Medicine in the Ancient World. Sarah K. Yeomans • 09/05/2014 This article was originally published in November 2013. It has been updated. —Ed. Many Emergency Medical Service departments use the Star of Life - an image which is derived from ancient images of Asklepios. Life in the ancient world was risky business. In many societies, the gods played an integral role in human health. This gilded bronze ear was presented to the Asklepion at ancient Pergamon by a woman named Fabia Secunda, who had in made “for the god Asklepios because the ear was healed in a dream.” By the fifth century B.C., physicians and the god of healing had become intrinsically linked, with Asklepios as the divine patron of the medical profession.
This first-century A.D. relief of a leg was dedicated by a man named Tycheas as “a thank-offering to Asklepios and Hygeia” at the Asklepion on the island of Melos, Greece. Surgical techniques in the ancient world could be surprisingly advanced. Notes a. 1. 2. Herod the Great: Friend of the Romans and Parthians? Jason M. Schlude • 03/29/2013 King Herod is remembered as a Friend of the Romans. Jason Schlude suggests that Herod exploited the broader geopolitical circumstances of the day. Hulton-Archive/Getty Images. Often we think of Herod the Great in relation to ancient Rome. Another view of Herod, however, complicates this picture. Rome was not the undisputed master of the Near East. Click here for a Biblical Archaeology Society web-exclusive slideshow gallery from the Herod the Great—The King’s Final Journey exhibit at the Israel Museum, along with Suzanne F. Herod faced this volatile situation and exploited it to his advantage. Herod then took the first opportunity to further his position by working with the Parthians.
Herodium excavator Ehud Netzer was a member of BAR’s editorial advisory board for 30 years. When the Parthians invaded Palestine in 40 B.C.E., they arrested Hyrcanus II, a high priest and member of the Hasmonean family, and cut off his ears. Read more in Bible History Daily. How December 25 Became Christmas. A blanket of snow covers the little town of Bethlehem, in Pieter Bruegel’s oil painting from 1566. Although Jesus’ birth is celebrated every year on December 25, Luke and the other gospel writers offer no hint about the specific time of year he was born. Scala/Art Resource, NY On December 25, Christians around the world will gather to celebrate Jesus’ birth. Joyful carols, special liturgies, brightly wrapped gifts, festive foods—these all characterize the feast today, at least in the northern hemisphere.
But just how did the Christmas festival originate? The Bible offers few clues: Celebrations of Jesus’ Nativity are not mentioned in the Gospels or Acts; the date is not given, not even the time of year. The extrabiblical evidence from the first and second century is equally spare: There is no mention of birth celebrations in the writings of early Christian writers such as Irenaeus (c. 130–200) or Tertullian (c. 160–225). Around 200 C.E. Notes 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Machaerus: Where Salome Danced and John the Baptist Was Beheaded. Machaerus: Where Salome Ordered the Beheading of John the Baptist. Biblical Archaeology Society Staff • 08/24/2012 This cutaway reconstruction of the Herodian Palace at Machaerus shows the splendor of the Dead Sea fortress described by Győző Vörös in the September/October issue of BAR. Herod the Great added luxurious renovations including a courtyard with a garden, a Roman-style bath, a triclinium for dining and a peristyle courtyard.
This reconstruction, published here for the first time by the Biblical Archaeology Society, is courtesy of Győző Vörös and the Hungarian Academy of Arts. Click on the picture for full size. Machaerus is the infamous setting of the beheading of John the Baptist. While the beheading of John the Baptist lends the Herodian palace a special notoriety, Győző Vörös examines the archaeology and extended site history to show how the location of the Dead Sea fortress at Machaerus led to its special place in Herodian Judea. Machaerus was the easternmost of Herod’s renovated palatial fortresses. Read it today in the BAS Library. The Kotel Plaza. Solving the Enigma of Petra and the Nabataeans. This Bible History Daily article was originally published in 2012. It has been updated. —Ed. Who were the Nabataeans? The Siq is a tortuous half-mile-long canyon that winds its way from the entrance of Petra to the large open plaza at the foot of the Khazneh.
Formed through countless millennia of geological activity and water action, the canyon was used by the Nabataeans as a ceremonial route into their capital. For every tourist who visits the ancient city of Petra in modern-day Jordan, there is one breathtaking moment that captures all of the grandeur and mystery of this city carved in stone. The façade, popularly known as the Khazneh, or “Treasury,” appears first only as a faint vision, its architectural details and full dimensions crowded out by the darkened walls of the Siq. The Khazneh is both unexpectedly familiar, and at the same time, strangely exotic. Al-Khazneh (“the Treasury”), likely a tomb or monument to King Aretas IV who ruled over the Nabataeans from 9 B.C. to 40 A.D.
Skeletons and Scandals - Israel Hayom. Josephus on the Essenes. Steve Mason argues that the texts of Josephus cannot be relied upon to support the conclusion that the Essenes were the authors of the Dead Sea Scrolls and the inhabitants of Qumran. Flavius Josephus was a first-century Jewish historian, politician and soldier whose literary works provide crucial documentation of Roman Palestine in the first century A.D.
At age 29, he was appointed general of the Jewish forces in Galilee. He was eventually captured by Vespasian, who was at that time the supreme commander of the Roman army. Josephus capitulated and sought to ingratiate himself with the Roman general, eventually becoming part of the imperial court in Rome. He was an eyewitness to the destruction of Jerusalem and the Second Temple by the Roman army in 70 A.D. Josephus’s commentaries on the laws and characteristics of the Essene community have been invaluable to scholars studying ancient Jewish laws and customs.
The Jewish War, Book II, Chapter 8. The Bar Kochba Revolt. Messianic figure Simeon Bar Kochba led the Jews in a failed revolt against Roman rule. Reprinted with permission from From Text to Tradition: A History of Second Temple & Rabbinic Judaism (Ktav). The debacle of the first revolt against Rome was followed by a period of relative calm.
We Also Recommend Yet during the years of rule by the autonomous Hillelite patriarchs and the leaders of the tannaitic academies, problems were brewing, both inside and outside the Land of Israel. These developments took place despite the separation of Judea from the province of Syria and the appointment of higher‑level Roman governors of senatorial rank. In particular, the need to pay a capitation tax to the Temple of Jupiter in Rome must have made the Jews very unhappy. Messianic Yearnings It was not until the reign of the Roman emperor Trajan (98-117 C.E.) that the problems came to the surface. Did you like this article? Please consider making a donation today. Lawrence H. Jewish-Christians Relations in the Early Centuries.
Relations deteriorated and hostility increased The following article is reprinted with permission from From Text to Tradition: A History of Second Temple and Rabbinic Judaism (Ktav). How did Jews and Christians relate once the final break [of Christianity from Judaism] had come about? There are several kinds of evidence for an answer to this question, all of which point to a deterioration of relations and a rise of hostility.
The early days of the schism were marked by questioning and debate. We Also Recommend This is clear from accounts in both rabbinic literature and the writings of the church fathers. Jews and Christians discussed such matters as the interpretation of the Hebrew Bible and the authority of their respective traditions. At some point, probably connected with the Christianization of the empire in the fourth century, the Christians began to approach their Jewish neighbors with a much greater degree of antagonism, especially in Byzantine Palestine. Did you like this article? Was Jesus a Jew? Was Jesus a Jew? Some people claim that Jesus was a Christian.
Some have claimed that he was an Aryan Christian. But in recent decades scholars have been returning to ancient historical settings and discovering the Jewish Jesus. Anthony J. Saldarini’s article “What Price the Uniqueness of Jesus” cautions against wrenching Jesus out of his Jewish world (READ THE FULL ARTICLE BELOW). Was Jesus a Jew? This late-15th-century painting by the Spanish artist known as the Master of Perea depicts a Last Supper of lamb, unleavened bread and wine—all elements of the Seder feast celebrated on the first night of the Jewish Passover festival.
Jesus himself didn’t write the Gospels. In the 19th century, German theologians emphasized this distance as Saldarini explains below. Albrecht Ritschl saw a Jesus who attacked Scribes and Pharisees and, he claimed, Judaism itself. Ritschl’s Jesus focused on his personal relationship with God—a relationship that transcended historical contexts. By Anthony J. The_burial_of_jesus. On the original "Kosher Jesus" by R. Chaim Volozhiner's grandson, Universalist Dreamer. In the preface to my first volume of Kol Koreh I promised to show that the New Testament, contrary to popular belief, is neither in disagreement with the Old or even with the Talmud. I fulfilled my commitment regarding the first Gospel, and now I work on the second. A few words of explanation. Many people of high intelligence of rank applauded my work, either because they agreed with me in advance or were persuaded after having read them. This encourages me. But what a pity, there are extremists, and also those who laugh at what they think is an attempt to reconcile opposing views.
Aside for the positive feedback, I was also assailed by Jews and Christians, and I think it is useful to answer their objections. My fellow Jews said "To mention the Gospel and the Talmud together? In parallel, my fellow Christians say the same thing. This is what they say, and here is what I answer. He ends his introduction by repeating that the Jews and Christians are unfounded in their attacks upon him. Jews, Christians and Judaeo-Christians. Tensions in the Temple: "Expulsion of the money-changers" by Giotto, c.1304 The combined expression "Jewish Christian", made up of two seemingly contradictory concepts, must strike readers not specially trained in theology or religious history as an oxymoron. For how can someone simultaneously be a follower of both Moses and Jesus? Yet at the beginning of the Christian movement, in the first hundred years of the post-Jesus era, encounters with Jewish Christians distinguishable from Gentile Christians were a daily occurrence both in the Holy Land and in the diaspora.
To understand the genesis of these notions, the first point to note is that during his days of preaching, Jesus of Nazareth addressed only Jews, "the lost sheep of Israel" (Mt 10:5; 15:24). His disciples were even expressly instructed not to approach Gentiles or Samaritans (Mt 10:5). How did the original Judaeo-Christians of Jerusalem compare to their Jewish neighbours? How Jewish Christians Became Christians. The Great Revolt. Jewish factions rebel against Roman rule in Palestine. Jews in Palestine launched two major revolts against the Roman Empire during the first and second centuries of the Common Era: the Great Revolt (66-73 C.E.), and the Bar Kokhba Revolt (132-135 C.E.).
We Also Recommend The following article focuses on the Great Revolt, which led to the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. It is reprinted with permission from From Text to Tradition: A History of Second Temple and Rabbinic Judaism (Ktav). The [Great Revolt…] can be said to have been going on from the day the Romans first set foot in the Land of Israel [… ] yet full-scale revolt did not break out until 66 C. The proximate cause was a series of acts by the procurator Gessius Florus (64‑66 C.E.) which displayed disrespect for Jewish religious sensibilities. The efforts of King Agrippa II, the leading priests, and some of the Pharisees to stem the incipient revolt failed.
Did you like this article? Lawrence H. Biblical Views: The Many Faces of the Good Samaritan—Most Wrong. Biblical Views: The Many Faces of the Good Samaritan—Most Wrong The Parable of the Good Samaritan is a favorite of both children and adults. The story is told in Luke 10:29–37 : A man going from Jerusalem to Jericho is attacked by robbers who strip him and beat him. A priest and a Levite pass by without helping him. But a Samaritan stops and cares for him, taking him to an inn where the Samaritan pays for his care ( see article ). This column is about some appropriate lessons to be drawn from the parable, as well as some that are far-fetched, to say the least.
Join the BAS Library now to see this complete article, and over 35 years of other articles by the world’s foremost scholars of Biblical archaeology and related fields. Was Qasr al-Abd Modeled After the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus? Qasr al-Abd was the centerpiece of the second-century B.C.E. family estate (known today as ‘Iraq al Amir) built by the Tobiads of Judah. Archaeologist and architect Stephen Rosenberg believes the ruin was built to be the burial monument of the Tobiads, modeled after the mausoleum at Halicarnassus.
Photo by Erich Lessing. Qasr al-Abd, or Castle of the Slave, is a monumental, Hellenistic-style ruin located amid lush fields in Jordan’s Wadi as-Seer valley, not far from Amman. The centerpiece of a grand second-century B.C.E. estate built by the Jewish Tobiad family (known today as ‘Iraq al Amir), it has long been a mystery why the Tobiads built this impressive structure. Was it a temple? A hunting lodge? According to Rosenberg, Qasr al-Abd has many features characteristic of a monumental, Hellenistic-style mausoleum. To the north of the Tobiads’ ‘Iraq al Amir estate are caves that were used to inter the family’s dead before the bones were finally deposited inside the mausoleum.
Dead_sea_scrolls_discovery_and%20_meaning.
Paradise. Markus Bockmuehl, Guy G. Stroumsa, eds. Paradise in Antiquity: Jewish and Christian Views. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010. xi + 260 pp. $95.00 (cloth), ISBN 978-0-521-11786-9. Reviewed by Lorenzo DiTommaso (Concordia University)Published on H-Judaic (December, 2011)Commissioned by Jason Kalman Paradise Found This volume grew out of a conference held in 2008 at the Center for the Study of Christianity at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. An engaging essay by Guy G. The thirteen main papers of the volume are divided into two parts.
The essays in part 2 are unified under the title “Contemporizing Paradise in Late Antiquity.” The volume concludes with a thoughtful epilogue, “A Heaven on Earth,” by Alessandro Scafi, whose superb book, Mapping Paradise: A History of Heaven on Earth (2006), is well known to mediaevalists but deserves a wider audience among scholars of early Judaism and Christianity.
Citation: Lorenzo DiTommaso. Chanuka_To-Go_-_5772_Dr_Feldman. Chanuka_To-Go_-_5770_Dr_Fine. Antiochus the Madman. The Darker Side of Hanukkah.