israel & the judean religion i.stage one: judean identity & sacrifice ii.stage two: judaism...
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Israel & the Judean Religion
I. Stage One: Judean Identity & SacrificeII. Stage Two: Judaism as an Ethical Religion
IDs: Torah, covenant, Canaan/Israel/Palestine
Argument
Through the covenant, the Judean religion provided a united identity for the Hebrews as a group. It began as a tribal faith which emphasized sacrifice and changed over time into an ethical religion - Judaism – around 500 BCE.
Why did this change occur?
Torah
“Teaching”
Originally oral tradition
Written down between 600 and 400 BCE
I. Stage One: Judean Religion
HebrewsIsraelites
A. Beginnings
1. Abram (ca. 1600 BCE)
PalestineCanaanAbrahamUr (Babylonia)
2. “Tribal” Religion – Gives Identity to a group
CovenantChosen peopleCanaancircumcision
Monotheism??
3. Emphasis on Sacrifice
AltarRitualAnimals (birds,
sheep, cows)AbrahamIsaac
B. Egyptian Exile Moses (ca. 1300 BCE)
covenantchosen peoplepromised land –
Canaan, Palestine, Israel, Judah, Judea
Ten Commandments (oral tradition)
C. Kingdom of Israel, 1025-928 BCE
State: Union of kingship & religion
SaulDavidSolomonFirst TempleJerusalem
Split Israel & Judah
Religion: Rituals of elite priests & kings
12 TribesPriestsKingsRitualsSacrifices of animals in
temple
II. Stage Two: Judaism as an Ethical Religion
A. Babylonian Captivity, 722-516 BCE
Neo-AssyriansNebuchadnezzar
1. Begins Pattern of Exile and Return
2. Torah written down
3. Monotheism EstablishedTorah & Laws written
downGod - not
anthropomorphic (like humans)
No afterlifeEmphasis on morality
rather than sacrificeJudean Religion
Judaism
B. Return to Palestine as Subject People516 BCE – 70 CE
Second Temple built (516 BCE)
Ruled by empires: Persians, Hellenistic
states, & RomeJews
C. Exile Diaspora (70 CE)
• Expulsion of Jews from Palestine in 70 CE
• Temple destroyed
• diaspora
Judaism
*Exile and diaspora*Rabbis*Social & religious identity fused
Argument
Through the covenant, the Judean religion provided a united identity for the Hebrews as a group. It began as a tribal faith which emphasized sacrifice and changed over time into an ethical religion - Judaism – around 500 BCE.
Why did this change occur?
1. Adam & Eve & The Fall (pp. 1-3): How does this account justify patriarchy?
2. Adam & Eve & The Fall of Man (pp. 1-3): What does this account explain about the world & human condition?
3. The Call of Abram & Covenant of Circumcision (pp. 3-4): How did God change Abram’s identity? How did the covenant create an identity for Abraham’s descendants (the Israelites)?
4. The Covenant of Circumcision & Abraham Tested (pp. 4-5): How do the beliefs and practices emphasized in this section reflect the historical context (from lecture)?
5. Moses and the Burning Bush and the Ten Commandments (pp. 5-7): How was the relationship between God and Moses different from the relationship between the Mesopotamian gods & Hammurabi or Gilgamesh?
6. Moses and the Burning Bush and the Ten Commandments (pp. 5-7): How do the beliefs and practices emphasized in this section reflect the historical context (from lecture)?