| Creating Judaism: History, Tradition, Practice Michael L. Satlow |
Discussion Questions:
1. What is the Bible? Are all Bibles the same? How might a Jewish and Christian Bible differ?
2. In what ways is the Bible a Jewish book, and in what ways is it not?
3. Does it matter whether the Bible is a true account of events (that is, an accurate history as we
might use the term) or not?
4. How was the Bible canonized?
5. How different were the ancient Israelites who lived prior to 586 B.C.E. from the Judeans who
returned with Ezra to Jerusalem a little over a century later?
Resources
There are, of course, many introductions to the Hebrew Bible. At the same time, there are
surprisingly few accessible and responsible guides to the religion of ancient Israel. The standard,
although badly dated, histories of biblical Israel are Yehezkiel Kaufmann, The Religion of Israel,
from Its Beginnings to the Babylonian Exile, trans. and abridged by Moshe Greenberg (Chicago:
University of Chicago Press, 1960); and John Bright, A History of Israel, Westminster Aids to the
Study of the Scriptures (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1959). Modified, and somewhat more
accessible introductions can be found in the essays in Hershel Shanks, ed., Ancient Israel: A Short
History from Abraham to the Roman Destruction of the Temple, 2d ed. (New Jersey: Prentice Hall,
1999). Richard Elliott Freedman, Who Wrote the Bible? (San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco,
1997, rpt.), provides a highly readable, entertaining, and informative account of the creation of the
Torah (Pentateuch) and the documentary hypothesis. Susan Niditch, Ancient Israelite Religion
(New York: Oxford University Press, 1997), provides a good introduction to the religion of ancient
Israel. Jon D. Levenson, Sinai and Zion: An Entry into the Jewish Bible, New Voices in Biblical
Studies (Minneapolis: Winston, 1985), provides a highly accessible account of biblical theology.
The Jewish Study Bible: Tanakh Translation, Torah, Nevi’im, Kethuvim, ed. Adele Berlin, Marc Zvi
Brettler, and Michael Fishbane (New York: Oxford University Press, 2003), contains informative
commentaries and essays. Marc Z. Brettler, How to Read the Bible (Philadelphia: Jewish Publication
Society, 2005) is also an excellent introduction to the modern study of the Bible.
The Society for Biblical Literature is the professional organization of scholars of the Bible. The
mission of the Biblical Archaeology Society is to make serious study of biblical archaeology
accessible.
1. What is the Bible? Are all Bibles the same? How might a Jewish and Christian Bible differ?
2. In what ways is the Bible a Jewish book, and in what ways is it not?
3. Does it matter whether the Bible is a true account of events (that is, an accurate history as we
might use the term) or not?
4. How was the Bible canonized?
5. How different were the ancient Israelites who lived prior to 586 B.C.E. from the Judeans who
returned with Ezra to Jerusalem a little over a century later?
Resources
There are, of course, many introductions to the Hebrew Bible. At the same time, there are
surprisingly few accessible and responsible guides to the religion of ancient Israel. The standard,
although badly dated, histories of biblical Israel are Yehezkiel Kaufmann, The Religion of Israel,
from Its Beginnings to the Babylonian Exile, trans. and abridged by Moshe Greenberg (Chicago:
University of Chicago Press, 1960); and John Bright, A History of Israel, Westminster Aids to the
Study of the Scriptures (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1959). Modified, and somewhat more
accessible introductions can be found in the essays in Hershel Shanks, ed., Ancient Israel: A Short
History from Abraham to the Roman Destruction of the Temple, 2d ed. (New Jersey: Prentice Hall,
1999). Richard Elliott Freedman, Who Wrote the Bible? (San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco,
1997, rpt.), provides a highly readable, entertaining, and informative account of the creation of the
Torah (Pentateuch) and the documentary hypothesis. Susan Niditch, Ancient Israelite Religion
(New York: Oxford University Press, 1997), provides a good introduction to the religion of ancient
Israel. Jon D. Levenson, Sinai and Zion: An Entry into the Jewish Bible, New Voices in Biblical
Studies (Minneapolis: Winston, 1985), provides a highly accessible account of biblical theology.
The Jewish Study Bible: Tanakh Translation, Torah, Nevi’im, Kethuvim, ed. Adele Berlin, Marc Zvi
Brettler, and Michael Fishbane (New York: Oxford University Press, 2003), contains informative
commentaries and essays. Marc Z. Brettler, How to Read the Bible (Philadelphia: Jewish Publication
Society, 2005) is also an excellent introduction to the modern study of the Bible.
The Society for Biblical Literature is the professional organization of scholars of the Bible. The
mission of the Biblical Archaeology Society is to make serious study of biblical archaeology
accessible.
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"Creating Judaism" |
| Copyright Michael L. Satlow 2007 All rights reserved Comments? Suggestion? Contact the author! |