The articles discuss various aspects of Jewish identity in the Greco-Roman period. Was there a common 'Jewish' identity, and how could it be defined? How could different groups develop and maintain their identity within the challenge of Hellenistic and early Roman culture? What about the images of 'others'? How could some of those 'others' adopt a Jewish lifestyle or identity, whereas others, abandoned their inherited identity? Among the questions discussed are the translation of Ioudaios, Jewish and universal identity in Philo, the status of women and their conversion to Judaism, the...

This volume gathers for the first time all of the primary source material on the early synagogues up through the Second Century C. E. Each entry contains bibliographic citations and interpretative comments. An Introduction frames the current state of synagogue research, while extensive indices allow for easy location of specific allusions.

Elias J. Bickerman, who passed away a quarter of a century ago, was one of the twentieth century's great historians of the ancient world. His innovative genius and breathtaking erudition are evident in his writings, many of which are now considered classics. Bickerman's contributions to the history of ancient Judaism and early Christianity remain particularly significant but his three volume collection, Studies in Jewish and Christian History, has been out of print for some time. Thus, the publication of this new edition of Studies, now entirely in English, along with Bickerman's most...

This book brings together studies on the most common designations for God in the New Testament, considering their use in ancient Jewish tradition as well as in Greek religion and Roman imperial cult. The introducing chapter on "the Father" is followed by studies on "the Lord" and different designations expressing sovereignty (pantokrator, basileus, despotes, dynastes etc.), on "the Creator," "the living God" and "the life giving God" as well as on the genuine Christian designation "God, who has risen Jesus from the dead." The two final chapters are on "the one and only God" and on "the...

This book is an analysis of prayer in the works of Flavius Josephus. The author discusses both Josephus' views on prayer and his use of prayers within the narrative context. The first part of the book therefore deals with the two passages that Josephus himself wrote on prayer. The second part represents a detailed analysis of 32 prayers selected (mainly) from Antiquitates Judaicae, as to content, context and relation to their source text (if any), revealing the variety of narrative and theological functions that they fulfil. The study also indicates the significance of Josephus' use of...

The fact that religions show internal variation and develop over time is not only a problem for believers, but has also long engaged scholars. This is especially true for the religions of the ancient world, where the mere idea of innovation in religious matters evoked notions of revolution and destruction. With the emergence of new religious identities from the first century onwards, we begin to find traces of an entirely new vision of religion. The question was not whether a particular belief was new, but whether it was true and the two were no longer felt to be mutually exclusive. The...

The question of the origins of Christianity is a theme still discussed in historical research. This book investigates the relations between the Rabbinic Judaism and the Primitive Christianity. It studies the factors of influences, the polemics in the texts and factors of mutual conceptions between two new movements: Rabbinical Judaism and Primitive Christianity. Finally it offers an analysis of the perception of Christianity in the corpus of talmudic literature. La question des origines du christianisme est un theme encore debattu par la recherche historique. Cet ouvrage choisi d'explorer les...

The high priest Caiaphas is one of the important figures in biblical history who received little attention or sympathy in the judgement of posterity. Since the time of the old church the highest representative of the Jewish society in the time of Jesus was assessed as a wicked enemy of Jesus and the leading apostles in Jerusalem. This image obscures the religious and political efficiency of a man, who worked with great success in his office for a long period of eighteen years. What do we know about the historical Caiaphas? And what is the image of this man in the New Testament and afterwards?...

Concepts of voluntary death and martyrdom versus the ideal of preserving human life are an essential component of the Ethics of the Abrahamite religions throughout their history. The studies collected in this volume focus on concepts of voluntary death and martyrdom in the Hebrew Bible, Second Temple Period Judaism, Early Christianity and its pagan environment, Rabbinic Judaism as well as in Islam. The contributions of scholars of different background present a broad panorama of the varied perspectives of the Abrahamite religions on this phenomenon. The established concepts of martyrdom are...