In 1972, with the publication of Violence and the Sacred, René Girard makes the stunning assertion that violence is the foundation of culture. Humanity’s innate urges for competition and rivalry entrap us in cycles of violence, which left alone would find no resolution. Girard calls the cause of this rivalry “mimetic desire”, and the only way out of this deeply embedded vengeance is to create a scapegoat to take the blame, reconciling the conflicting parties. Girard asserts that the biblical texts uniquely reveal the mechanisms of mimetic rivalry and scapegoating, and even demystify sacrificial rituals as nothing more than sacrilized “good” violence to keep a fragile peace. This revelation, according to Girard, can finally allow us to remove violence from the sacred. Much scholarship has been devoted to Girard’s theory, in particular how it offers a viable alternative to the still-dominant sacrificial theology of the cross. But there is little scholarship on the connection between Girard and Judaism; and Girard’s own work leaves us with a picture of Judaism that is at best incomplete, and at worst unable to find an answer to disturbing violence permeating the scriptures. This dissertation brings the Hebrew Bible into dialogue with Girard’s ideas in a systematic fashion to assert, contra Girard, that the Jewish revelation is a full, effective and even practical expression of his theory. After an overview of Girard’s work in the first chapter, the dissertation examines three Jewish “vaccines” to the mimetic disease as follows: the Birkhat ha-Banim (“The Blessing of the Children”); the reading of the Book of Esther on Purim; and the reading of Jonah on Yom Kippur. The conclusion to the dissertation asserts, drawing on these three demonstrations, the following points: 1) Rene Girard gives an important and clarifying lens to aid us in finding a new way to talk about, understand, and unify Jewish scripture and ritual; 2) a Jewish perspective can help flesh out what a different “revelation” of Girard’s mimetic desire looks like—even providing prescriptions to curtail this desire; and 3) positive mimesis is possible, and there are Hebrew examples of it free of originary violence. The final chapter addresses certain challenges in reconciling Girard with Judaism, moving toward a sincere Jewish Girardianism that will harmonize with the central views of the tradition.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-27T13:48:13Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 JOSE CARLOS DE LIMA COSTA.pdf: 1220710 bytes, checksum: 098e2c0b33331f3dbe25bb857a94ee42 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-12-21 / This work deals with the influence of the Old Testament prophetism on the actions and words of Jesus, as he is presented by the synoptic Gospels. The present research intends to demonstrate that in the presentation of the life and teaching of Jesus portrayed by the synoptics, the Nazarene partially breaks with most of the religious movements of his time and reclaims ancient prophetic traditions available to him in the TaNaK. Initially, a bibliographical research shall undertake a biblicotheological revision, aiming at understanding Israelite prophetism as presented in the Hebrew Bible. Then, a bibliographical and exegetical study will be done in the principal synoptic texts which present Jesus‟ prophetic praxis. The investigation shall focus on the image of Jesus as seen in the synoptic gospels, in their canonical form. In the final stage, the data of both researches will be analyzed and compared with each other. The common points observed between Old Testament prophetism and Jesus‟ praxis shall be carefully analyzed, in order to establish possible influences. The research‟s final report is made up of three parts: First, according to the synoptic presentation, it becomes clear that Jesus saw himself as a prophet of God, an impression shared by those who knew him; second, so as to understand better this influence, a further investigation of Israelite prophetism is done, as this tradition is presented in the Hebrew Bible; third, an investigation is undertaken of both the deeds and the preaching of Jesus, identifying possible influences that Old Testament prophetism might have exerted upon his actions and words. Finally, this work deals with the implications of prophetic influence on the praxis represented by Jesus. / Este trabalho se propõe a abordar a influência do profetismo veterotestamentário nas ações e palavras de Jesus, conforme a apresentação feita dele nos Evangelhos Sinóticos. A pesquisa pretende demonstrar que na apresentação da vida e ensinos de Jesus feita pelos sinóticos, o Nazareno rompe parcialmente com os principais movimentos religiosos de seu tempo e retoma antigas tradições proféticas, as quais lhe estavam disponíveis na TaNaK. O trabalho consistirá, inicialmente, de uma pesquisa bibliográfica, através da qual se fará um estudo bíblico-teológico, visando compreender o profetismo israelita conforme se apresenta na Bíblia Hebraica. Em seguida, será feito um levantamento bibliográfico e exegético nos principais textos Sinóticos que expressam a práxis profética de Jesus. A presente investigação focalizará a imagem de Jesus apresentada nos Evangelhos Sinóticos, em sua forma canônica. Na etapa final, os dados de ambas as pesquisas serão analisados e comparados. Os pontos comuns observados entre o profetismo veterotestamentário e a práxis de Jesus serão cuidadosamente analisados, a fim de se estabelecer possíveis influências. O relatório final da pesquisa compõe-se de três partes: Primeiramente, demonstra-se que, de acordo com a apresentação sinótica, tanto Jesus quanto aqueles que o conheceram, viram-no primeiramente como profeta de Deus; em seguida, a fim de se compreender melhor esta influência, procede-se com a investigação do profetismo israelita, conforme ele se apresenta na Bíblia Hebraica; por último, investiga-se tanto a atuação quanto a pregação de Jesus, identificando possíveis influências que o profetismo veterotestamentário possa ter exercido sobre suas ações e palavras. Finalizando, o trabalho aborda as implicações que a influência profética na práxis de Jesus representa.

Applying utopian theory to the Bible reveals a number of issues surrounding the biblical text within academic disciplines such as biblical studies, which study the Bible as an ancient cultural artefact, and among religious readers of the Bible. The biblical passage Numbers 13 was chosen as a case study of a utopian reading of the image of the Promised Land to demonstrate the Bible’s multifaceted potential by externalising the presupposition brought to the text. The underlying method is derived from an ideal type procedure, appropriated from Weber. Instead of comparing phenomena to each other, one compares a phenomenon to a constructed ideal type. This method enables one to compare phenomena independently of exclusive definitions and direct linear influences. It has been suggested by biblical scholars that utopian readings of the Bible can yield insights into socio-political circumstances in the society which produced biblical texts. Using observations by Holquist about utopias’ relationships to reality it is asked if applying the concept of utopia to a biblical passage allows drawing conclusions about the originating society of the Hebrew Bible. The answer is negative. Theory about literary utopias is applied to the case study passage. Numbers 13 is similar to literary utopias in juxtaposing a significantly improved society with a home society, the motif of travellers in an unfamiliar environment, and the feature of a map which is graphically not representable. Noth’s reading of the biblical passage’s toponyms reveals that its map is a utopian map. Numbers 13 is best understood as a literary utopia describing an unrealistic environment and using common utopian techniques and motifs. Despite describing an unrealistic environment, the passage was understood as directly relevant to reality by readers throughout time, for example by Bradford. Following two Puritan readings, it is observed that biblical utopian texts have the potential of being applied in reality by those who see them as a call to action. If a literary utopia is attempted to be brought into reality, it becomes apparent that it marginalises those who are not utopian protagonists; in the case study passage, the non-Israelite tribes, in Bradford’s reading, the Native Nations in New England. The interplay of utopia and dystopia is explored and it is concluded that a definitive trait of literary utopias is their potential to turn into an experienced dystopia if enforced literally. This argument is supported by demonstrating that the utopian traits of the case study passage contain dystopian downsides if read from a different perspective. A contemporary utopian reading of the case study passage is proposed. Today utopian speculation most often appears in works of science fiction (SF). Motifs appearing in the case study passage are read as tropes familiar to a contemporary Bible reader from SF. Following D. Suvin’s SF theory, it is concluded that the Bible in the contemporary world can be understood as a piece of SF. It contains the juxtaposition of an estranged world with a reader’s experienced world as well as a potential utopian and dystopian message.

Despite the dynamic portrayal of clothes in the Hebrew Bible scholars continue to interpret them as flat and inert objects. They are often overlooked or reduced to background details in the biblical texts. However, this thesis will demonstrate that the biblical writers’ depictions of clothes are not incidental and should not be reduced to such depictions. This thesis employs a multidisciplinary approach to develop and challenge existing approaches to the clothing imagery in the Hebrew Bible. It will fall into two main parts. In the first part, I draw insights from material-cultural theories to reconfigure ways of thinking about clothing as material objects, and reassessing the relationships between people and objects. Having challenged some of the broader conceptions of clothing, I will turn to interrogate the material and visual evidence for clothing and textiles from ancient Syro- Palestinian and ancient West Asian cultures to construct a perspective of the social and material impact of clothing in the culture in which the biblical texts were constructed and formed. In the second part, I will examine the biblical writers’ depiction of clothing through two case studies: Joseph’s ketonet passim (Genesis 37) and Elijah’s adderet (1 Kings 19 and 2 Kings 2). These analyses will draw from the insights made in the first part of this thesis to reassess and challenge the conventional scholarly interpretations of clothing in these texts. In this thesis, I argue that clothes are employed in powerful ways as material objects which construct and develop the social, religious and material dimensions of the text. They are also intimately entangled in relationships with the characters portrayed by the biblical writers and can even be considered as extensions of the people with whom they are engaged. Clothes manifest their own agency and power, which can transform other persons and objects through their performance and movement in a biblical text.

This thesis has three main aims. First, I will propose and explain a genre ascription for the sayings in Prov 10:1-22:16 – the ‘didactic proverb’. Second, I will analyse ‘openness’ as a textual feature, and show its contribution to the functions of this genre. Third, I will demonstrate how reading this way may influence our understanding of some key issues in Proverbs’ scholarship. Part 1 tackles the first and second aims. In ch. 1, I suggest that the sayings in Prov 10:1-22:16 have something of a hybrid genre, displaying features akin to both ‘didactic’ texts and ‘proverbs’. This can be seen from their: generically related texts, probable social settings, media, self-presentation, and literary forms. As ‘didactic’ texts, the sayings shape the worldview, character and intellect of their students. As ‘proverbs’, they apply to specific situations with specific purposes. In ch. 2, I explain three manifestations of literary ‘openness’: polysemy can give a text multiple meanings; parallelism makes the relationship between lines unclear; imagery opens up worlds for exploration. Ch. 3 begins to show how this ‘openness’ enhances the sayings’ ‘didactic’ and ‘proverbial’ functions. Here I move beyond openness in interpretation to openness in application, and draw on the field of ‘paremiology’ (the technical study of the ‘proverb’ as a genre), which has been somewhat neglected in Proverbs’ scholarship. In Part 2, I turn to the text, drawing out the openness of key verses, and showing how they function ‘didactically’ and ‘as proverbs’. This proves to have implications for certain classic debates in Proverbs’ scholarship (my third aim). Ch. 4 considers ‘character’ terms (e.g. wise/foolish, righteous/wicked). I use cognitive linguistic theories to examine the terms as open categories with ‘prototype structure’. Viewed this way, the terms are not (as some have argued) abstract and cut off from the world, but profoundly useful for life. Ch. 5 considers the apparent ‘act-consequence connection’ in Proverbs. The connection is predictable but not inviolable, may come about through a number of agencies, and has strong motivational potential. Ch. 6 looks at proverbs about the king. These do not necessitate an actual court context, for the ‘king’ figure may encapsulate wider principles, and function as a teaching tool. Even when he appears to be glorified, his role may be subverted, requiring students to exercise their minds. In ch. 7, I consider the way wisdom is acquired in the ‘didactic proverb’ genre, and suggest a principle for gaining it: students must ‘trust and scrutinise’. They are thereby empowered in their quest for wisdom, whilst also becoming aware of their limitations. Throughout Part 2, I find ‘openness’ to be an important facilitator for didactic and proverbial goals. Prov 10:1-22:16 presents its readers with a panoply of fascinating texts. By exploring them as ‘open’, ‘didactic’, and ‘proverbial’, this thesis offers a fruitful reading strategy; new insights into functions and meanings; and some fresh perspectives on old debates.

This thesis proposes that integrated rituals of netherworld descent and heavenly ascent are represented in the Hebrew Bible as having been performed by Davidic royals – royal women, as well as male monarchs. In some instances (e.g. Psalms 2; 18; 24; 89:2-38; and 110) these rituals are represented idealistically, with Yahweh confirming the king’s ritual status and potency, through re-presented speech acts. In other instances, however, while an idealistic picture of monarchy continues to be upheld, it is subverted from within in varying ways (e.g. 2 Kgs 9:30-37; 11; Ps. 89:39-52; Isa. 14.4b-20; Jer. 13:18-20; Ezekiel 19). The differing portrayals of monarchy reflect the differing ways with which biblical texts are negotiating and interacting with ambiguous discourses embodying memories of monarchy. On the one hand, after the fall of monarchic Judah, ‘foreign’ monarchy (and especially trading monarchies, such as those of Phoenicia) were fetishised within biblical authors’ discourses of political and economic imperialism, and so Davidic monarchy became a signifier of an enchanting and mystifying ‘indigenous’ past. On the other hand, discourses concerning the past frequently referenced exile, and the collapse of monarchy. Some biblical representations of ritual netherworld descent and heavenly ascent acknowledge this latter, uncomfortable kind of remembering – even as they reify and reinforce these enchanting memories which they subvert. The remembered, cosmically liminal first temple and the remembered royal body become loci for these paradoxical, contradictory, and competing memories. This much is evident in mystifying royal cosmic liminality and heavenly ascent, access to divine knowledge, and mimesis of Yahweh; in cathartic myths of the subjugation of the forces of chaos and disorder, both cosmic and military; and in the subversion of the enchanting remembered Davidic cultic praxis of descent and ascent, through these motifs’ re-presentations in montages alongside rituals which connote displacement, destruction, profanation, desecration, subjugation and being forgotten. In these instances, the vulnerabilities inherent in cultural idealising of the Davidic monarchy’s potent cosmic liminality are brought into sharp relief.

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O sistema verbal do hebraico bíblico tem sido objeto de debate desde o início dos estudos gramaticais até os dias atuais. As conjugações de sufixo e prefixo, com ou sem a presença do waw prefixado (respectivamente, as formas verbais: qatal, yiqtol, weqatal e wayyiqtol) tomam uma parte central nesse debate devido à grande amplitude de significados que possuem na Bíblia Hebraica. A presente pesquisa propõe-se a apresentar as várias correntes teóricas acerca da interpretação do significado e relação dessas quatro formas verbais e também o uso das mesmas nos textos narrativos e poéticos da Bíblia Hebraica. / The verbal system of Biblical Hebrew has been the subject of debate since the beginning of grammatical studies until today. The suffix and prefix conjugations, with or without the presence of prefixed waw (respectively, the verbal forms: qatal, yiqtol, weqatal e wayyiqtol) take a central part in this debate because of the wide range of meaning that they have in the Hebrew Bible. This research aims to present the various theoretical perspectives about the interpretation of the meaning and relationship of these four verbal forms and also the use of each of them in narrative and poetic texts of the Hebrew Bible.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-03T12:19:23Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Marcelo Moura da Silva.pdf: 1386687 bytes, checksum: 903cc5b48b557187abd5e6bea84190b0 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-10-19 / In the history of humanity, the reality of conflicts and wars between neighboring nations has been common. The most shocking fact is that, religious speech, instead of discouraging such realities can encourage and justify projects of power of these nations. The study of the Hebrew Bible can cast light to understand the realities of conflict between nations and the role of religious speech on such situations. For that, this research proposed to study narratives that deal with the origin and the development of international rivalry and conflicts. The research especially studied the familiar narratives and the prophetic oracles that dealt with rivalry, conflicts and the hatred between Israel and Edom to propose a review capable of encouraging projects of peace. The exegetical exercises in familiar narratives (Gn 35-36) and in the prophetic oracles against Edom (in the oracle collections against the nations, in the book of Obadiah, and in pericopes of Is 63,1-6 and of Ml 1,2-5) approach the literary material of the Hebrew Bible to investigate the origin and the development of the conflicts between Israel and Edom. Special attention was given to the study of the historical construction of the hatred and the role of religious literature in the growing development of the rivalries, animosities and conflicts. The first chapter studied the saga of Isaac as a historical and theological document that dealt with the familiar origin of rivalry between the twin brothers, with significant differences on the construction of their lives and identities. The second chapter studied, in the prophetic literature, the Oracles against the Nations and, more specifically, the oracles against Edom. In this phase, the research studied the importance of this literary genre on the construction of a more universal theology that attributes the control of history to God, aiming to better care for Israel. The third chapter also evaluated the other prophetic material that dealt with conflict and even divine hatred against the Edomites (Is 63,1-6 and Ml 1,2-5). In these chapters, the stimulation of the conflicts and the construction of religious speech with great animosity against Edom were noticed. The studies on the narratives of rivalry and of conflicts between Israel and Edom in the Hebrew Bible try to highlight, in the historical dynamics of conflicts, the hope of peace for international relations. Above all, the research proposed a review of these texts for a construction of religious-theological speech that stimulates tolerance and ethics of peace. / Na história da humanidade, a realidade de conflitos e de guerras entre povos vizinhos têm sido comum. O que mais assusta é o fato que, o discurso religioso, ao invés de desencorajar tais realidades pode incentivar e justificar os projetos de poder dessas nações. O estudo da Bíblia Hebraica pode lançar luzes para o entendimento das realidades de conflito entre nações e para o papel do discurso religioso nestes. Para isto, essa pesquisa propôs-se a estudar narrativas que abordam a origem e o desenvolvimento de rivalidades e de conflitos internacionais. Especialmente, estudou as narrativas familiares e os oráculos proféticos que abordaram a rivalidade, os conflitos e o ódio entre Israel/Judá e Edom para propor uma releitura capaz de encorajar projetos de paz. Os exercícios exegéticos nas narrativas familiares (Gn 35-36) e nos oráculos proféticos contra Edom (nas coleções de oráculos contra as nações, no livro de Obadias, e em perícopes de Is 63,1-6 e de Ml 1,2-5) abordaram o material literário da Bíblia Hebraica para investigar sobre a origem e o desenvolvimento dos conflitos entre Israel/Judá e Edom. Especial atenção foi dada ao estudo da construção histórica do ódio e o papel da literatura religiosa no crescente desenvolvimento das rivalidades, animosidades e conflitos. O primeiro capítulo estudou a saga de Isaque como documento histórico e teológico que abordou a origem familiar da rivalidade entre os irmãos gêmeos, com diferenças significativas na construção de suas vidas e identidades. O segundo capítulo estudou, na literatura profética, os Oráculos contra as Nações e, mais especificamente, os oráculos contra Edom. Nesta fase estudou a importância desse gênero literário na construção de uma teologia mais universal que atribuía a Deus o controle da história, visando maior cuidado com Israel. O terceiro capítulo também avaliou outro material profético que abordou o conflito e, até mesmo, o ódio divino contra os edomitas (Is 63,1-6 e Ml 1,2-5). Nestes, percebeu-se o acirramento dos conflitos e a construção de um discurso religioso mais animoso contra Edom. Os estudos nas narrativas de rivalidade e de conflitos entre Israel/Judá e Edom na Bíblia Hebraica procuraram destacar, na dinâmica história de conflitos, as esperanças de paz para as relações internacionais. Sobretudo, propôs reler esses textos para a construção de um discurso religioso-teológico que estimule a tolerância e a ética da paz.

O sistema verbal do hebraico bíblico tem sido objeto de debate desde o início dos estudos gramaticais até os dias atuais. As conjugações de sufixo e prefixo, com ou sem a presença do waw prefixado (respectivamente, as formas verbais: qatal, yiqtol, weqatal e wayyiqtol) tomam uma parte central nesse debate devido à grande amplitude de significados que possuem na Bíblia Hebraica. A presente pesquisa propõe-se a apresentar as várias correntes teóricas acerca da interpretação do significado e relação dessas quatro formas verbais e também o uso das mesmas nos textos narrativos e poéticos da Bíblia Hebraica. / The verbal system of Biblical Hebrew has been the subject of debate since the beginning of grammatical studies until today. The suffix and prefix conjugations, with or without the presence of prefixed waw (respectively, the verbal forms: qatal, yiqtol, weqatal e wayyiqtol) take a central part in this debate because of the wide range of meaning that they have in the Hebrew Bible. This research aims to present the various theoretical perspectives about the interpretation of the meaning and relationship of these four verbal forms and also the use of each of them in narrative and poetic texts of the Hebrew Bible.