Join us on a literary world trip!
Add this book to bookshelf
Grey
Write a new comment Default profile 50px
Grey
Subscribe to read the full book or read the first pages for free!
All characters reduced
Aphrodite and the Rabbis - How the Jews Adapted Roman Culture to Create Judaism as We Know It - cover

Aphrodite and the Rabbis - How the Jews Adapted Roman Culture to Create Judaism as We Know It

Burton L. Visotzky

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

Summary

This “highly accessible” history ”tells a story of the deep influence of Roman culture on the Judaism of Talmudic times” after the destruction of Jerusalem (Commentary). 
 
Surprising but true: 
 
- The Passover Seder is a Greco-Roman symposium banquet 
 
- The Talmud rabbis presented themselves as Stoic philosophers 
 
- Synagogue buildings were Roman basilicas 
 
- Hellenistic rhetoric professors educated sons of well-to-do Jews 
 
- Zeus-Helios is depicted in synagogue mosaics across ancient Israel 
 
- The Jewish courts were named after the Roman political institution, the Sanhedrin 
 
- In Israel there were synagogues where the prayers were recited in Greek 
 
Historians have long debated the (re)birth of Judaism in the wake of the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple cult by the Romans in 70 CE. What replaced that sacrificial cult was at once something new—indebted to the very culture of the Roman overlords—even as it also sought to preserve what little it could of the old Israelite religion. The Greco-Roman culture in which rabbinic Judaism grew in the first five centuries of the Common Era nurtured the development of Judaism as we still know and celebrate it today. 
 
Arguing that its transformation from a Jerusalem-centered cult to a world religion was made possible by the Roman Empire, Rabbi Burton Visotzky presents Judaism as a distinctly Roman religion. Full of fascinating detail from the daily life and culture of Jewish communities across the Hellenistic world, and with illustrations included, Aphrodite and the Rabbis casts new light on the development of Judaism, religion, history, art, and architecture. 
 
“Intriguing.” —Kirkus Reviews 
 
“Witty and insightful.” —Publishers Weekly 
 
“Highlights how Jews creatively engaged with another civilization, creating a Jewish culture that was, and is, fluid, innovative, and diverse.” —The Common Reader
Available since: 09/13/2016.
Print length: 258 pages.

Other books that might interest you

  • The Silent Governess - cover

    The Silent Governess

    Julie Klassen

    • 0
    • 18
    • 0
    Believing herself guilty of a crime, Olivia Keene flees her home, eventually stumbling upon a grand estate where an elaborate celebration is in progress. But all is not as joyous as it seems.Lord Bradley has just learned a terrible secret, which, if exposed, will change his life forever. When he glimpses a figure on the grounds, he fears a spy or thief has overheard his devastating news. He is stunned to discover the intruder is a scrap of a woman with her throat badly injured. Fearing she will spread his secret, he gives the girl a post and confines her to his estate. As Olivia and Lord Bradley's secrets catch up with them, will their hidden pasts ruin their hope of finding love?
    Show book
  • The Nature of a Lady (The Secrets of the Isles Book #1) - cover

    The Nature of a Lady (The...

    Roseanna M. White

    • 0
    • 4
    • 0
    1906 
    Lady Elizabeth "Libby" Sinclair, with her love of microscopes and nature, isn't favored in society. She flees to the beautiful Isles of Scilly for the summer and stumbles into the dangerous secrets left behind by her holiday cottage's former occupant, also named Elizabeth, who mysteriously vanished.  
     
    Oliver Tremayne--gentleman and clergyman--is determined to discover what happened to his sister, and he's happy to accept the help of the girl now living in what should have been Beth's summer cottage . . . especially when he realizes it's the curious young lady he met briefly two years ago, who shares his love of botany and biology. But the hunt for his sister involves far more than nature walks, and he can't quite believe all the secrets Beth had been keeping from him. 
     
    As Libby and Oliver work together, they find ancient legends, pirate wrecks, betrayal, and the most mysterious phenomenon of all: love.
    Show book
  • The Bull Rider's Baby - cover

    The Bull Rider's Baby

    Brenda Minton

    • 1
    • 1
    • 0
    When a bull rider returns home as a single dad, building a future for his daughter will take facing a difficult past in this wholesome romance novel. 
     
    One minute, Keeton West is a confirmed bachelor living out of a suitcase on the professional bull riding circuit. The next, he’s the single dad of a baby he didn’t know existed. Now back home in Oklahoma, Keeton desperately needs help with little Lucy—the kind of help Sophie Cooper could provide. 
     
    Everyone in town remembers the tragedy that changed Keeton and Sophie’s lives forever. And spending time with Keeton seems to remind Sophie of all she lost. She won’t get close to another bull rider. Yet one sweet baby girl has her own way of bringing two hearts together.
    Show book
  • The Seaside Homecoming (On Devonshire Shores Book #3) - cover

    The Seaside Homecoming (On...

    Julie Klassen

    • 0
    • 1
    • 0
    A surprise homecoming tests the bonds of sisterhood as a hidden past comes to light . . . 
     
    Disgraced eldest sister Claire Summers has been living in exile as companion to a stern great-aunt in Scotland. About to lose her place and longing to be reconciled with her estranged family, Claire sees an advertisement from someone looking for a "respectable female partner" in a Sidmouth boarding house. Is it a sign? She answers the ad, hoping she has not made another reckless mistake. When she meets the handsome, secretive proprietor, she wonders what he's hiding and if he's any more trustworthy than the nobleman who betrayed her years ago. Claire is drawn to him even though she fears he will reject her when he discovers her genteel façade hides a less-than-respectable past. 
     
    Meanwhile, the Summers family learns their great-aunt has died and Claire has disappeared without a word. The sisters rally together to find their lost sibling, but will their unexpected reunion heal old wounds and rekindle their bonds . . . or deepen the divide? 
     
    Return to the captivating Devonshire coast as the Summers sisters navigate romance, second chances, and the enduring strength of sisterhood in the face of adversity.
    Show book
  • A Lady Unrivaled (Ladies of the Manor Book #3) - cover

    A Lady Unrivaled (Ladies of the...

    Roseanna M. White

    • 2
    • 6
    • 0
    White Is Quickly Becoming the Top Name in Edwardian Romance Lady Ella Myerston can always find a reason to smile--even if it's just in hope that tomorrow will be better than today. All her life everyone has tried to protect her from the realities of the world, but Ella knows very well the danger that has haunted her brother and their friend, and she won't wait for it to strike again. She intends to take action . . . and if that happens to involve an adventurous trip to the Cotswolds, then so much the better. Lord Cayton has already broken two hearts, including that of his first wife, who died before he could convince himself to love her. Now he's determined to live a better life. But that proves complicated when old friends arrive on the scene and try to threaten him into a life of crime. He does his best to remove the intriguing Lady Ella from danger, but the stubborn girl won't budge. How else can he redeem himself, though, but by saving her--and his daughter--from those dangerous people who seem ready to destroy them all?
    Show book
  • Falling for You (A Bradford Sisters Romance Book #2) - cover

    Falling for You (A Bradford...

    Becky Wade

    • 1
    • 26
    • 0
    Famously beautiful model Willow Bradford is taking a temporary break from her hectic schedule to work as the innkeeper at her family's small-town bed-and-breakfast. She was enjoying the peace of her hometown, Merryweather, Washington, right up until she came face-to-face with Corbin Stewart, the man she loves to hate. A thoughtful rule-follower by nature, Willow threw caution to the wind four years ago when she entrusted her heart to Corbin--and suffered the consequences when it all fell apart.Former NFL quarterback Corbin is forceful, charming, and accustomed to getting what he wants . . . except where Willow Bradford is concerned. Unable to forget her, he's never stopped regretting what happened between them. When their paths unexpectedly cross again, he's determined to make her give him a second chance.When a decades-old missing persons case finds Corbin and Willow working together, they're forced to confront their past and who they've become--and whether they can risk falling for one another all over again.
    Show book