This practice, so distasteful to the modern conscience, and shocking when we encounter it in reading about the ancient world, was nevertheless a normal feature of life in classical antiquity. There can be little doubt that both Jews and Christians, like their neighbours, must have practised the exposure of infants, whether for economic reasons, or because the child was of the wrong gender, or because of its illegitimacy. Otherwise, one can hardly explain the rich variety of arguments against the custom in rabbinic and patristic literature.In this novel and penetrating study, Koskenniemi...

Synopsis: The Greeks and Romans often exposed their babies, especially if the child was of the wrong gender, malformed or from the wrong father--or, more simply, when a child was not needed. It was lawful, but Jewish and then Christian teachers did everything to prevent the practice among their own groups. Most of the arguments used by Christians were borrowed from their Jewish predecessors. The unique value of every human being and God's commandments were emphasized in both religions. Above all, they considered a newborn child a person who was created and protected by her or his Creator. The...

Erkki Koskenniemi analyzes the most important early Jewish texts, which attribute miracles to people mentioned in the Old Testament. He investigates the miracles of Moses, Elijah and Elisha, but also, for example, the extra-biblical deeds of men like Abraham, David and Solomon. The author looks at the development of the traditional elements of the miracle stories and the theological intentions of every writer who deals with these stories. The Jewish tradition of miracle-workers is rich and multifaceted. There was no rule that the biblical stories should be retold as they were written....