The History of the Jews in the Greco-Roman World examines Judaism in Palestine throughout the Hellenistic period, from Alexander the Great's conquest in 334BC to its capture by the Arabs in AD 636. Under the Greek, Roman and finally Christian supremacy which Hellenism brought, Judaism developed far beyond its biblical origins into a form which was to influence European history from the Middle Ages to the present day. The book focuses particularly on the social, economic and religious concerns of this period, and the political status of the Jews as both active agents and passive...
The History of the Jews in the Greco-Roman World examines Judaism in Palestine throughout the Hellenistic period, from Alexander the Great's ...
This volume examines Judaism in Palestine throughout the Hellenistic period, from Alexander the Great's conquest in 334BC to its capture by the Arabs in AD 636. Under the Greek, Roman and finally Christian supremacy which Hellenism brought, Judaism developed far beyond its biblical origins into a form which was to influence European history from the Middle Ages to the present day. The book focuses particularly on the social, economic and religious concerns of this period, and the political status of the Jews as both active agents and passive victims of history.
This volume examines Judaism in Palestine throughout the Hellenistic period, from Alexander the Great's conquest in 334BC to its capture by the Arabs ...
Taking a fresh look at what the Greeks and Romans thought about Jews and Judaism, Peter SchAfer locates the origin of anti-Semitism in the ancient world. Judeophobia firmly establishes Hellenistic Egypt as the generating source of anti-Semitism, with roots extending back into Egypt's pre-Hellenistic history.
A pattern of ingrained hostility toward an alien culture emerges when SchAfer surveys an illuminating spectrum of comments on Jews and their religion in Greek and Roman writings, focusing on the topics that most interested the pagan classical world: the exodus or, as it...
Taking a fresh look at what the Greeks and Romans thought about Jews and Judaism, Peter SchAfer locates the origin of anti-Semitism in the ancient ...
In this beautifully realized study, Peter Schafer investigates the origins of a female manifestation of God in Jewish mysticism. The search itself is a fascinating exploration of the idea of a feminine divinity. And Schafer's surprising but persuasive conclusions yield deeper understanding of the complex but frequently intimate relationship between Christianity and Judaism--and of the development of religious concepts more generally.
Toward the end of the twelfth century, a small book titled the Bahir (Light) appeared in Provence. The first document of Judaism's emerging...
In this beautifully realized study, Peter Schafer investigates the origins of a female manifestation of God in Jewish mysticism. The search itself ...
This book represents the first wide-scale presentation and interpretation of pre-kabbalistic, Jewish mysticism. This is the Hekhalot or Merkavah mysticism. The emphasis is on the conceptions of God, the angels, and man that the texts provide and that are the framework of the Judaic world view in late antiquity and the early Middle Ages. This interpretation is based on the major works of this early Jewish mysticism: Hekhalot Rabbati ("The Greater Palaces"), Hekhalot Zutarti ("The Lesser Palaces"), Ma'aseh Merkavah ("The Working of the Chariot"), Merkavah Rabbah ("The Great Chariot)" and...
This book represents the first wide-scale presentation and interpretation of pre-kabbalistic, Jewish mysticism. This is the Hekhalot or Merkavah mysti...
Peter Schäfer gibt einen umfassen Überblick über die politische und ökonomische Lage Palästinas zwischen 333 v. Chr. und 638 n. Chr. Dabei bezieht er andere Meinungen in seine Untersuchung mit ein und setzt sich kritisch mit den vorhandenen Quellen auseinander.
Peter Schäfer gibt einen umfassen Überblick über die politische und ökonomische Lage Palästinas zwischen 333 v. Chr. und 638 n. Chr. Dabei bezieh...
The Origins of Jewish Mysticism offers the first in-depth look at the history of Jewish mysticism from the book of Ezekiel to the Merkavah mysticism of late antiquity. The Merkavah movement is widely recognized as the first full-fledged expression of Jewish mysticism, one that had important ramifications for classical rabbinic Judaism and the emergence of the Kabbalah in twelfth-century Europe. Yet until now, the origins and development of still earlier forms of Jewish mysticism have been largely overlooked.
In this book, Peter Schafer sheds new light on Ezekiel's tantalizing...
The Origins of Jewish Mysticism offers the first in-depth look at the history of Jewish mysticism from the book of Ezekiel to the Merkavah m...
Die vorliegende Untersuchung geht davon aus, da abstrakte Kategorien wie die des "reinen Gottesbegriffes," der "Transzendenz Gottes" oder der "Vermeidung von Anthropomorphismen" von auen an die rabbinischen Texte herangetragen werden und nicht geeignet sind, diese zu erhellen. Denkformen, unter denen eine bestimmte Vorstellung zu subsumieren und von denen her sie zu interpretieren ist, konnen sich nur aus der rabbinischen Literatur selbst ergeben. Der Ausgangspunkt der Arbeit war daher die Sammlung und Sichtung samtlicher Stellen in der rabbinischen...
Die vorliegende Untersuchung geht davon aus, da abstrakte Kategorien wie die des "reinen Gottesbegriffes," der "Transzendenz Gottes" oder der<...
