Where did OUR history ALSO start?


~***~

Even before
the advent of Nebuchadnezzar
the kingdom of Judah had been independent only nominally,
having been subject to Assyria
for over a century.

But under the Persians
there was no monarchy to symbolize
the political identity
of "Israel".

Instead
the Temple began to fulfil that role,
and the priesthood assumed an increased authority
over the life of the city of Jerusalem
and the province
of Judah.

THIS
was probably
encouraged by the Persians.
In return, the Persians were regarded as patrons,
not as oppressors.

The Bible itself
makes no criticism of Persian religion, and indeed,
the Zoroastrianism that became the official religion of the Persian kings
exercised a strong influence
of the religion
of Judah.

Its dualistic doctrine,
in which there are two equal and competing spirits,
and its belief in a fiery end to the cycle of world history,
are two of many Zoroastrian ideas
that are especially influential
in some Dead Sea
Scrolls.

Certainly speculation
about the origin and nature of evil,
and the calculation of calendars of world history,
characterize a great deal of Jewish literature
from what is called the "Second
Temple" period.

~***~

The arrival
of the Greeks

After
the demise of the Persian empire
and the arrival of Alexander the Great,
Judah fell for over a century under the control of the Greek kingdom
of the Ptolemies, comprising Egypt
and Palestine.

THIS period
witnessed an intensification of economic development
and an increased presence of Greek culture:
language, education, Greek~style cities,
and increased contact with the
Mediterranean world.

The Jewish
historian Josephus {1st century CE}
claimed that Alexander the Great visited both Jerusalem
AND the Samaritan temple on Mount Gerizim,
near Shechem.

The existence
of a separate Samaritan temple
highlights how litte we really know of the development
of the Jewish religion.

It is likely
that the rift between the two cities and their temples grew,
rather than having been present from
the beginning.

By the time
the scrolls were written, however,
Jews & Samaritans were probably quite distinct
and mutually
hostile.

~###~

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10 feb 2005 - bewerkt op 20 feb 2008 - meld ongepast verhaal
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