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Hellenistic Civilization and the Jews
The encounter between Jews and Greeks marked one of the most revolutionary meetings in the ancient world, for in that encounter politics, economics, culture, and religion changed dramatically. Victor Tcherikover, who devoted his entire scholarly life to the study of the Hellenistic period, offers here a benchmark assessment of that encounter. In this reprinted edition of his most famous work, including a new preface by University of Chicago Professor John J. Collins, Tcherikover uniquely combines "analyses of two of the most intriguing episodes of Jewish history in the events that led to the Maccabean rebellion and the struggle for rights in Alexandria in the first century C.E." (from the preface).
563 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1959
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
December 22, 2019
This book covers a critical time in history. The first and weightier part delves into the reasons for the revolt of the Maccabees. Had they failed, Judaism would probably have withered away, and there would be no Christianity and probably no Islam.
The second part of the book places the Jews among the Greek cities of Egypt and the Middle East. It interprets the earliest recorded roots of anti-Semitism and looks at the special characteristics of Jewish practice that led others to hate Jews.
The book does not cover philosophical differences between Greeks and Jews, but political and social conflicts and overlaps. Or as the author writes, the book "concerns the material and not the intellectual questions of Jewish history." If you accept this focus, you can learn quite a bit.
Although taking a scholarly approach, the author has clear, well-flowing prose that a lay person can understand. True, you must keep track of unfamiliar foreign names to follow the twists and turns of history. You could also benefit from a more detailed map of the region than the publisher gives you, should you care about geographic niceties.
I didn't need a list of all the Palestinian-region cities mentioned in ancient texts, with speculation as to their location and history. There is dubious "conjecture" elsewhere too (("It will not be a mistake to suppose..."). When reading, you can decide how much trust to place in each conclusion reached by Tcherikover, but I am convinced that there is much insight in the book.
The second part of the book places the Jews among the Greek cities of Egypt and the Middle East. It interprets the earliest recorded roots of anti-Semitism and looks at the special characteristics of Jewish practice that led others to hate Jews.
The book does not cover philosophical differences between Greeks and Jews, but political and social conflicts and overlaps. Or as the author writes, the book "concerns the material and not the intellectual questions of Jewish history." If you accept this focus, you can learn quite a bit.
Although taking a scholarly approach, the author has clear, well-flowing prose that a lay person can understand. True, you must keep track of unfamiliar foreign names to follow the twists and turns of history. You could also benefit from a more detailed map of the region than the publisher gives you, should you care about geographic niceties.
I didn't need a list of all the Palestinian-region cities mentioned in ancient texts, with speculation as to their location and history. There is dubious "conjecture" elsewhere too (("It will not be a mistake to suppose..."). When reading, you can decide how much trust to place in each conclusion reached by Tcherikover, but I am convinced that there is much insight in the book.
April 10, 2010
A bit dry, but not as long as it looks at first glance (500 pages total, but about 150 pages of footnotes).
The overall point of the book is to explore the tension between Greek and Jew, and between Hellenizing Jew and Judaizing Jew. That is, Tcherikover explores the push by the Greeks to spread Western Civilization through the whole world (="Hellenism" or "Cosmopolitanism") and the reaction by the Jews, who could not participate in Western Civilization for religious reasons. For example, life in a Greek city (the "polis", which is the heart of Western Civ.) requires activities like voting, athletics, and public education, all of which involve worship of and sacrifice to the gods. The Jews were forbidden to worship foreign gods, and so could not participate in voting, athletics, and public education.
With Judaism, there was a split between the "Hellenizers" on the one hand, who wished to adopt forms of Greek city life (occasionally including Platonic philosophy), even to the point of deeming Jerusalem a "polis" and renaming it "Antioch." And on the other hand the "Judaizers" (later to be identified with the Pharisees) who resisted Hellenism and sought to live according to the Torah with no modifications.
The ideas in this book are very interesting, Tcherikover (or maybe the translator) just doesn't do a very good job of holding the reader's attention.
The overall point of the book is to explore the tension between Greek and Jew, and between Hellenizing Jew and Judaizing Jew. That is, Tcherikover explores the push by the Greeks to spread Western Civilization through the whole world (="Hellenism" or "Cosmopolitanism") and the reaction by the Jews, who could not participate in Western Civilization for religious reasons. For example, life in a Greek city (the "polis", which is the heart of Western Civ.) requires activities like voting, athletics, and public education, all of which involve worship of and sacrifice to the gods. The Jews were forbidden to worship foreign gods, and so could not participate in voting, athletics, and public education.
With Judaism, there was a split between the "Hellenizers" on the one hand, who wished to adopt forms of Greek city life (occasionally including Platonic philosophy), even to the point of deeming Jerusalem a "polis" and renaming it "Antioch." And on the other hand the "Judaizers" (later to be identified with the Pharisees) who resisted Hellenism and sought to live according to the Torah with no modifications.
The ideas in this book are very interesting, Tcherikover (or maybe the translator) just doesn't do a very good job of holding the reader's attention.
January 8, 2023
Though it is a bit dated, it is still a worthy read as most of the information is still relevant and it is a seminal work in Second Temple Jewish studies. It is very didactic and Tcherikover is an excellent historian reading the Hasmonean revolt from what seems to be a more marxist lens.
April 11, 2021
A well written and researched (albeit probably out of date by now) assessment of the political connections and conflicts between the ancient Greek and Jewish nations. Marred by some oddly inappropriate post-Marxist terminology (although there isn't much of that) and very little analysis of the cultural and philosophical influences the two had on one another (which was my primary interest going, although the author is quite explicit he considers such issues beyond the scope of his book).
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews