Exotica and the Ethiopian of Acts 8:26–40: Toward a Different Fabula

Scholarship on the Ethiopian eunuch focuses heavily on his foreign otherness, identifying him as the first gentile convert in the Acts of the Apostles. Such a reading tends not only to exoticize the Ethiopian but also to vilify the temple and, by extension, first-century Judaism, for their imagined...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of Biblical literature
Main Author: Aymer, Margaret P. (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Scholar's Press 2023
In: Journal of Biblical literature
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Bible. Apostelgeschichte 8,26-39 / Embodiment
IxTheo Classification:HC New Testament
HD Early Judaism
Further subjects:B Hartman, Saidiya
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
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Summary:Scholarship on the Ethiopian eunuch focuses heavily on his foreign otherness, identifying him as the first gentile convert in the Acts of the Apostles. Such a reading tends not only to exoticize the Ethiopian but also to vilify the temple and, by extension, first-century Judaism, for their imagined rejection of this man. Using Saidiya Hartman's work on "critical fabulation," I propose instead that the Ethiopian be read as a Jew and, moreover, as an embodiment of the Jewish experiences of exile and enslavement to which his castrated body points. Such a reading supports the theme of the ingathering of dispersed Jews within the nascent Christian movement, which is central to Acts 1-8.
ISSN:1934-3876
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal of Biblical literature