated today her Father s land Rachel stole the Harthgods sp which was a way she could inherit The idea of land and how important it is to own land Land symbolizes wealth power stability and independence The Exodus and Conquest or Settlement of the Land 05 12 2012 11 51 00 Conflicting Exodus Stories If exodus happened around 1250 BCE that fits in with what was Tel el Amarna tablets 400 reveal tight Egyptian control over a happening in Canaan at that time backward Canaan in 14th century Flourishing cities destroyed by conflagrations in the 13th century Debir Albiright Bethel Lachish Hazor Yadin Book of Joshua Joshua led the people into the Promised Land and conquered it in one fell swoop Joshua 6 21 They exterminated everything in the city with the sword man and women young and old ox and sheep and ass Joshua 10 40 Joshua 11 19 Apart from the Hivites who dwelt in Gibeon not a single city made terms with the Israelites all were taken in battle