Jewish martyrs in the pagan and Christian worlds
This book presents a linear history of Jewish martyrdom, from the Hellenistic period to the high Middle Ages. Following the chronology of sources, the study challenges the general consensus that martyrdom was an original Hellenistic Jewish idea. Instead, Jews like Philo and Josephus internalised the...
| Subtitles: | Jewish Martyrs in the Pagan & Christian Worlds |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Book |
| Language: | English |
| Subito Delivery Service: | Order now. |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Cambridge
Cambridge University Press
2006.
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| In: | Year: 2006 |
| Reviews: | Shmuel Shepkaru, Jewish Martyrs in the Pagan and Christian Worlds (2008) (Henten, Jan Willem van, 1955 -)
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| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Judaism
B Martyr / History 300 BC-1300 |
| Further subjects: | B
Martyrdom
Judaism
History To 1500
B Martyrdom ; Judaism ; History ; To 1500 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Parallel Edition: | Non-electronic
Print version: 9780521842815 |
| Summary: | This book presents a linear history of Jewish martyrdom, from the Hellenistic period to the high Middle Ages. Following the chronology of sources, the study challenges the general consensus that martyrdom was an original Hellenistic Jewish idea. Instead, Jews like Philo and Josephus internalised the idealised Roman concept of voluntary death and presented it as an old Jewish practice. The centrality of self-sacrifice in Christianity further stimulated the development of rabbinic martyrology and the talmudic guidelines for passive martyrdom. However, when forced to choose between death and conversion in medieval Christendom, European Jews went beyond these guidelines, sacrificing themselves and loved ones. Through death not only did they attempt to prove their religiosity, but also to disprove the religious legitimacy of their Christian persecutors. While martyrs and martyrologies intended to show how Judaism differed from Christianity, they, in fact, reveal a common mindset. Mythic martyrs -- Between God and Caesar -- "It is written in the law" -- Byzantine burnt offerings -- Zarfat -- Ve-Ashkenaz : traditional manifestations -- Ve-Ashkenaz : manifestations of a milieu -- Singing in the fire -- Fire from heaven -- Shifting paradigms |
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| Item Description: | Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 05 Oct 2015) |
| ISBN: | 0511499116 |
| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511499111 |