The Review of Biblical Literature has some new reviews published. Among these, the review of The Oxford Handbook of Jewish Studies may be interesting to readers of this blog too:
Martin Goodman, Jeremy Cohen, David Sorkin, and David Jan Sorkin (eds),
The Oxford Handbook of Jewish Studies
(Oxford University Press; 2003) ISBN: 0198299966
750 pages. Price: $120.00
The Amazon.Com provides several sample pages from the book ( a service lacking in the UK department of Amazon). Among these samples are Front and back Covers/flaps, Table of Contents, Index and Excerpt of Chapter One.
I have not seen the book myself, but according to these sample pages, the most interesting chapters for Philonists might be:
Alan Cooper, Biblical Studies and Jewish Studies, pp. 14-35.
Martin Goodman, Jews and Judaism in the Second Temple Period, pp. 36-52
John J. Collins, The Literature of the Second Temple Period, pp. 53-78.
According to the index, Philo is mentioned in the articles of Goodman and Collins, but the references seem to be brief. The book might be considered large, 750 pages, and the price is terrible. Why must "Handbooks" be so expensive??
Thursday, July 29, 2004
Wednesday, July 28, 2004
Philo and the New Testament
The German publisher Mohr -Siebeck now announces that their volume on Philo and the New Testament is to be released in august.
The volume is a "is the result of an international symposium in Eisenach 2003 dealing with the New Testament and Philo as two important sources for Hellenistic Judaism in the 1st century AD. Specialists in Philo and the New Testament treat common subjects in both literary corpora showing the advantage of involving Philonic studies in the New Testament and vice versa. The symposium is part of the research project "Corpus Judaeo-Hellenisticum Novi Testamenti" which works on embedding the New Testament in its Jewish-Hellenistic context."
Philo und das Neue Testament
Wechselseitige Wahrnehmungen 1. Internationales Symposium zum Corpus Judaeo-Hellenisticum Novi Testamenti (Eisenach/Jena, Mai 2003)Herausgegeben von Roland Deines und Karl-Wilhelm Niebuhr.
2004. 420 pages (est.). (Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament 172).ISBN 3-16-148396-0 cloth ca. € 100.00 (August)
As I was a participant at the conference, and thus among the authors of the volume, I presume I will receive a copy as soon as it is published. I will be back with a further description of the articles at that time.
The volume is a "is the result of an international symposium in Eisenach 2003 dealing with the New Testament and Philo as two important sources for Hellenistic Judaism in the 1st century AD. Specialists in Philo and the New Testament treat common subjects in both literary corpora showing the advantage of involving Philonic studies in the New Testament and vice versa. The symposium is part of the research project "Corpus Judaeo-Hellenisticum Novi Testamenti" which works on embedding the New Testament in its Jewish-Hellenistic context."
Philo und das Neue Testament
Wechselseitige Wahrnehmungen 1. Internationales Symposium zum Corpus Judaeo-Hellenisticum Novi Testamenti (Eisenach/Jena, Mai 2003)Herausgegeben von Roland Deines und Karl-Wilhelm Niebuhr.
2004. 420 pages (est.). (Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament 172).ISBN 3-16-148396-0 cloth ca. € 100.00 (August)
As I was a participant at the conference, and thus among the authors of the volume, I presume I will receive a copy as soon as it is published. I will be back with a further description of the articles at that time.
Thursday, July 22, 2004
The origins of the synagogue
The sweedish young New Testament scholar Anders Runesson (presently at McMaster University Department of Religious Studies, Ontario Canada), has written an suggestive and informative article on the origins of the Synagogue in the latest issue of Studia Theologica:
"The origins of the synagogue in past and present research - some comments on definitions, theories, and sources," Studia Theologica Volume 58, Number 1 / May 2004 , pp. 60-76.
Abstract:
"The idea that the synagogue originated in the Babylonian exile has been so frequently repeated over the centuries that, despite the fact that this consensus broke down over 20 years ago, some researchers still quote it as if it were an incontestable historical fact. The present study analyses the history of scholarship on the origins of the synagogue, from the first century writings of Philo to the recent work of Lee Levine. Challenging old assumptions and ideas, it takes a new approach to the study of the synagogue and proposes a radical solution to this ancient riddle."
A. Runesson also has another article out on Web on the origin of the Synagogue,; you can read it here: The Nature and Origins of the 1st-Century Synagogue. It is an abbreviated version of the journal article mentioned above, and both draws on his dissertation from the University of Lund, Sweeden: The Origins of the Synagogue: A Socio-Historical Study. ConBNT 37. (Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell International, 2001).
"The origins of the synagogue in past and present research - some comments on definitions, theories, and sources," Studia Theologica Volume 58, Number 1 / May 2004 , pp. 60-76.
Abstract:
"The idea that the synagogue originated in the Babylonian exile has been so frequently repeated over the centuries that, despite the fact that this consensus broke down over 20 years ago, some researchers still quote it as if it were an incontestable historical fact. The present study analyses the history of scholarship on the origins of the synagogue, from the first century writings of Philo to the recent work of Lee Levine. Challenging old assumptions and ideas, it takes a new approach to the study of the synagogue and proposes a radical solution to this ancient riddle."
A. Runesson also has another article out on Web on the origin of the Synagogue,; you can read it here: The Nature and Origins of the 1st-Century Synagogue. It is an abbreviated version of the journal article mentioned above, and both draws on his dissertation from the University of Lund, Sweeden: The Origins of the Synagogue: A Socio-Historical Study. ConBNT 37. (Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell International, 2001).
Wednesday, July 21, 2004
Philo studies at the SBL Annual Meeting in November
The Program Book for the SBL Annual Meeting in San Antonio is now available on the SBL site. Philo of Alexandria will be explicitly dealt with in these sessions:
S21-22
Meals in the Greco-Roman World
11/21/20049:00 AM to 11:30 AM
Room: Salon M - Marriott Rivercenter
Theme: Deciphering an Ancient Meal: The Therapeutae as a Test Case
Hal Taussig, Union Theological Seminary, Presiding
Ellen B. Aitken, Harvard Divinity School
Singing at Meals among the Therapeutae (10 min)
Willi Braun, University of Alberta
Philo, Feasts, and Philosophy: The Therapeutae for Example (10 min)
Matthias Klinghardt, Technische Universität Dresden
The Therapeutaes’ Dance (10 min)
Andrew McGowan, University of Melbourne
The Food of the Therapeutae: A Thick Description (10 min)
Dennis Smith, Phillips Theological Seminary
Is There a Group Behind This Text: The Case of the Therapeutae (10 min)
Hal Taussig, Union Theological Seminary
Ritual Perfection and/or Literary Idealization in Philo’s Treatment of the Therapeutae (10 min)
Discussion (80 min)
S21-61
Hellenistic Moral Philosophy and Early Christianity
11/21/20041:00 PM to 3:30 PM
Room: Salon D - Marriott Rivercenter
Theme: Charis: Favor, Reciprocity, and Obligation in Greco-Roman Culture and the New Testament
Pamela Gordon, University of Kansas, Presiding
David Konstan, Brown University
The Two Faces of Charis: Favor vs. Gratitude (30 min)
Troels Engberg-Pedersen, Copenhagen University
Charis and Beneficium in Seneca, Philo, and Paul (30 min)
Break (5 min)
Brent Nongbri, Yale University
Super Argentum et Aurum Gratia Bona: The Charizomai Word Group in the Documentary Papyri (30 min)
J. Paul Sampley, Boston University, Respondent (25 min)
Discussion (30 min)
Papers will be available to group members on the HMPEC website. For inquiries please contact the Program Unit Chair.
S22-22
Philo of Alexandria
11/22/2004 9:00 AM to 11:30 AM
Room: Room #214A - San Antonio Convention Center
Theme: The Worlds of Logos Theology I
Hindy Najman, Harvard University, Presiding
Harold W. Attridge, Yale University
Philo and John: Two Riffs on One Logos? (40 min)
Robin Darling Young, University of Notre Dame
Philo as Prophet for Clement of Alexandria (40 min)
Daniel Boyarin, University of California
Origen's Philo-logia (40 min)
Break (5 min)
Business Meeting (25 min)
S22-71
Philo of Alexandria
11/22/2004 1:00 PM to 3:30 PM
Room: Room #214A - San Antonio Convention Center
Theme: The Worlds of Logos Theology II
David Winston, Berkeley, CA, Presiding
Assan Yadin, Rutgers University
Philo: Between the Logos Didaskalos and the Nomos Didaskalos (30 min)
Jutta Leonhardt-Balzer, Wiesbaden, Germany
Creation and the Logos in Philo and John: Eternity Meets History (30 min)
Gregory E. Sterling, University of Notre Dame
"The Second God": The Exegetical Traditions of Genesis 1:1–5 in Philo and John (30 min)Thomas H. Tobin, Loyola University of Chicago
The World of Thought in the Philippians Hymn (Philippians 2:5–11) (30 min)
Break (5 min)
Business Meeting (25 min) Board of Philo of Alexandria Commentary Series
Other sessions that may be of interest to Philonists are these:
S21-25
Religion in Roman Egypt
11/21/2004 9:00 AM to 11:30 AM
Room: Room #216A - San Antonio Convention Center
Theme: Death and the Afterlife
David Brakke, Indiana University, Presiding
Kirsti Copeland, Stanford University
Gender and the Afterlife in Roman Egypt (30 min)
Nicola Denzey, Harvard Divinity School
Death on the Nile: "Gnosticism," Early Egyptian Christianity, and Otherworldly Journeys (30 min)
Lillian Larsen, Columbia University
The "Now" and the "Not Yet": Hybrid Images of the Afterlife in Early Egyptian Monasticism (30 min)
Panel Review of Monumental Tombs of Ancient Alexandria: The Theater of the Dead by Marjorie Venit (Cambridge Univ. Press, 2002)
Allen Kerkeslager, St. Joseph's University, Panelist (30 min)
Birger Pearson, University of California, Santa Barbara, Panelist (30 min)
S21-117
Hellenistic Judaism
11/21/2004 4:00 PM to 6:30 PM
Room: Room #001B - San Antonio Convention Center
Theme: New Finds and Findings: Recent Discoveries, Latest Publications, and Neglected Documentary Evidence for Judaism in the Greco-Roman Period
T. Rajak, University of Reading, Presiding
Sylvie Honigman, Tel Aviv University
Jewish Law and Septuagint Nomenclature in a Newly-Documented Jewish Politeuma from Middle Egypt (25 min)
Margaret Williams, University of Edinburgh
Jewish Epigraphy Since the Publication of the Revised Schuerer, Vol. III (25 min)
Discussion (15 min)
Break (5 min)
Tal Ilan, Freie Univeritaet, Berlin
Rethinking Jewish Cemeteries in Light of the New Finds from Hierapolis (20 min)
Philip A. Harland, Concordia University
Acculturation and Identity in the Diaspora: A Jewish Family and “Pagan” Guilds in Hierapolis (20 min)
E. Leigh Gibson, Princeton, NJ
Integrating Eastern Inscriptions into Discussions of Jewish Epigraphy (20 min)
Discussion (20 min)
S21-22
Meals in the Greco-Roman World
11/21/20049:00 AM to 11:30 AM
Room: Salon M - Marriott Rivercenter
Theme: Deciphering an Ancient Meal: The Therapeutae as a Test Case
Hal Taussig, Union Theological Seminary, Presiding
Ellen B. Aitken, Harvard Divinity School
Singing at Meals among the Therapeutae (10 min)
Willi Braun, University of Alberta
Philo, Feasts, and Philosophy: The Therapeutae for Example (10 min)
Matthias Klinghardt, Technische Universität Dresden
The Therapeutaes’ Dance (10 min)
Andrew McGowan, University of Melbourne
The Food of the Therapeutae: A Thick Description (10 min)
Dennis Smith, Phillips Theological Seminary
Is There a Group Behind This Text: The Case of the Therapeutae (10 min)
Hal Taussig, Union Theological Seminary
Ritual Perfection and/or Literary Idealization in Philo’s Treatment of the Therapeutae (10 min)
Discussion (80 min)
S21-61
Hellenistic Moral Philosophy and Early Christianity
11/21/20041:00 PM to 3:30 PM
Room: Salon D - Marriott Rivercenter
Theme: Charis: Favor, Reciprocity, and Obligation in Greco-Roman Culture and the New Testament
Pamela Gordon, University of Kansas, Presiding
David Konstan, Brown University
The Two Faces of Charis: Favor vs. Gratitude (30 min)
Troels Engberg-Pedersen, Copenhagen University
Charis and Beneficium in Seneca, Philo, and Paul (30 min)
Break (5 min)
Brent Nongbri, Yale University
Super Argentum et Aurum Gratia Bona: The Charizomai Word Group in the Documentary Papyri (30 min)
J. Paul Sampley, Boston University, Respondent (25 min)
Discussion (30 min)
Papers will be available to group members on the HMPEC website. For inquiries please contact the Program Unit Chair.
S22-22
Philo of Alexandria
11/22/2004 9:00 AM to 11:30 AM
Room: Room #214A - San Antonio Convention Center
Theme: The Worlds of Logos Theology I
Hindy Najman, Harvard University, Presiding
Harold W. Attridge, Yale University
Philo and John: Two Riffs on One Logos? (40 min)
Robin Darling Young, University of Notre Dame
Philo as Prophet for Clement of Alexandria (40 min)
Daniel Boyarin, University of California
Origen's Philo-logia (40 min)
Break (5 min)
Business Meeting (25 min)
S22-71
Philo of Alexandria
11/22/2004 1:00 PM to 3:30 PM
Room: Room #214A - San Antonio Convention Center
Theme: The Worlds of Logos Theology II
David Winston, Berkeley, CA, Presiding
Assan Yadin, Rutgers University
Philo: Between the Logos Didaskalos and the Nomos Didaskalos (30 min)
Jutta Leonhardt-Balzer, Wiesbaden, Germany
Creation and the Logos in Philo and John: Eternity Meets History (30 min)
Gregory E. Sterling, University of Notre Dame
"The Second God": The Exegetical Traditions of Genesis 1:1–5 in Philo and John (30 min)Thomas H. Tobin, Loyola University of Chicago
The World of Thought in the Philippians Hymn (Philippians 2:5–11) (30 min)
Break (5 min)
Business Meeting (25 min) Board of Philo of Alexandria Commentary Series
Other sessions that may be of interest to Philonists are these:
S21-25
Religion in Roman Egypt
11/21/2004 9:00 AM to 11:30 AM
Room: Room #216A - San Antonio Convention Center
Theme: Death and the Afterlife
David Brakke, Indiana University, Presiding
Kirsti Copeland, Stanford University
Gender and the Afterlife in Roman Egypt (30 min)
Nicola Denzey, Harvard Divinity School
Death on the Nile: "Gnosticism," Early Egyptian Christianity, and Otherworldly Journeys (30 min)
Lillian Larsen, Columbia University
The "Now" and the "Not Yet": Hybrid Images of the Afterlife in Early Egyptian Monasticism (30 min)
Panel Review of Monumental Tombs of Ancient Alexandria: The Theater of the Dead by Marjorie Venit (Cambridge Univ. Press, 2002)
Allen Kerkeslager, St. Joseph's University, Panelist (30 min)
Birger Pearson, University of California, Santa Barbara, Panelist (30 min)
S21-117
Hellenistic Judaism
11/21/2004 4:00 PM to 6:30 PM
Room: Room #001B - San Antonio Convention Center
Theme: New Finds and Findings: Recent Discoveries, Latest Publications, and Neglected Documentary Evidence for Judaism in the Greco-Roman Period
T. Rajak, University of Reading, Presiding
Sylvie Honigman, Tel Aviv University
Jewish Law and Septuagint Nomenclature in a Newly-Documented Jewish Politeuma from Middle Egypt (25 min)
Margaret Williams, University of Edinburgh
Jewish Epigraphy Since the Publication of the Revised Schuerer, Vol. III (25 min)
Discussion (15 min)
Break (5 min)
Tal Ilan, Freie Univeritaet, Berlin
Rethinking Jewish Cemeteries in Light of the New Finds from Hierapolis (20 min)
Philip A. Harland, Concordia University
Acculturation and Identity in the Diaspora: A Jewish Family and “Pagan” Guilds in Hierapolis (20 min)
E. Leigh Gibson, Princeton, NJ
Integrating Eastern Inscriptions into Discussions of Jewish Epigraphy (20 min)
Discussion (20 min)
The Jewish Dialogue with Greece and Rome
Tesa Rajak has issued a collection of some of her articles:
Tessa Rajak, The Jewish Dialogue with Greece and Rome. Studies in Cultural and Social Interaction. Leiden: Brill, 2002. Pp. 578. ISBN 0-391-04133-9. $53.00 (pb).
You can read a review of this book here at Bryn Mawr Classical Review.
Tessa Rajak, The Jewish Dialogue with Greece and Rome. Studies in Cultural and Social Interaction. Leiden: Brill, 2002. Pp. 578. ISBN 0-391-04133-9. $53.00 (pb).
You can read a review of this book here at Bryn Mawr Classical Review.
A Concise Dictionary of New Testament Greek
A new review of
Warren C. Trenchard, A Concise Dictionary of New Testament Greek. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003. Pp. xvii, 177. ISBN 0-521-52111-4. $15.00 (pb).
is now available at Bryn Mawr Classical Review:
"Warren Trenchard's A Concise Dictionary of New Testament Greek, as stated in the author's preface, is the result of several years' close engagement on the project for a new comprehensive vocabulary guide to the Greek New Testament. The book is aimed at students, pastors, and other readers, and is intended to "provide them with a convenient and useful source of word meanings and other information concerning the vocabulary of the Greek New Testament". "
Warren C. Trenchard, A Concise Dictionary of New Testament Greek. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003. Pp. xvii, 177. ISBN 0-521-52111-4. $15.00 (pb).
is now available at Bryn Mawr Classical Review:
"Warren Trenchard's A Concise Dictionary of New Testament Greek, as stated in the author's preface, is the result of several years' close engagement on the project for a new comprehensive vocabulary guide to the Greek New Testament. The book is aimed at students, pastors, and other readers, and is intended to "provide them with a convenient and useful source of word meanings and other information concerning the vocabulary of the Greek New Testament". "
back again...
Summer vacation is over; I'm back again. After three weeks of 'intensive' vacation, but not too much leisure and rest, i'm back in my office. Time to rest......?
Still some weeks till the students arrive, so I might gather my self and get some work done. Starting with the piles on my office desk....
Last Monday we had a nice visit by Inger and Peder Borgen. Still going strong and enjoying a two week trip in the western parts of Norway.
Peder says they will participate at both the SNTS Meeting in Barcelona, and the SBL Annual Meeting in San Antonio this year.
And I can assure all you Philonists out there; the doyen of Philo-studies in Norway is still vigourously active.
Still some weeks till the students arrive, so I might gather my self and get some work done. Starting with the piles on my office desk....
Last Monday we had a nice visit by Inger and Peder Borgen. Still going strong and enjoying a two week trip in the western parts of Norway.
Peder says they will participate at both the SNTS Meeting in Barcelona, and the SBL Annual Meeting in San Antonio this year.
And I can assure all you Philonists out there; the doyen of Philo-studies in Norway is still vigourously active.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
