The Relationship of Believers to Society: Different Approaches in the Earliest Interpretations of the Old Testament
This article gives a synopsis of the various perspectives which existed in Early Judaism on the attitude believers should have towards society. We look at writings from Persian, Hellenistic and Roman times and from different movements. While studying how these Jewish authors saw the required relatio...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Amsterdam University Press
2021
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| In: |
European journal of theology
Year: 2021, Volume: 30, Issue: 2, Pages: 248-274 |
| IxTheo Classification: | AD Sociology of religion; religious policy HB Old Testament HD Early Judaism |
| Further subjects: | B
Essenes
B Scripture B Judaism B Targum B Society B Identity B Community |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | This article gives a synopsis of the various perspectives which existed in Early Judaism on the attitude believers should have towards society. We look at writings from Persian, Hellenistic and Roman times and from different movements. While studying how these Jewish authors saw the required relationship to society, i.e. to people who do not belong to their own community, we understand the importance Scripture had for all these groups, but we meet divergent ways of interpreting (the rest of) the Old Testament, also influenced by circumstances. Of course, it is easy to study each writing (or even passage) as reflecting a different kind of theology, but a synthesising explanation of the differences, in spite of all uncertainties and inconsistencies, can give us insight into how participation in society and guarding the Jewish identity were combined. This insight is relevant for understanding lived religion today and therefore moves beyond the existing knowledge and relevancy of biblical and Jewish Studies. |
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| ISSN: | 2666-9730 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: European journal of theology
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.5117/EJT2021.2.002.LORE |