More recent archaeological news from Biblical Archaeology Review:
“Devil’s Bible” Returns to Prague
A medieval Bible copied by a monk and, according to legend, the Devil is on view in Prague thanks to a loan from Sweden. The manuscript was captured by Swedish troops in 1648, during the Thirty Years’ War.
Jordan Contributes to Temple Mount
The Hashemite Kingdom has announced it will contribute $1.5 million to reconstruction and preservation work for the Al Aqsa Mosque and other structures on the Mount.
Second Temple Quarry Found
Northwest of ancient Jerusalem, archaeologists have discovered the quarry they believe provided the huge stones used by King Herod’s builders when they expanded the Temple Mount. For additional photos, see http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/popup?id=3642720.
Egypt in the Negev
An Egyptian administrative building from the Late Bronze Age has been uncovered in southern Israel near the Gaza Strip. The excavators also revealed the remains of a seventh-century B.C. Philistine village.
Sale of Statuette Expected to Fetch Millions
The Guennol Lioness, a 5,000-year-old Mesopotamian statue, has been at the Brooklyn Museum of Art since 1948 but will be auctioned in December; proceeds will go to a charitable foundation.
Underwater Survey Yields Results
A project to map ancient shipwrecks has found a 2,400-year-old Greek vessel off the coast of Albania.
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
YUP Acquires Anchor Bible Series: Part Deux
Just hours after I published my own happy reflections on Yale University Press' purchase of the Anchor Bible series, Charles Halton had the audacity to give a brief list of reasons "Why Anchor Yale Bible is Bad for Biblical Studies and the General Public"! Seriously... how dare he! ;-) His list (supplemented by a few initial comments of my own) is given below:
As a division of Random House, Doubleday had the biggest mass-market exposure of any publisher of biblical studies related books. Now that Yale owns the series, this exposure will probably dramatically decrease.
As a former employee of a major bookstore (I worked for Borders Books & Music for five years, the last year as an inventory manager), I don't think that Doubleday could have ever claimed "the biggest mass-market exposure of any publisher of biblical studies related books." That title probably belongs to HarperCollins, which not only boasts a large imprint dedicated entirely to religious and spiritual titles (HarperOne, formerly HarperSanFrancisco), but also has published some religious titles under its regular label. And as I stated in my first post on this subject (see below), what good are size and resources if they're not being utilized on behalf of your product? It's also important to note that many large bookstores now include titles from academic publishers in their regular backlists. Both of the Borders stores where I worked (in Louisville, KY) carried titles by Jaroslav Pelikan... titles published by YUP.
Anchor Yale Bible is a really bad name: its long, uncreative, and cumbersome–I guess the new acronym is going to be AYB which looks more like a fraternity than an academic series.
Well, I can't argue with this one. Frankly, I wish they would have simply retained the "Anchor Bible" name... or changed it to "Yale Bible" (which sounds nice, but would discard the name recognition of the original series). I guess if you make a deal like this, you should get to put your name on the marquee. ;-)
Yale has a much smaller pocketbook than Doubleday which might limit projects.
The smaller pocketbook is undeniable--but see my response to Halton's first point (and also my post below). I think it's safe to say that Anchor will be more important for the continued success of YUP than it was for that of Doubleday... and hopefully the product will reflect this fact.
Because of the prominence and wide reach of Anchor Bible (even popping up on Barnes and Noble shelves) the thoughtful reach of the field of biblical studies as a whole will shrink.
I certainly haven't shopped in every major bookstore in the country, but I've been in a large number of them, and I've never seen an Anchor Bible commentary on any of their shelves. (I have occasionally seen Anchor Bible Reference Library titles, such as John Meier's A Marginal Jew series and Raymond Brown's two-volume The Death of the Messiah, in both Borders and Barnes & Noble.) But again, if these bookstores already carry backlist from academic publishers, there's no reason why they would stop now... or why they wouldn't begin to carry additional titles, if YUP markets them aggressively and effectively.
As a division of Random House, Doubleday had the biggest mass-market exposure of any publisher of biblical studies related books. Now that Yale owns the series, this exposure will probably dramatically decrease.
As a former employee of a major bookstore (I worked for Borders Books & Music for five years, the last year as an inventory manager), I don't think that Doubleday could have ever claimed "the biggest mass-market exposure of any publisher of biblical studies related books." That title probably belongs to HarperCollins, which not only boasts a large imprint dedicated entirely to religious and spiritual titles (HarperOne, formerly HarperSanFrancisco), but also has published some religious titles under its regular label. And as I stated in my first post on this subject (see below), what good are size and resources if they're not being utilized on behalf of your product? It's also important to note that many large bookstores now include titles from academic publishers in their regular backlists. Both of the Borders stores where I worked (in Louisville, KY) carried titles by Jaroslav Pelikan... titles published by YUP.
Anchor Yale Bible is a really bad name: its long, uncreative, and cumbersome–I guess the new acronym is going to be AYB which looks more like a fraternity than an academic series.
Well, I can't argue with this one. Frankly, I wish they would have simply retained the "Anchor Bible" name... or changed it to "Yale Bible" (which sounds nice, but would discard the name recognition of the original series). I guess if you make a deal like this, you should get to put your name on the marquee. ;-)
Yale has a much smaller pocketbook than Doubleday which might limit projects.
The smaller pocketbook is undeniable--but see my response to Halton's first point (and also my post below). I think it's safe to say that Anchor will be more important for the continued success of YUP than it was for that of Doubleday... and hopefully the product will reflect this fact.
Because of the prominence and wide reach of Anchor Bible (even popping up on Barnes and Noble shelves) the thoughtful reach of the field of biblical studies as a whole will shrink.
I certainly haven't shopped in every major bookstore in the country, but I've been in a large number of them, and I've never seen an Anchor Bible commentary on any of their shelves. (I have occasionally seen Anchor Bible Reference Library titles, such as John Meier's A Marginal Jew series and Raymond Brown's two-volume The Death of the Messiah, in both Borders and Barnes & Noble.) But again, if these bookstores already carry backlist from academic publishers, there's no reason why they would stop now... or why they wouldn't begin to carry additional titles, if YUP markets them aggressively and effectively.
YUP Acquires Anchor Bible Series
The ever-vigilant Jim West notes that Yale University Press and Anchor Doubleday have reached an agreement to transfer control of the acclaimed Anchor Bible series (consisting of the Anchor Bible commentary series, the Anchor Bible Reference Library, and the six-volume Anchor Bible Dictionary) from the latter to the former. Based on my experience in the bookstore world, I think that this could be a very positive development--both for YUP and for readers everywhere. YUP takes over a popular, well-established series that greatly enhances their presence in the biblical studies market; also, as a smaller academic publisher, they may be better equipped to give the series the attention it deserves. Over the past several years, many of the key commentaries (e.g., those of Raymond Brown and Joseph Fitzmyer) have quietly gone out of print, with no immediate plans to republish. Doubleday lamely attempted to fill the gap by providing print-on-demand paperback editions of some older titles, but these were expensive and shoddily made. My copy of Joseph Fitzmyer's The Gospel According to Luke, I-IX (which we used in a Greek exegesis course with Prof. Adela Collins last semester) fell apart after just a few weeks. Hopefully YUP will reprint most, if not all, of these titles in the sturdy hardcover editions they--and we--deserve!
While I'm indulging in wishful thinking, it would be nice for YUP to borrow a few features from Hermeneia (Anchor Bible's major competitor in the scholarly commentary market), such as the use of actual Hebrew and Greek fonts rather than transliteration, and a larger layout. But I probably shouldn't get too greedy too fast. ;-)
While I'm indulging in wishful thinking, it would be nice for YUP to borrow a few features from Hermeneia (Anchor Bible's major competitor in the scholarly commentary market), such as the use of actual Hebrew and Greek fonts rather than transliteration, and a larger layout. But I probably shouldn't get too greedy too fast. ;-)
Saturday, September 22, 2007
The Context of Crucifixion
On The Jesus Dynasty blog, James Tabor has posted a nice summary of the Jewish historian Josephus' references to crucifixion. Although crucifixion is naturally a focal point of Christian history, theology, and worship, many believers are largely unaware of the broader history and context of the practice. These passages from Josephus (and also Martin Hengel's brief summary of crucifixion) help to fill that gap.
On a supplemental note, it is interesting that one of the passages listed by Tabor (Antiquities 18.65, 78-80) includes one of the very few (if not the only) recorded crucifixions of a woman: the freedwoman Ide, who devised the twisted plot by which Mundus seduced the virtuous Paulina.
On a supplemental note, it is interesting that one of the passages listed by Tabor (Antiquities 18.65, 78-80) includes one of the very few (if not the only) recorded crucifixions of a woman: the freedwoman Ide, who devised the twisted plot by which Mundus seduced the virtuous Paulina.
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Fun with Hebrews
Although this is only the third week of the fall semester, all of my classes are already well underway, and are engaging in some rich discussion. Hopefully I'll have more time to blog about these topics in future weeks; between classes, work at the bookstore, PhD applications, and GRE study, I've been wondering when I'll have time to eat, let alone blog!
However, I will take a few brief moments to mention an issue which arose during Greek Exegesis of Hebrews, which meets every Monday afternoon under the eminently learned supervision of Prof. Harry Attridge. We were translating and discussing Hebrews 2, and when it came time for v. 9, one of my classmates read aloud and translated the final clause (as printed in the Nestle-Aland critical edition):
ὅπως χάριτι θεοῦ ὑπὲρ παντὸς γεύσηται θανάτου
("so that, by the grace of God, he might taste death on everyone's behalf")
The translation given above is my own, but it isn't substantially different from standard translations such as the NRSV, or from the on-the-spot translation provided by my classmate. But Prof. Attridge noted that a few manuscript witnesses (0243, and the original hand of the important minuscule 1739) as well as a few patristic witnesses (Origen, Ambrose, Jerome, and Fulgentius) replace χάριτι θεοῦ with χωρις θεου, which would dramatically alter the translation and sense of the clause:
ὅπως χωρις θεου ὑπὲρ παντὸς γεύσηται θανάτου
("so that, apart from God, he might taste death on everyone's behalf")
The witness of Origen (who died c. 254 CE) is particularly interesting, as he is just a few decades removed from Hebrews' earliest manuscript witness (P46, normally dated to c. 200 CE). Furthermore, this would certainly fall within the category of the "more difficult reading," which often guides text critics in their attempts to determine which reading is more original, and which has been altered by later scribes. Bruce Metzger, however, has argued that χωρις θεου was either a simple scribal mistake (χάριτι and χωρις are somewhat similar in appearance), or originally arose as a marginal note indicating that the πάντα ("everything") mentioned in v. 8 did not include God, and then was mistakenly integrated into the text. Hmm... pretty interesting stuff... and we've got a long way to go!
However, I will take a few brief moments to mention an issue which arose during Greek Exegesis of Hebrews, which meets every Monday afternoon under the eminently learned supervision of Prof. Harry Attridge. We were translating and discussing Hebrews 2, and when it came time for v. 9, one of my classmates read aloud and translated the final clause (as printed in the Nestle-Aland critical edition):
ὅπως χάριτι θεοῦ ὑπὲρ παντὸς γεύσηται θανάτου
("so that, by the grace of God, he might taste death on everyone's behalf")
The translation given above is my own, but it isn't substantially different from standard translations such as the NRSV, or from the on-the-spot translation provided by my classmate. But Prof. Attridge noted that a few manuscript witnesses (0243, and the original hand of the important minuscule 1739) as well as a few patristic witnesses (Origen, Ambrose, Jerome, and Fulgentius) replace χάριτι θεοῦ with χωρις θεου, which would dramatically alter the translation and sense of the clause:
ὅπως χωρις θεου ὑπὲρ παντὸς γεύσηται θανάτου
("so that, apart from God, he might taste death on everyone's behalf")
The witness of Origen (who died c. 254 CE) is particularly interesting, as he is just a few decades removed from Hebrews' earliest manuscript witness (P46, normally dated to c. 200 CE). Furthermore, this would certainly fall within the category of the "more difficult reading," which often guides text critics in their attempts to determine which reading is more original, and which has been altered by later scribes. Bruce Metzger, however, has argued that χωρις θεου was either a simple scribal mistake (χάριτι and χωρις are somewhat similar in appearance), or originally arose as a marginal note indicating that the πάντα ("everything") mentioned in v. 8 did not include God, and then was mistakenly integrated into the text. Hmm... pretty interesting stuff... and we've got a long way to go!
RBL Highlights: 9/20/07
A few highlights from this week's Review of Biblical Literature. A few other bloggers (including Mark Goodacre and Stephen Carlson) have noted the large review Of Peter Jeffery's The Secret Gospel of Mark Unveiled. I share Goodacre's gratification that the RBL is expanding to include more extended, detailed articles, but I won't be able to slog through 47 single-spaced pages until Christmas break. ;-)
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ESSAY REVIEW (47 pages)
Peter Jeffery
The Secret Gospel of Mark Unveiled: Imagined Rituals of Sex, Death, and Madness in a Biblical Forgery
Reviewed by Scott G. Brown
Martin Goodman
Judaism in the Roman World: Collected Essays
Reviewed by Judith M. Lieu
Isaac Kalimi and Peter J. Haas, eds.
Biblical Interpretation in Judaism and Christianity
Reviewed by Craig A. Evans
Michelle V. Lee
Paul, the Stoics, and the Body of Christ
Reviewed by Richard A. Wright
Alastair H. B. Logan
The Gnostics: Identifying an Early Christian Cult
Reviewed by Jon Ma. Asgeirsson
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ESSAY REVIEW (47 pages)
Peter Jeffery
The Secret Gospel of Mark Unveiled: Imagined Rituals of Sex, Death, and Madness in a Biblical Forgery
Reviewed by Scott G. Brown
Martin Goodman
Judaism in the Roman World: Collected Essays
Reviewed by Judith M. Lieu
Isaac Kalimi and Peter J. Haas, eds.
Biblical Interpretation in Judaism and Christianity
Reviewed by Craig A. Evans
Michelle V. Lee
Paul, the Stoics, and the Body of Christ
Reviewed by Richard A. Wright
Alastair H. B. Logan
The Gnostics: Identifying an Early Christian Cult
Reviewed by Jon Ma. Asgeirsson
BAR Highlights: 9/20/07
More recent archaeological news from Biblical Archaeological Review:
A Second Flood?
A planned dam in Turkey will destroy an ancient Mesopotamian city.
Egypt Pines for Nefertiti
The country is miffed that its request for a 3-month loan of the famed statue of the ancient queen has been rebuffed by Germany. More international tensions may be in the offing: Egypt may soon seek to borrow the Rosetta Stone from England.
Artifacts for Rent?
A Harvard economist thinks there’s a way to cut down on the traffic in illegal antiquities: Let countries or institutions with the means rent artifacts from poorer countries that cannot afford to excavate or protect them.
Tracking the Phoenicians’ DNA
A researcher has been finding the genetic footprint of the ancient seafaring people along the trade routes they used—and has also stumbled into a very modern debate over identity.
X-Ray Vision
A new type of X-ray machine, touted as being far more powerful than its predecessors, will be used to peer into and decipher Dead Sea Scroll fragments that are too fragile to be unrolled.
Sprechen Sie Cuneiform?
A Web-based program translates English words into cuneiform or hieroglyphics.
Trying to Put a Stop to It
Prominent Israeli archaeologists and other leading figures have asked their country’s High Court of Justice to prevent further digging atop Jerusalem’s Temple Mount.
A Second Flood?
A planned dam in Turkey will destroy an ancient Mesopotamian city.
Egypt Pines for Nefertiti
The country is miffed that its request for a 3-month loan of the famed statue of the ancient queen has been rebuffed by Germany. More international tensions may be in the offing: Egypt may soon seek to borrow the Rosetta Stone from England.
Artifacts for Rent?
A Harvard economist thinks there’s a way to cut down on the traffic in illegal antiquities: Let countries or institutions with the means rent artifacts from poorer countries that cannot afford to excavate or protect them.
Tracking the Phoenicians’ DNA
A researcher has been finding the genetic footprint of the ancient seafaring people along the trade routes they used—and has also stumbled into a very modern debate over identity.
X-Ray Vision
A new type of X-ray machine, touted as being far more powerful than its predecessors, will be used to peer into and decipher Dead Sea Scroll fragments that are too fragile to be unrolled.
Sprechen Sie Cuneiform?
A Web-based program translates English words into cuneiform or hieroglyphics.
Trying to Put a Stop to It
Prominent Israeli archaeologists and other leading figures have asked their country’s High Court of Justice to prevent further digging atop Jerusalem’s Temple Mount.
Friday, September 14, 2007
Blogger of the Month: Alan Bandy
As a number of other bloggers have noted, Alan Bandy (of Cafe Apocalypsis fame) is the current Biblioblogger of the Month. Check out his chat with Jim West here.
Caiaphas' Twin... Jabba the Hutt?
On the Bible Films Blog, Matt Page has posted a fascinating comparison between the characters of Caiaphas the high priest (as he is depicted in Mel Gibson's controversial film The Passion of the Christ) and... you guessed it... nefarious warlord Jabba the Hutt (of the Star Wars hexateuch fame)! Don't laugh just let... Page makes some provocative observations, such as the ways in which both Gibson and George Lucas subtly manipulate light and shadow in order to emphasize the natures and purposes of certain characters. However, my absolute favorite was this visual comparison of the guards stationed in the villains' respective palaces:
Check out the entire post... it's well worth a look!
Check out the entire post... it's well worth a look!
Thursday, September 13, 2007
SBL Bound!
I registered for the AAR/SBL Annual Meeting this morning. As much as I enjoyed presenting a paper last year, it will be nice to simply sit back and absorb the plethora of exhibits, panels, and presentations this time around. (I did make it to a few interesting panels last year, but I was a little preoccupied with my own impending doom!) I'm particularly excited about seeing some of my own professors in action; e.g., Adela Collins (see the brief post below). Of course, I'll also be busy seeking out scholars with whom I may be studying in the near future, as well as religious publishers and other professional folks in case I decide that I'm tired of school. So many possibilities, so little time... I may be coming down with a case of graduate senioritis!
Special Delivery! Bauckham's Jesus and the Eyewitnesses
When I got to the bookstore today, I discovered a package from Eerdmans containing, among other things, my special order copy of Richard Bauckham's incendiary Jesus and the Eyewitnesses. As many of you are surely aware, this book has generated a tremendous amount of online and offline chatter in just a few short months. That fact alone would normally be enough to pique my interest, but I've also discovered that Prof. Adela Collins (one of my favorite professors at Yale) is presenting her own review of the book as part of a panel at the upcoming SBL meeting. I'm planning to start reading tonight... it's a good thing that I don't have class tomorrow. ;-)
Additions to the Online Critical Pseudepigrapha
A welcome announcement from the SBL. However, I should note that despite the announcement's assertion that the OCP interface is now fully compatible with Safari, the included hyperlinks didn't work on my Mac. Fortunately, Firefox worked like a charm!
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The Online Critical Pseudepigrapha is pleased to announce two new publications plus an important site enhancement.
2 Baruch (Edition 2.0)
edited by Daniel M. Gurtner with David M. Miller and Ian W. Scott
All of the primary evidence for the Apocalypse of Baruch (2 Baruch) is now included in this new edition prepared by Daniel M. Gurtner. The only complete text of 2 Baruch is preserved in one Syriac manuscript (7a1). Chapters 1–77 of this manuscript, comprising the full text of the Apocalypse, are transcribed here in their entirety as they appear in the edition of Dedering. Dedering’s edition also records a large number of conjectural emendations as well as manuscript variants found in three Jacobite lectionaries. These have been included in the OCP’s interactive critical apparatus. Also included in this edition is the surviving Greek evidence for 2 Baruch found in manuscript P.Oxy. 403 and the single Latin excerpt found in Cyprian, Test. 3.29.
Visions of Amram (Edition 1.0)
edited by Robert Duke
The Visions of Amram is a previously unknown work included among the Dead Sea Scrolls and preserved in five Aramaic copies (4Q543–547). The version presented here, compiled by Robert Duke, is the first eclectic text of the Visions of Amram. This edition was produced directly from photographic images of the fragments, and in a few cases this results in different readings from those of Émile Puech’s DJD edition. The “chapter” and “verse” numbers are new to this edition. Each “chapter” represents a distinct narrative episode in the document, and Duke suggests that these episodes appeared in the original document in the order they are presented here. Note that these numbers do not correspond to the fragment, column, and line numbers by which Armam has previously been referenced. A critical apparatus of all the variants evident in the five manuscripts is being prepared, and this will allow readers to view each fragment separately.
Mac-Friendly Reader Interface
Mac users will be glad to hear that documents in the Online Critical Pseudepigrapha are now presented in an upgraded reader interface that is fully compatible with the Safari web browser as well as with Internet Explorer and Firefox.
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The Online Critical Pseudepigrapha is pleased to announce two new publications plus an important site enhancement.
2 Baruch (Edition 2.0)
edited by Daniel M. Gurtner with David M. Miller and Ian W. Scott
All of the primary evidence for the Apocalypse of Baruch (2 Baruch) is now included in this new edition prepared by Daniel M. Gurtner. The only complete text of 2 Baruch is preserved in one Syriac manuscript (7a1). Chapters 1–77 of this manuscript, comprising the full text of the Apocalypse, are transcribed here in their entirety as they appear in the edition of Dedering. Dedering’s edition also records a large number of conjectural emendations as well as manuscript variants found in three Jacobite lectionaries. These have been included in the OCP’s interactive critical apparatus. Also included in this edition is the surviving Greek evidence for 2 Baruch found in manuscript P.Oxy. 403 and the single Latin excerpt found in Cyprian, Test. 3.29.
Visions of Amram (Edition 1.0)
edited by Robert Duke
The Visions of Amram is a previously unknown work included among the Dead Sea Scrolls and preserved in five Aramaic copies (4Q543–547). The version presented here, compiled by Robert Duke, is the first eclectic text of the Visions of Amram. This edition was produced directly from photographic images of the fragments, and in a few cases this results in different readings from those of Émile Puech’s DJD edition. The “chapter” and “verse” numbers are new to this edition. Each “chapter” represents a distinct narrative episode in the document, and Duke suggests that these episodes appeared in the original document in the order they are presented here. Note that these numbers do not correspond to the fragment, column, and line numbers by which Armam has previously been referenced. A critical apparatus of all the variants evident in the five manuscripts is being prepared, and this will allow readers to view each fragment separately.
Mac-Friendly Reader Interface
Mac users will be glad to hear that documents in the Online Critical Pseudepigrapha are now presented in an upgraded reader interface that is fully compatible with the Safari web browser as well as with Internet Explorer and Firefox.
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
BAR Highlights: 9/12/07
More recent archaeological news from Biblical Archaeology Review:
In or Out?
Excavations in Syria are turning theories about the origins of cities upside down—or inside out. Rather than beginning with a central core and growing outward, cities may have started as scattered villages that linked and grew inward.
Ancient Vandalism
Restoration work on reliefs belonging to Bowdoin College in Maine shows that a depiction of the Assyrian ruler Ashurnasirpal II was defaced in ancient times by his enemy, the Medes.
Escape Route
Archaeologists Ronny Reich and Eli Shukron have discovered an underground drainage channel that was used by many of Jerusalem’s residents to flee the Roman destruction of the city in 70 A.D. Artifacts found in the channel can be seen at http://news.yahoo.com/photo/070909/ ids_photos_wl/r2682897765.jpg.
Iron Age Chef
The team excavating Tell es-Safi (Biblical Gath) is finding that the Philistine way of cooking was copied by neighboring Israelites and Canaanites. The Philistines were especially fond of crock pots.
What to Do? Consult a Liver
Archaeologists at Hazor have discovered a tablet that contains instructions on how to foretell the future by studying animal livers (note: the article states the tablet was written in hieroglyphics, but it meant to say cuneiform).
Hezekiah Inscription to Return to Israel
The famed inscription, which was carved into the wall of Hezekiah’s Tunnel in Jerusalem and which celebrates the city’s survival of an Assyrian siege, will be on view in Israel for at least several months and possibly longer. It has been in Turkey since the late 19th century, when Palestine was a part of the Ottoman Empire.
Land of Milk and ...
Excavators at Tel Rehov, in the Beth-Shean Valley, have uncovered 30 intact beehives and an inscribed jar that may refer to the father or grandfather of the Biblical king Jehu.
In or Out?
Excavations in Syria are turning theories about the origins of cities upside down—or inside out. Rather than beginning with a central core and growing outward, cities may have started as scattered villages that linked and grew inward.
Ancient Vandalism
Restoration work on reliefs belonging to Bowdoin College in Maine shows that a depiction of the Assyrian ruler Ashurnasirpal II was defaced in ancient times by his enemy, the Medes.
Escape Route
Archaeologists Ronny Reich and Eli Shukron have discovered an underground drainage channel that was used by many of Jerusalem’s residents to flee the Roman destruction of the city in 70 A.D. Artifacts found in the channel can be seen at http://news.yahoo.com/photo/070909/ ids_photos_wl/r2682897765.jpg.
Iron Age Chef
The team excavating Tell es-Safi (Biblical Gath) is finding that the Philistine way of cooking was copied by neighboring Israelites and Canaanites. The Philistines were especially fond of crock pots.
What to Do? Consult a Liver
Archaeologists at Hazor have discovered a tablet that contains instructions on how to foretell the future by studying animal livers (note: the article states the tablet was written in hieroglyphics, but it meant to say cuneiform).
Hezekiah Inscription to Return to Israel
The famed inscription, which was carved into the wall of Hezekiah’s Tunnel in Jerusalem and which celebrates the city’s survival of an Assyrian siege, will be on view in Israel for at least several months and possibly longer. It has been in Turkey since the late 19th century, when Palestine was a part of the Ottoman Empire.
Land of Milk and ...
Excavators at Tel Rehov, in the Beth-Shean Valley, have uncovered 30 intact beehives and an inscribed jar that may refer to the father or grandfather of the Biblical king Jehu.
Monday, September 10, 2007
Eisenbrauns Catalogs
James Spinti announces that two new catalogs are now available online from Eisenbrauns (print versions should be out within the next few weeks). Here are the respective links:
Scholars' Source Catalog
Ancient Near Eastern Resources Catalog
Scholars' Source Catalog
Ancient Near Eastern Resources Catalog
Exploring the Social Tumult Behind the Reformation Movement
A recent announcement from Augsburg Fortress Publishers:
Perhaps no period in Christian history experienced such vast religious tumult and rapid social change as the European Reformation, when it quickly became apparent that social and political issues—finding deep resonance with the common people—were deeply entwined with religious ones raised by the Reformers.
For historians, clergy, college, university, seminary students, and general readers who want to learn more about this period in time Fortress Press is happy to announce the release of Reformation Christianity, Volume 5 in the A People's History of Christianity Series.
"These stories may come up from the basement of church history, but news about their existence deserves to be shouted from the housetops....This new series turns history upside down..."
—Martin E. Marty, University of Chicago Divinity School
Led by eminent Reformation historian Peter Matheson, ten distinguished social historians trace the myriad and profound ways in which Europe's several Reformations played out in the lives of common folk: in their personal spirituality and corporate worship, catechesis and discipline, sexuality and gender roles, mores surrounding marriage, birth, and baptism, aging and death, relations with Jews and Muslims, lay theologies, as well as the utopian and even revolutionary ventures they spawned.
Visit the companion Web site, www.peopleshistoryofchristianity.com, to learn more about the series including testimonials, tables of contents, research paper guides, and more.
Perhaps no period in Christian history experienced such vast religious tumult and rapid social change as the European Reformation, when it quickly became apparent that social and political issues—finding deep resonance with the common people—were deeply entwined with religious ones raised by the Reformers.
For historians, clergy, college, university, seminary students, and general readers who want to learn more about this period in time Fortress Press is happy to announce the release of Reformation Christianity, Volume 5 in the A People's History of Christianity Series.
"These stories may come up from the basement of church history, but news about their existence deserves to be shouted from the housetops....This new series turns history upside down..."
—Martin E. Marty, University of Chicago Divinity School
Led by eminent Reformation historian Peter Matheson, ten distinguished social historians trace the myriad and profound ways in which Europe's several Reformations played out in the lives of common folk: in their personal spirituality and corporate worship, catechesis and discipline, sexuality and gender roles, mores surrounding marriage, birth, and baptism, aging and death, relations with Jews and Muslims, lay theologies, as well as the utopian and even revolutionary ventures they spawned.
Visit the companion Web site, www.peopleshistoryofchristianity.com, to learn more about the series including testimonials, tables of contents, research paper guides, and more.
RBL Highlights: 9/10/07
A few highlights from this week's Review of Biblical Literature:
Peter H. Davids
The Letters of 2 Peter and Jude
Reviewed by James P. Sweeney
Reviewed by Daniel B. Wallace
Craig A. Evans
Fabricating Jesus: How Modern Scholars Distort the Gospels
Reviewed by Stephen J. Patterson
Jonathan D. Lawrence
Washing in Water: Trajectories of Ritual Bathing in the Hebrew Bible and Second Temple Literature
Reviewed by James W. Watts
Peter H. Davids
The Letters of 2 Peter and Jude
Reviewed by James P. Sweeney
Reviewed by Daniel B. Wallace
Craig A. Evans
Fabricating Jesus: How Modern Scholars Distort the Gospels
Reviewed by Stephen J. Patterson
Jonathan D. Lawrence
Washing in Water: Trajectories of Ritual Bathing in the Hebrew Bible and Second Temple Literature
Reviewed by James W. Watts
More Used NT Titles From Dove
A few of the most recent New Testament offerings from Dove Booksellers' Used Book Department. There's a lot of good stuff this week...
Allison Jr, Dale C
THE END OF THE AGES HAS COME: AN EARLY INTERPRETATION OF THE PASSION AND RESURRECTION OF JESUS
(Augsburg Fortress, 1985)
Condition: VG Hardcover $16.00
Comments: DJ
Bailey, James L; L D Vander Broek
LITERARY FORMS IN THE NEW TESTAMENT: A HANDBOOK
(Westminster John Knox, 1992)
Condition: VG Paperback $12.00
Barr, James
SEMANTICS OF BIBLICAL LANGUAGE
(Oxford University Press, 1961)
Condition: GC Hardcover $30.00
Comments: Pencilled UL through p 20
Black, David Alan
RETHINKING NEW TESTAMENT TEXTUAL CRITICISM
(Baker Book House, 2002)
Condition: NF Paperback $12.00
Charles, R H
APOCRYPHA AND PSEUDEPIGRAPHA OF THE OLD TESTAMENT (2 VOLS)
(Oxford University Press, 1963)
Condition: VG Hardcover $160.00
Comments: Bookplate; handstamp, annotation on rear pastedown of Vol 2
Charlesworth, James H
OLD TESTAMENT PSEUDEPIGRAPHA (2 VOLS)
(Doubleday, 1983)
Condition: VG Hardcover $58.00
Comments: DJs
Cross Jr, Frank Moore
QUMRAN AND THE HISTORY OF THE BIBLICAL TEXT
(Harvard University Press, 1975)
Condition: GC Paperback $12.00
Davies, W D
PAUL AND RABBINIC JUDAISM: SOME RABBINIC ELEMENTS IN PAULINE THEOLOGY
(SPCK, 1962)
Condition: VG Hardcover $22.00
Dodd, C H
INTERPRETATION OF THE FOURTH GOSPEL
(Cambridge University Press, 1960)
Condition: VG Hardcover $25.00
Comments: DJ
Hartin, Patrick J
JAMES AND THE Q SAYINGS OF JESUS
(Sheffield Academic Press, 1991)
Condition: VG Hardcover $55.00
Comments: R
Kenyon, Sir Frederic G
OUR BIBLE AND THE ANCIENT MANUSCRIPTS
(Eyre-Spottiswoode, 1939)
Condition: VG Hardcover $24.00
Martin, Dale
SLAVERY AS SALVATION: THE METAPHOR OF SLAVERY IN PAULINE CHRISTIANITY
(Yale University Press, 1990)
Condition: VG Hardcover $20.00
Comments: DJ
Moore, George Foote
JUDAISM IN THE FIRST CENTURIES OF THE CHRISTIAN ERA (3 VOLS)
(Harvard University Press, 1962)
Condition: VG Hardcover $60.00
Comments: DJs
Robinson, James M; Helmut Koester
TRAJECTORIES THROUGH EARLY CHRISTIANITY
(Fortress, 1971)
Condition: GC Hardcover $20.00
Comments: Minor pencilled UL; DJ (worn)
Sanders, E P
JESUS, THE GOSPELS AND THE CHURCH: ESSAYS IN HONOR OF WILLIAM R FARMER
(Mercer University Press, 1987)
Condition: VG Hardcover $32.00
Allison Jr, Dale C
THE END OF THE AGES HAS COME: AN EARLY INTERPRETATION OF THE PASSION AND RESURRECTION OF JESUS
(Augsburg Fortress, 1985)
Condition: VG Hardcover $16.00
Comments: DJ
Bailey, James L; L D Vander Broek
LITERARY FORMS IN THE NEW TESTAMENT: A HANDBOOK
(Westminster John Knox, 1992)
Condition: VG Paperback $12.00
Barr, James
SEMANTICS OF BIBLICAL LANGUAGE
(Oxford University Press, 1961)
Condition: GC Hardcover $30.00
Comments: Pencilled UL through p 20
Black, David Alan
RETHINKING NEW TESTAMENT TEXTUAL CRITICISM
(Baker Book House, 2002)
Condition: NF Paperback $12.00
Charles, R H
APOCRYPHA AND PSEUDEPIGRAPHA OF THE OLD TESTAMENT (2 VOLS)
(Oxford University Press, 1963)
Condition: VG Hardcover $160.00
Comments: Bookplate; handstamp, annotation on rear pastedown of Vol 2
Charlesworth, James H
OLD TESTAMENT PSEUDEPIGRAPHA (2 VOLS)
(Doubleday, 1983)
Condition: VG Hardcover $58.00
Comments: DJs
Cross Jr, Frank Moore
QUMRAN AND THE HISTORY OF THE BIBLICAL TEXT
(Harvard University Press, 1975)
Condition: GC Paperback $12.00
Davies, W D
PAUL AND RABBINIC JUDAISM: SOME RABBINIC ELEMENTS IN PAULINE THEOLOGY
(SPCK, 1962)
Condition: VG Hardcover $22.00
Dodd, C H
INTERPRETATION OF THE FOURTH GOSPEL
(Cambridge University Press, 1960)
Condition: VG Hardcover $25.00
Comments: DJ
Hartin, Patrick J
JAMES AND THE Q SAYINGS OF JESUS
(Sheffield Academic Press, 1991)
Condition: VG Hardcover $55.00
Comments: R
Kenyon, Sir Frederic G
OUR BIBLE AND THE ANCIENT MANUSCRIPTS
(Eyre-Spottiswoode, 1939)
Condition: VG Hardcover $24.00
Martin, Dale
SLAVERY AS SALVATION: THE METAPHOR OF SLAVERY IN PAULINE CHRISTIANITY
(Yale University Press, 1990)
Condition: VG Hardcover $20.00
Comments: DJ
Moore, George Foote
JUDAISM IN THE FIRST CENTURIES OF THE CHRISTIAN ERA (3 VOLS)
(Harvard University Press, 1962)
Condition: VG Hardcover $60.00
Comments: DJs
Robinson, James M; Helmut Koester
TRAJECTORIES THROUGH EARLY CHRISTIANITY
(Fortress, 1971)
Condition: GC Hardcover $20.00
Comments: Minor pencilled UL; DJ (worn)
Sanders, E P
JESUS, THE GOSPELS AND THE CHURCH: ESSAYS IN HONOR OF WILLIAM R FARMER
(Mercer University Press, 1987)
Condition: VG Hardcover $32.00
Thursday, September 6, 2007
BAR Highlights: 9/6/07
More recent archaeological news from Biblical Archaeology Review:
Roman Footprint
The footprint of a Roman soldier has been found preserved in cement at the ancient city of Hippos/Sussita in Israel.
Ballard Back to the Sea
Oceanographer Robert Ballard, who discovered the Titanic, will be exploring a shipwreck in the Black Sea from the Byzantine era.
Dog Walk Leads to Roman House
A man walking his dog at a local golf course found pottery shards and roof tiles from a Roman house at the Cumberwell Park Golf Club near Bradford on Avon in England.
That Was Fast!
Samarkand, along the Silk Road, celebrates its 2,750th birthday this year, after celebrating its 2,500th birthday just 11 years ago. The reason? New archaeological finds have necessitated a revision of the city.
Greece Aflame
Dozens of fires have been burning out of control in southern Greece and threatening ancient sites, including where the Olympic Games were first played.
Rebuild the Buddhas?
A debate is growing over whether the two giant statues of Buddha that were destroyed by the Taliban in 2001 can be rebuilt—and whether they should be.
Roman Footprint
The footprint of a Roman soldier has been found preserved in cement at the ancient city of Hippos/Sussita in Israel.
Ballard Back to the Sea
Oceanographer Robert Ballard, who discovered the Titanic, will be exploring a shipwreck in the Black Sea from the Byzantine era.
Dog Walk Leads to Roman House
A man walking his dog at a local golf course found pottery shards and roof tiles from a Roman house at the Cumberwell Park Golf Club near Bradford on Avon in England.
That Was Fast!
Samarkand, along the Silk Road, celebrates its 2,750th birthday this year, after celebrating its 2,500th birthday just 11 years ago. The reason? New archaeological finds have necessitated a revision of the city.
Greece Aflame
Dozens of fires have been burning out of control in southern Greece and threatening ancient sites, including where the Olympic Games were first played.
Rebuild the Buddhas?
A debate is growing over whether the two giant statues of Buddha that were destroyed by the Taliban in 2001 can be rebuilt—and whether they should be.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Another Semester in the Halls of Ivy
Yale's fall semester began today. Although I may visit a few other courses during the two-week "shopping period," my schedule will most likely consist of:
REL 654 Sibling Rivalries: Israel and "The Other" (Joel Kaminsky)
REL 687 Greek Exegesis: Hebrews (Harry Attridge)
REL 835 Iconography of Christian Art (Jaime Lara)
I'm particularly excited/terrified about Hebrews, given Dean Attridge's status as a leading interpreter of this particular letter. In addition, I'm planning to audit Reading Knowledge of German (a necessity for NT studies, and one that will hopefully make me a more attractive PhD applicant!). Attention, Jim West... I'll be directing all my German questions to you. ;-)
REL 654 Sibling Rivalries: Israel and "The Other" (Joel Kaminsky)
REL 687 Greek Exegesis: Hebrews (Harry Attridge)
REL 835 Iconography of Christian Art (Jaime Lara)
I'm particularly excited/terrified about Hebrews, given Dean Attridge's status as a leading interpreter of this particular letter. In addition, I'm planning to audit Reading Knowledge of German (a necessity for NT studies, and one that will hopefully make me a more attractive PhD applicant!). Attention, Jim West... I'll be directing all my German questions to you. ;-)
Christ and the Cross in Stories of Redemption
A recent announcement from Augsburg Fortress Publishers:
What does it mean to be saved, and how can we make sense of the Christian claim that Christ died for our sins?
That is the work of soteriology, the classic discipline of theology that inquires into the "saving work" of Christ and asks what, why, and how of redemption as understood by Christians.
In Fortress Introduction to Salvation and the Cross, a masterful survey and analysis of 2000 years of Christian reflection on salvation, theologian David A. Brondos, Professor of Theology at the Theological Community of Mexico, lays bare the diverse and even competing understandings, their social context and development, and their strengths and weaknesses.
Concentrating on thirteen of the most important figures in that long arc—from its biblical roots to its most controverted contemporary expressions—Brondos unfolds the thought of each theologian as articulating a distinctive story of salvation or atonement.
An excellent learning tool, Brondo's succinct and helpful text is augmented with a helpful timeline, illustration, glossary, suggestions for further reading, and questions for discussion and reflection. His work illumines how Christians through the ages have understood Jesus, salvation, and human reconciliation with God.
Order your copy today!
What does it mean to be saved, and how can we make sense of the Christian claim that Christ died for our sins?
That is the work of soteriology, the classic discipline of theology that inquires into the "saving work" of Christ and asks what, why, and how of redemption as understood by Christians.
In Fortress Introduction to Salvation and the Cross, a masterful survey and analysis of 2000 years of Christian reflection on salvation, theologian David A. Brondos, Professor of Theology at the Theological Community of Mexico, lays bare the diverse and even competing understandings, their social context and development, and their strengths and weaknesses.
Concentrating on thirteen of the most important figures in that long arc—from its biblical roots to its most controverted contemporary expressions—Brondos unfolds the thought of each theologian as articulating a distinctive story of salvation or atonement.
An excellent learning tool, Brondo's succinct and helpful text is augmented with a helpful timeline, illustration, glossary, suggestions for further reading, and questions for discussion and reflection. His work illumines how Christians through the ages have understood Jesus, salvation, and human reconciliation with God.
Order your copy today!
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