A Study of the Descriptive Aspects of Patriarchal Religion (original) (raw)

Israel’s Religion during the Patriarchal Age (2000 to 1500 B.C.)

E-Journal of Religious and Theological Studies

This research focuses on Israel’s religion during the Patriarchal age (2000 to 1500 B.C). The beliefs and practices of Israel’s religion during the patriarchal period remain a bone of contention among scholars. Did the Patriarchs have a belief system different from the people in the Ancient Near East? If they had, what made their faith distinct from that of the surrounding nations? Scholars are indecisive about the content of the patriarchal religion. The book of Genesis does not elaborate on the patriarchal religion; rather, it expresses the Patriarchal religious experiences timidly. The researcher argues that the spiritual experiences stated in Genesis prove that Israel’s religion was possibly distinct and directional. The patriarchal era is situated within Genesis 12-50. The patriarchs are Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The Nuzi, Mari, and Ebla tablets are archaeological discoveries that shed light on critical religious centres like Shechem, Bethel, and Beersheba during the patriarch...

Abraham's Gods: Discovering Their Human Identities

Hebrew Bible as a theomorphic human." In this way, Harold Bloom (2005: 130) has expressed scholars' embarrassment about marked anthropomorphism of God in some biblical tales. In this article, the author examines the nature of "Abraham's God", finding it incompatible with the god of the later prophetic (Mosaic) tradition. The proposed explanation is that the patriarchal stories originated as a secular family history that was re-interpreted at a later time and incorporated into the canon of the emerging religion of the people of Israel. During the reworking of the original source, a succession of Egyptian kings whom the patriarchs served was transformed into a god, who was equated with the god of the new religion.

"From the Bosom of Abraham: Judaism and the Roots of the Patriarchy"

Though elements of the patriarchy pre-date Judaism, its emergence as an organized theology and social system is unique to the Jewish people. For millennia, biblical exegesis has underwritten not only patriarchal authority, but history itself. However, the veracity of the Bible as both a moral and historical authority has been challenged not only by an objective science of archaeology, but by historical inquiry free of religious and gender-biased presuppositions. This is salutary for women, since the patriarchy – traced, as it is, back to its metaphoric roots in the biblical person and authority of Abraham – has been the philosophical and practical foundation of women’s subservient status through its iterations as Christianity and Islam

Introduction to the Old Testament

2014

This volume introduces ancient Israel's Scriptures, or the Hebrew Bible, commonly called the Old Testament. It also traces the legacy of monotheism first found in the pages of the Old Testament. Where pertinent to the message of the Old Testament, the book explores issues of history, comparative religions, and sociology, while striking a balance among these topics by focusing primarily on literary features of the text. In addition, frequent sidebar discussions introduce the reader to contemporary scholarship, especially the results of historical-critical research and archaeology. Along the way, the book explores how the Old Testament conceptualized and gave rise to monotheism, one of the most significant developments in history. • Pays unique attention to the origins of monotheism, the common heritage of Jews, Christians, and Muslims • Includes generous number of illustrations, 20 freshly created maps, and frequent sidebar discussions in each chapter, as well as concise chapter summaries and glossary of terms • Has a web component that includes study guides, flashcards, PowerPoint lecture slides and a test bank Pays unique attention to the origins of monotheism, the common heritage of Jews, Christians and Muslims Includes a generous number of illustrations, twenty freshly created maps, and frequent sidebar discussions in each chapter, as well as concise chapter summaries and glossary of terms Has a web component that includes study guides, flashcards, PowerPoint lecture slides and a test bank

Holy Fathers?: Holiness in the Era of the Patriarchs

At Sinai Yahweh announced that Israel had the potential or privilege of becoming “a holy nation” (Exod 19:6). Holiness was a theme of the Sinaitic/Mosaic covenant and its levitical legislation. This is evident in Yahweh’s directive to Israel: “You should become holy, for I, Yahweh your God, am holy” (Lev 19:2; cf. 11:44, 45; 20:7, 26). Prior to the Book of Exodus the qdv word group is found only once in the patriarchal narratives. Indeed, it is found only in Genesis 2:3 (“Then God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy”). Interestingly, the first employment of the noun (q)d#v) appears in a post-patriarchal context containing a direct reference to the patriarchs: Then He said, “Do not draw near here. Take your sandals off your feet, because the place upon which you are standing is holy ground.” Moreover He said, “I am your father’s God—Abraham’s God, Isaac’s God, and Jacob’s God.” So Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God. (Exod 3:5-6) Much later, in the NT, Zacharias referred to the Abrahamic covenant as a “holy covenant” (Luke 1:72-73; cf. Ps 105:42) and Peter classified Sarah as one of the “holy women” of old (1 Pet 3:5). Are these merely the summations of later eras steeped in the vocabulary of the Law, or do they reflect an understanding possessed by the patriarchs themselves? Since the xdq word group is employed in the patriarchal narratives (cf. Gen 6:9; 7:1; 15:6; 18:19, 23-28; 20:4; 30:33), could it have been the patriarchal equivalent of qdv? Do the semantic ranges of “holiness” and “righteousness” overlap? Is it theologically accurate to say that “the notion of holiness … is entirely lacking in the patriarchal traditions” (R. W. L. Moberly, The Old Testament of the Old Testament, OBT [Minneapolis, Minn.: Fortress Press, 1992], 99)? A side issue raised by this study involves implications regarding the composition and/or editing of Genesis 1:1 2:3. Does the use of qdv in Genesis 2:3 support a Priestly or Holiness documentary source? Does its employment with reference to the sabbath confirm the influence of sabbatarian theology in the final editing of Genesis?