The Samaritans In Historical Cultural And Linguistic Perspectives

The volume contributes to the knowledge of the Samaritan history, culture and linguistics. Specialists of various fields of research bring a new look on the topics related to the Samaritans and the Hebrew and Arabic written sources, to the Samaritan history in the Roman-Byzantine period as well as to the contemporary issues of the Samaritan community.

This volume presents an anthology of 19 seminal studies, some for the first time in English, that explore the history and tradition of the ancient relationship between Samaritans and Jews. The book is arranged into three parts: Methods, Traditions, and History; Samaritan and Jewish Pentateuchs; and Studies in Bible and Tradition, each of which is chronologically ordered. It represents a collection of the author’s previous publications on the relationship between Samaritans and Jews, expanding and supplementing the conclusions of her published books. Recent archaeological developments on Mount Gerizim have demonstrated that our paradigms for writing the ancient histories of the kingdoms and provinces of Samaria and Judah in the Iron II, Persian, and Hellenistic periods must change. These developments also affect how we evaluate and read ancient literary traditions, and several chapters offer challenging new perspectives on well-known themes, narratives, and compositions in this subject area. Samaritans and Jews in History and Tradition: Changing Perspectives 10 will be of interest to students and scholars of biblical studies, theology, comparative religion, the ancient Near East, and in particular, Samaritan and Jewish studies.

The volume contains the edited papers presented at the 10th international conference of the Société d’Études Samaritaines held in Budapest in 2022. It is dedicated to the famous Hungarian rabbi and scholar Samuel Kohn (1841–1920) whose relevance in Samaritan studies was commemorated by Abraham Tal. The articles discuss the most recent questions of Samaritan research in five different fields. Historical topics and Samaritan synagogue mosaics are investigated by Ingrid Hjelm, Innocent Himbaza and Reinhard Pummer. Greek inscriptions and Aramaic documents are studied by Magnar Kartveit, Andreas Lehnardt, and József Zsengellér. Arabic Torah interpretations, and historical documents are delt with by Jasper Bernhofer, Leonhard Becker and Daniel Boušek. Analyses of Samaritan Hebrew and Aramaic linguistic issues and of Samaritan translation techniques are presented by Moshe Florentin, Christian Stadel, Nehemia Gordon, David Hammidovič, Patrick Pouchelle and Phil Reid. Studies on Samaritan manuscript writings and collections are presented by Evelyn Burkhardt, Stefan Schorch, Mariia Boichun and Golda Akhiezer. Leading scholars and young new colleagues enrich the various fields of Samaritan studies with new findings, insights ad implications.

This book introduces the evocative but largely unknown tradition of Samaritan religious poetry from late antiquity to a new audience. These verses provide a unique window into the Samaritan religious world during a formative period. Prepared by Laura Suzanne Lieber, this anthology presents annotated English translations of fifty-five Classical Samaritan poems. Lieber introduces each piece, placing it in context with Samaritan religious tradition, the geopolitical turmoil of Palestine in the fourth century CE, and the literary, liturgical, and performative conventions of the Eastern and Western Roman Empires, shared by Jews, Christians, and polytheists. These hymns, composed by three generations of poets—the priest Amram Dara; his son, Marqah; and Marqah’s son, Ninna, the last poet to write in Samaritan Aramaic in the period prior to the Muslim conquest—for recitation during the Samaritan Sabbath and festival liturgies remain a core element of Samaritan religious ritual to the present day. Shedding important new light on the Samaritans’ history and on the complicated connections between early Judaism, Christianity, the Samaritan community, and nascent Islam, this volume makes an important contribution to the reception of the history of the Hebrew Bible. It will appeal to a wide audience of students and scholars of the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament, early Judaism and early Christianity, and other religions of late antiquity.

The Samaritans: A Biblical People celebrates the culture of the Israelite Samaritans from biblical times to our own day. This exquisite volume explores ways that Samaritans, Jews, Christians, and Muslims have interacted, shunned and interpreted one another across western civilization.

Conservation of Books is the highly anticipated reference work on global book structures and their conservation, offering the first modern, comprehensive overview on this subject. The volume takes an international approach to its subject. Written by over 70 specialists in conservation and conservation science based in 19 countries, its 26 chapters cover traditional book structures from around the world, the materials from which they are made and how they degrade, and how to preserve and conserve them. It also examines the theoretical underpinnings of conservation: what and how to treat, and the ethical, cultural, and economic implications of treatment. Technical drawings and photographs illustrate the structures and treatments examined throughout the book. Ultimately, readers gain an in-depth understanding of the materiality of books in numerous global contexts and reflect on the practical considerations involved in their analysis and treatment. Conservation of Books is a quintessential reference work for book conservators and anyone working with books, such as collection managers, librarians, curators, dealers, collectors, historians, and related professionals. It is also an indispensable text for students to complement hands-on training in this field.

This volume is devoted to the texts, traditions, and practices of the Land of Israel during the Talmudic period. Using a variety of critical methodologies, this collection offers a picture of rabbinic literature and Israelite cultures that are multi-layered and complex.

M. David Litwa tells the stories of the early Christians whose religious identity was either challenged or outright denied. In the second century many different groups and sects claimed to be the only Orthodox or authentic version of Christianity, and Litwa shows how those groups and figures on the side of developing Christian Orthodoxy often dismissed other versions of Christianity by refusing to call them “Christian”. However, the writings and treatises against these groups contain fascinating hints of what they believed, and why they called themselves Christian. Litwa outlines these different groups and the controversies that surrounded them, presenting readers with an overview of the vast tapestry of beliefs that made up second century Christianity. By moving beyond notions of “gnostic”, “heretical” and “orthodox” Litwa allows these “lost Christianities” to speak for themselves. He also questions the notion of some Christian identities “surviving” or “perishing”, arguing that all second century "Catholic" groups look very different to any form of modern Roman Catholicism. Litwa shows that countless discourses, ideas, and practices are continually recycled and adapted throughout time in the building of Christian identities, and indeed that the influence of so-called “lost” Christianities can still be felt today.