HIST 219 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Hellenistic Period, Acculturation, Mishnah
Document Summary
Ancient near east--from nile river to persian gulf. Victory monument of the pharaoh merneptah, 1200"s bce-- israel is laid waste, his seed is no more . 1000-587 bce--see that israel actually in fact does exist tho--in land known as canaan. Philistines, kingdom of judah, kingdom of israel, phoenicians. @ this point, judaism is not really a religion--ppl bound 2gether by tribal ties, language, patterns of worship/belief. Priesthood only offers sacrifices in 1 place--the temple in jerusalem. How do israelites b/come jewish?--thru sacred txts. Kingdoms collapse due to 200 yrs of invasions from assyrian/babylonian invasions. 587 bce--temple destroyed, relationship w god severed, catastrophe must b explained thru theology and new connection forged. Many jews deported/taken capture to modern-day iraq. Some groups escape back west towards egyptian territory. Persian empire comes to power 50 yrs after jewish exile. Persian leaders were much more lenient that babylonians. Allowed exiles to return to ancestral lands and play a role in governing them.