Download The Hebrew Alternative: Monotheism

The Hebrew
Alternative: Monotheism
Origins & Creation Mythology
 Creation in the “Garden of Eden”
 Re-Creation through “The Great Flood”
 “Hebrew” = “outcast/nomad”
 Hebrews move to Canaan
 Abram becomes “Abraham” (“father of the faith”)
Monotheism and the Hebrew Bible
 Monotheism = belief in ONE god
 Jews = “chosen people”
 1100 BCE = earliest Biblical texts
 Tanakh
 Bible as historical text?
 Documentary Hypothesis = different writers for different books
From Canaan to Egypt to Exodus
 Hebrews were similar to other tribes
 1600 BCE = bad drought in Canaan
 People moved closer to Egypt
 Sometime b/t 1300-1150 BCE= Moses & the Exodus
 Moved into Sinai desert
 “Ten Commandments”
 Hebrews exploited power vacuum
 Remember: Battle of Kadesh = Hittite/Egyptian stand-off
The Kingdom of Israel
 Hebrews became Israelites
 Importance of “Ark of the Covenant”
 Importance of “Judges”
 Ca. 1050 BCE = Philistines defeated Israelites
 Destroyed the temple, stole the Ark
 By 1000 BCE = Saul becomes first King of Israel
 David = second King of Israel
 Ish-bosheth vs. David
 Defeats Ish-bosheth, then the Philistines
 Makes Jerusalem the capital
Solomon, King of Israel
 Solomon = David’s tenth son
 973 BCE = Solomon becomes King of Israel
 Built Israel’s “First Temple”
 Centralized government authority
 Raised taxes
 Increased the power of the military
 Israel’s “Golden Age”?
 Transformation of Israel from a tribal state into a monarchy
 Solomon as Great King?
Jewish Women
 Unique position of Jewish women in society
 Created to help men, with some exceptions:
 Deborah
 Judith
 Esther
 Ruth
 Rules specific to women . . .
 Chastity/virginity, no court testimony, no divorce
 Allowances for women . . .
 Education, entitlements, obedience from children, recognition of sexual pleasure
Collapse & Division
 After Solomon’s death . . .
 . . . Everything fell apart
 Israel split into:
 Israel in the north (capital = Samaria)
 Judah in the south (capital = Jerusalem)
 Why the split?
 Solomon’s son Rehoboam = jerk
“Whereas my father laid upon you a heavy yoke,
so shall I add tenfold thereto. Whereas my father
[tortured] you with whips, so shall I [torture] you
with scorpions. For my littlest finger is thicker
than my father’s loins; and your backs, which
bent like reeds at my father’s touch, shall break
like straws at my own touch.” - Rehoboam
Collapse & Division
 After Solomon’s death . . .
 . . . Everything fell apart
 Israel split into:
 Israel in the north (capital = Samaria)
 Judah in the south (capital = Jerusalem)
 Why the split?
 Solomon’s son Rehoboam = jerk
 Jeroboam led a tax revolt against Rehoboam
 60-year Civil War b/t Israel and Judah
The Problem of Prophecy
 Prophet = one who speaks on behalf of a god
 Ca. 933-722 BCE = HUGE culture of prophecy
 Prophets:
 Samuel
 Elijah & Elisha
 Ezekiel
 Prophets warned of destruction
Exile & Captivity
 722 BCE = Kingdom of Israel destroyed by Assyrians
 587/586 BCE = Kingdom of Judah destroyed by Neo-Babylonians
 520 BCE = Persians destroy Neo-Babylonian Empire
 “Jews” allowed to return to Judah
From Priests to Rabbis
 Influence of Exile on Judaism
 Changes in practice of Judaism
 No more temple!
 Shift from priests to rabbis
 Rabbi = “master” of the Torah
Second Temple Judaism
 520 BCE = Persians allow Jews to return to Judah
 Built a second temple
 Jews are returning to Judah . . .
 Religious problems
 Haggai & Zechariah
 New Prophets = Ezra & Nehemiah
 New religious leaders = Pharisees
Diaspora & Reinvention
 Jewish Diaspora = displaced Jews after Babylonian Exile
 Second Diaspora = displaced Jews after Second Temple destroyed (70 CE)
 By 1000s CE, Jews in northern Europe
 Religious & Political Legacy