Torah, Temple, Land: Constructions of Judaism in Antiquity ed. by Markus Witte, Jens Schröter and Verena M. Lepper (review)

Abstract

This collection of essays addresses some of the ways and rhetorical strategies through which early Judaism was shaped. The essays discuss “the constellations of ancient Judaism between continuity and change, from the Persian up to the Roman period” and emphasise the diverse forms of Judaism “which have evolved in different geographical areas: in Elephantine, Samaria, Jerusalem and Judea, in Qumran as well as in Alexandria” (1). The editors note that “ancient Judaism existed . . . in a world which was permanently changing in terms of political, social, and religious parameters. Judaism itself was also subject to constant processes of change, both of its self-perception and its external perception. What was deemed to be ‘Judaism’ or ‘Jewish’ was fluid and often contested with a need for constant renegotiation” (1). The authors thus address a bundle of important questions in understanding and assessing early Judaism: