Wednesday, June 06, 2012

Yes, An Independent Jewish Commonwealth

From a book review of a history of "early Judaism" in Eretz-Yisrael - "Apocalypse Against Empire:
Theologies of Resistance in Early Judaism":

After the fifth Syrian war in 200 BCE—when the Seleucids took back control of Jerusalem from the Ptolemies—the Seleucid King Antiochus III issued a programma that gave the Judeans control over issues of purity within the the city of Jersualem. Antiochus III’s programma allowed for peaceful coexistence between the Judeans and Seleucids, yet the Judeans’ autonomy was rooted in the authority of the Seleucid King rather than Yhwh (62). The Judeans experienced stressors during this period that set the stage for revolt including lack of “political autonomy, imperial exploitation, military occupation, rapid political change, the ravages of war, personal and economic hardship, internal divison, and unequal distribution of privilege” (73). All of these
stressors set the stage for the emergence of apocalyptic.

Yes, there was the Second Temple Commonwealth, a Jewish state.

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