A weblog on ancient Judaism and its context
E-mail: paleojudaica-at-talktalk-dot-net ("-at-" = "@", "-dot-" = ".")
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| PaleoJudaica.com A weblog on ancient Judaism and its context E-mail: paleojudaica-at-talktalk-dot-net ("-at-" = "@", "-dot-" = ".") |
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Saturday, June 12, 2004 THE JOURNAL NUMEN has a very interesting article on the Dead Sea Scrolls in its current issue (51.2, April, 2004): Title: Comparing Sectarian Practice and Organization: the Qumran Sects in Light of the Regulations of the Shakers, Hutterites, Mennonites and Amish Requires a paid personal or institutional subscription to access. posted by Jim Davila | 2:45 PM MARK GOODACRE defends "gateway" pages as not only useful filters, but also models for students which help them learn what good academic sites are like and why. I haven't read AKMA's paper, so I won't comment on any of the criticism of it, but Marks positive comments about gateway sites seem spot on to me Let me just develop one of Mark's points. He writes: AKMA compliments the hard work, diligence and charity that goes into gateway resources. Given that a lot of work does indeed go into developing and maintaining a gateway, I appreciate AKMA's appreciation of that effort. But I would add that ideally the gateway resources are not simply consulted because of that diligence but also because of the perceived expertise of the authors of the gateways in question. In other words, the reason that I might be interested in what Felix Just, S. J. selects on Johannine Literature is because I respect his ability to discern higher quality resources. This is very true: a gateway by an expert whose credentials are there for everyone to see is likely to be widely consulted by interested people once the word gets out, and that is all to the good. But better yet the Internet, and especially the Blogosphere, provide a self-correcting context that gives a thoughtful reader tools to help sort out which writers at which sites know what they're talking about. Even anonymous sites can often be evaluated using these tools. Last July the Council of Europe (which, incidentally, can still go to hell), put out an idiotic proposal that all websites should be required by law to grant equal space to or link to anyone they criticize. What they don't realize is that the Internet already allows anyone to check whatever anyone else is saying about a given website or blog. In effect, the technology already available does grant a "right of reply" to any web author, without the intrusive and ham-fisted legislation. Both Mark and I have mentioned Technorati, a site that many bloggers use to keep track of who links to them. But Technorati can be used by anyone to see the links that bloggers make to any website: all you have to do is put in the URL and press the GO! button. You can check all the links to a whole blog (here is PaleoJudaica's current entry) or to a single post. For example, Mark's "Throttle to Knowledge" post has the following Technorati links profile. This can tell you what any blogger has said recently about any website. The only limits are that Technorati seems not to keep the links on file for more than a few weeks, and that sometimes it can take a few days for their spiders to update new links. Another useful tool is the Google Advanced Search which allows you to see who is linking to a given web page. All you have to do is insert the relevant URL (see the section under "Page-Specific Search"). This is the result for paleojudaica.blogspot.com and this is the result for my Divine Mediator Figures course page. It includes links to blogs and other web pages, but not, it seems, links to individual blog postings. Both Technorati and Google give users the tools to find out what others are saying about a website or blog. This has two positive effects. First, the user can get a sense of what others make of the site. If people who seem well informed say good things about it, that's a good sign. If not, not. Second, this transparency of criticism encourages the author of the site to keep track of criticisms and to make corrections when appropriate. If others can point out where you're wrong whether you like it or not, it makes sense to make a virtue of necessity and use their criticisms to improve the site. Good bloggers generally do this anyway, but a little incentive never hurts. I've gotten lots of useful feedback and corrections both from reader e-mail and from other blogs (such as here). This is a good example of the sort of emergent order that arises on the Internet as long as we can keep bureaucrats from meddling with it. posted by Jim Davila | 1:15 PM Friday, June 11, 2004 THE JOURNAL OF SEMITIC STUDIES has a new issue (49.1, Spring 2004) online. Here's the table of contents: Article There are also lots of reviews, a number of which pertain to ancient Judaism. I'll just note one, for obvious reasons: Review Requires a paid personal or institutional subscription to access. posted by Jim Davila | 11:27 AM THE POOL OF SILOAM has been uncovered, according to the Israel Antiquities Authority: 2nd Temple pool found (Jerusalem Post � which is obviously on a roll � via Archaeologiy Magazine News)posted by Jim Davila | 9:30 AM THE SHRINE OF THE BOOK has been reopened: Dead Sea Scrolls again on view (Jerusalem Post)posted by Jim Davila | 9:18 AM TEMPLE MOUNT WATCH: Jordanian team to fix eastern Mount wall (Jerusalem Post)posted by Jim Davila | 9:14 AM Thursday, June 10, 2004 FLOOR OF ANCIENT BYZANTINE KILN STOLEN: Byzantine artifact stolen in Israelposted by Jim Davila | 9:23 AM Wednesday, June 09, 2004 MORE ON DOUDNA'S PAPER: Stephen C. Carlson over at Hypotyposes has some comments and queries. And the discussion continues at g-Megillot. Me, I'm staying out of this one. It doesn't matter for the purposes of any research I plan on doing in the near future whether the Dead Sea Scrolls were deposited in 68 C.E. or the first century B.C.E. I do intend to get around to reading Ian Young's article, but I'm not an expert in archaeology or radiocarbon dating and I'm not all that interested in paleographic dating of scripts. I have enough other things on my plate to keep me busy (very, very, busy), so, unless something strikes me as worth a comment, I'll leave this discussion to those who know more about and have more interest in such matters and just listen to what they say and forward it to you. Enjoy! posted by Jim Davila | 4:28 PM THERE WERE GIANTS ON THE EARTH in those days, and here's proof. (Via Rogue Classicism and Cronaca.) posted by Jim Davila | 9:48 AM THE ANTI-DEFAMATION LEAGUE is protesting Vatican plans to beatify Anne Catherine Emmerich: ADL against sainting nun that inspired 'Passion' (Jerusalem Post)posted by Jim Davila | 9:17 AM Tuesday, June 08, 2004 JEWISH-TEMPLE DENIAL WATCH: Palestinians Move To Preserve Identity I don't know the history of these names, so I won't comment on this issue. If anyone can enlighten me, please do. But it was the following that caught my eye: Imposing Media Language This is shameless historical revisionism. They're called the "Temple Mount" and "Wailing Wall" (or "Western Wall") because the Jewish Temple was there centuries before Muhammad had his vision of Jerusalem or a mosque was built on the spot. The story of Muhammad's ride on the creature called "Al-Boraq" (various spellings) goes back to the earlier extra-Qur'anic traditions about his life, but I never heard the term "Al-Boraq Wall" until the last year or two. You'll notice that when it's used, it generally has to be explained, which makes me wonder if it isn't a recent coinage. The Western Wall was, of course, there at the time of Muhammad (I would guess it was underground at that point - the Romans leveled what was above ground) and for centuries before, but it was the remnant of the retaining wall of Herod's Temple platform, not part of a mosque. Of course, what follows in the article is even more Orwellian: As for the term "terrorist", used by Israeli newspapers and a large number of western papers to describe Palestinians who carry out resistance attacks against Israel , several mass media have previously called for not using it and using "patriot" and "martyr" terms instead. UPDATE 9 June): Menachem Brody e-mails: As a result of much too many dusty hours I have spent riding up and down the "Philadelphia Route", let me assure you that not only are both the names absolute fabrications, but even the road itself was created from nothing, in our generation, [and hopefully will return to nothing as soon as possible...]posted by Jim Davila | 3:36 PM THE MESSIANIC SECRET REVISITED: Here's the rubric for Quodlibet: Online Journal of Christian Theology and Philosophy (via Davide's Notes): And Jesus said unto them, "And whom do you say that I am?" They replied, "You are the eschatological manifestation of the ground of our being, the ontological foundation of the context of our very selfhood revealed." And Jesus replied, "What?"posted by Jim Davila | 11:56 AM THE SBL FORUM has published its crop of articles for June and, as always, they look very interesting. I haven't had the chance to look at everything yet, but for now let me just highlight David H. Aaron's article "Pre-Modern Biblical Interpretation and the Challenge of New Historicism" as a must-read. Excerpt: Determinations as to what constitutes "significant" or "less worthy" documents are more complicated than at first apparent. It is not simply a matter of recognizing truth in the old adage that the winners of history have been those most able to dominate the writing of history. Especially when it comes to pre-printing press eras, it is also a matter of recognizing that the winners of history had extraordinary power over which documents would be preserved and which would perish (a trend that continues into our own day, albeit, with somewhat different economic causes). My concern here is quite specifically the portrayal of the history of biblical interpretation as it pertains to critical questions of composition and authenticity. To write this history based on the highly selective exegetical canon of a given era is essentially to privilege the partisan perspective of those who influenced the selection process. Can we not do better? He goes on to discuss two little-know works from the Cairo Geniza (I'd never heard of them) which raise historical-critical questions about the Bible many centuries before the Enlightenment. The problem Aaron discusses is very real. Once � in a job interview, no less � a prominent Patristics scholar who shall remain nameless suggested to me that we shouldn't be working on noncanonical and heterodox ancient literature when there were so many canonical and orthodox texts that still needed basic study. I ventured to disagree. I also didn't get the job. Still, the situation is improving steadily. Cairo Geniza texts are being edited, translated, and studied, as are Jewish incantation bowls, Merkavah mystical texts and Kabbalah, and ancient Jewish and Christian pseudepigrapha. Our understanding of ancient Judaism, early Christianity, and the history of Western religion in general is all the richer for our better knowledge of the writings and beliefs of those whose ideas didn't win � or at least didn't become mainstream. posted by Jim Davila | 11:25 AM THE ANCIENT CITY OF PETRA IS ERODING: �Petra is all about water, both its productivity when harnessed and its power of devastation when left uncontrolled,� says Glenn Markoe, curator at the Cincinnati Art Museum. The city, which went by different names over the centuries, had �a really elaborate water management scheme that people are just understanding now,� Markoe says. However, the flash floods that created the site�s canyons millions of years ago are now threatening to destroy it, aggravated by the increasing number of humans who flock to see what remains of the ancient site.posted by Jim Davila | 9:26 AM Monday, June 07, 2004 NEW BOOK REVIEWS FROM THE REVIEW OF BIBLICAL LITERATURE � lots and lots of them: Blenkinsopp, Joseph Isaiah 56-66 Reviewed by Brooks Schramm Carroll R., M. Daniel Amos--The Prophet and His Oracles: Research on the Book of Amos Reviewed by Mark McEntire Gertoux, G�rard The Name of God Y.EH.OW.AH Which is Pronounced as It is Written I_EH_OU_AH Reviewed by John Gee Halpern, Baruch David's Secret Demons: Messiah, Murderer, Traitor, King Reviewed by Michael Carasik Lipschits, Oded and Joseph Blenkinsopp, eds. Judah and the Judeans in the Neo-Babylonian Period Reviewed by Bob Becking Nelson, Richard D. Deuteronomy Reviewed by Jean-Daniel Macchi Pirson, Ron The Lord of the Dreams: A Semantic and Literary Analysis of Genesis 37-50 Reviewed by Walter Brown Pleins, J. David When the Great Abyss Opened: Classic and Contemporary Readings of Noah's Flood Reviewed by Thomas Hieke Dunn, James D. G. Christianity in the Making: Volume 1: Jesus Remembered Reviewed by Robert McIver Murphy, Catharine M. John the Baptist: Prophet of Purity for a New Age Reviewed by James Metzger Park, Eung Chun Either Jew or Gentile: Paul's Unfolding Theology of Inclusivity Reviewed by Bruce E. Shields Abegg, Martin, Peter Flint, and Eugene Ulrich The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible: The Oldest Known Bible Translated for the First Time into English Reviewed by Robert A. Kugler Gruen, Erich S. Diaspora: Jews amidst Greeks and Romans Reviewed by Andrew S. Jacobs Nir, Rivka The Destruction of Jerusalem and the Idea of Redemption in the Syriac Apocalypse of Baruch Reviewed by Matthias Henze Whealey, Alice Josephus on Jesus: The Testimonium Flavianum Controversy from Late Antiquity to Modern Times Reviewed by Pablo Torijano Morales Wright, J. Edward Baruch ben Neriah: From Biblical Scribe to Apocalytic Seer Reviewed by John Hill posted by Jim Davila | 5:07 PM PROFESSOR ZAINAB BAHRANI of Columbia University has been appointed as Deputy Senior Advisor to the Iraqi Ministry of Culture, evidently replacing John Russell. This was noted a couple of weeks ago on the IraqCrisis list and I've been meaning to flag it even since. Belated best wishes to Professor Bahrani in her new and doubtless tremendously challenging job. posted by Jim Davila | 3:23 PM THE "BIBLICAL ANTIQUITIES OF PHILO" (more accurately know as Liber Antiquitatum Biblicarum or Pseudo-Philo's Biblical Antiquities) has been added to the Internet Sacred Texts Archive in the old but serviceable translation of M. R. James (via this week's edition of Explorator). posted by Jim Davila | 10:05 AM THERE'S A DEBATE on Greg Doudna's paper over on the g-Megillot list. Start at the link and then just keep moving forward through the Follow Ups at the bottom of the page. Meanwhile, Greg has e-mailed regarding the provenance of this latest paper: . . . that was not my Brown University paper in the fall of 2002. It was The correct attribution was in the submitted paper but was inadvertently removed during editing. Also, while we're on the subject of the Dead Sea Scrolls, Hershel Shanks has recently given a lecture on them in Virginia at a fundraising event by the Congregation Beth Israel for the Charlottesville Community Jewish Day School. The Charlottesville Daily Progress has a summary. posted by Jim Davila | 9:26 AM Sunday, June 06, 2004 IN HONOR OF D-DAY, we just watched Casablanca with our neighbors across the street. It's a movie I never get tired of and one I find something new in every time I see it. posted by Jim Davila | 11:10 PM LINKS UPDATE: I have finally given in and adjusted the links to the new, unasked for URL that my provider, Flyservers.registerfly.com has foisted on me. All the links in the bar to the right should now work. If you have linked to either the "About PaleoJudaica.com" page or any of the links in the links bar (both to the right, below the Archive link), your link needs to be updated with the following directory: http://www.flyservers.com/members5/paleojudaica.com/ Formerly it was "members4," so all you need to do is change the "4" in the old address to "5." I am quite annoyed that Flyservers has not bothered to reply to any of my messages and that they have done this to me before: the address used to be "members3." Now I know it's true that the web page they provide me with is free, but I do give them business by keeping my domain names registered through their parent company, Registerfly.com. Unless I get a satisfactory reply from their support department, I'll be taking my business elsewhere when I need to renew again. And at present I can't recommend them: their prices are good, but I recommend you pay more somewhere else for better support. If that changes, I'll let you know. posted by Jim Davila | 10:51 PM A NEW DEAD SEA SCROLLS EXHIBITION is coming to Mobile, Alabama next year: Gulf Coast Exploreum in Mobile plans Dead Sea Scrolls Exhibit (Baton Rouge Advocate)posted by Jim Davila | 7:43 AM |
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