The City in Roman Palestine


Book Description

This book is a study of the city and urban life in Roman Palestine during the Talmudic period, 100-400 B.C. Rather than focus on a specific city, Daniel Sperber synthesizes what is known about city life in Talmudic Palestine to create a paradigmatic hypothetical Palestinian city. Drawing on numerous literary records for his information, he describes the structure and use of many physical aspects of the city, such as its markets, pubs, streets, bathhouses, roads, walls, toilets, and water supply. Rounding out the study is a chapter describing the archeological evidence, written by Sperber's colleague, Professor Joshua Schwartz. With the recent upsurge of interest in urbanization in the Greco-Roman world, The City in Roman Palestine will attract not only scholars of Judaic literature and history, but also classicists and ancient historians.







The Jewish People in the First Century, Volume 1


Book Description

Preliminary material -- Sources -- Historical Geography -- The Jewish Diaspora -- Relations between the Diaspora and the Land of Israel -- The Reign of Herod and the Herodian Dynasty -- The Province of Judaea -- Jewish Self-government -- The Legal Status of the Jewish Communities in the Diaspora -- The Organization of the Jewish Communities in the Diaspora -- Private Law.




Halakhah


Book Description

How the rabbis of the Talmud transformed Jewish law into a way of thinking and talking about everything Typically translated as "Jewish law," halakhah is not an easy match for what is usually thought of as law. This is because the rabbinic legal system has rarely wielded the political power to enforce its rules, nor has it ever been the law of any state. Even more idiosyncratically, the talmudic rabbis claim the study of halakhah is a holy endeavor that brings a person closer to God—a claim no country makes of its law. Chaim Saiman traces how generations of rabbis have used concepts forged in talmudic disputation to do the work that other societies assign not only to philosophy, political theory, theology, and ethics but also to art, drama, and literature. Guiding readers across two millennia of richly illuminating perspectives, this panoramic book shows how halakhah is not just "law" but an entire way of thinking, being, and knowing.




Handbook for the Study of the Historical Jesus (4 Vols)


Book Description

V. 1. How to study the historical Jesus -- v. 2. The study of Jesus -- v. 3. The historical Jesus -- v. 4. Individual studies.







A History of the Jews and Judaism in the Second Temple Period, Volume 4


Book Description

This is the fourth and fi nal volume of Lester L. Grabbe's four-volume history of the Second Temple period, collecting all that is known about the Jews during the period in which they were ruled by the Roman Empire. Based directly on primary sources such as archaeology, inscriptions, Jewish literary sources and Greek, Roman and Christian sources, this study includes analysis of the Jewish diaspora, mystical and Gnosticism trends, and the developments in the Temple, the law, and contemporary attitudes towards Judaism. Spanning from the reign of Herod Archelaus to the war with Rome and Roman control up to 150 CE, this volume concludes with Grabbe's holistic perspective on the Jews and Judaism in the Second Temple Period.




From Joshua to Caiaphas


Book Description

Customers in North America who wish to purchase this publication, please contact Augsburg Fortress Press. From Joshua To Caiaphas: High Priests After The Exile by James C. VanderKam (John A. O'Brien Professor of Hebrew Scriptures, University of Notre Dame) is a comprehensive, 548-page history of the high priests who served in the Second Temple period of Israel and their influence and importance in understanding early Judaism. A masterpiece of scholarship and research, Professor VanderKam writes with a distinctive clarity that allows even the non-specialist general reader to come away with a comprehensive and coherent understanding of Temple Judaism as represented by the fifty-one men who served as high priest from about 515 BCE down to 70CE when the Jerusalem temple was destroyed by the Romans. No Old Testament Studies, Israelite History, or Judaic Studies collection can be considered either comprehensive or complete without the inclusion of this impressive and seminal work. Also very highly recommended are Professor VanderKam's previous contributions: The Dead Sea Scrolls Today (1994); An Introduction To Early Judaism (2001); The Book Of Jubilees (2001); and The Meaning Of The Dead Sea Scrolls (which was co-authored with Peter Flint, 2002).