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Other Peoples' Rituals: Tannaitic Portrayals of Graeco-Roman Ritual

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Other Peoples' Rituals: Tannaitic Portrayals of Graeco-Roman Ritual Other Peoples’ Rituals: Tannaitic Portrayals of Graeco-Roman Ritual DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Avram Richard Shannon, M.St. Graduate Program in Near Eastern Languages and Cultures The Ohio State University 2015 Dissertation Committee: Professor Michael D. Swartz, Advisor Professor Daniel Frank Professor Sarah Iles Johnston Professor Samuel A. Meier Professor Lynn Kaye Copyright by Avram Richard Shannon 2015 Abstract This dissertation looks at the ways in which the Tannaitic Sages portrayed and discussed non-Jewish ritual. Although this has been traditionally characterized as “idolatry,” this dissertation argues that that is not a category which would have been applied by the Sages of the Mishnah, Tosefta and the Tannaitic Midrashim. In fact, the Sages did not consider worship of avodah zarah, as it is called in this text, as something which was wholly different from their own ritual. The Tannaitic Sages conceived of non-Jewish ritual and Jewish ritual to be part of a single category of ritual. This category ultimately derived from the ritual practices of the Jerusalem Temple, which meant that rituals which were performed outside of that context were sacrilege and an affront to the God of Israel. It was precisely the similarities, rather than the differences, between Jewish and non- Jewish ritual which gave the Tannaitic Sages pause. These similarities, however, also gave the Sages tools for controlling non-Jewish ritual. They did this through a quest for plausible contexts for non-Jewish ritual behavior. Through establishing these contexts, the Tannaitic Sages are able to control what does and does not qualify as the worship of avodah zarah. ii Dedication This dissertation is dedicated to my children: Lydia, Elisheva, Guinevere, Enoch and Athena, without whose forbearance it would have never been finished. iii Acknowledgments I wish first to thank my advisor, Michael D. Swartz, who has provided many years of mentorship in the field of Jewish Studies, and whose insightful comments pushed me further in my scholarship. I would also like to thank the other members of my dissertation committee: Sam Meier for his careful comments, Daniel Frank for his kind advice, Sarah Iles Johnston for providing a view from “the other side,” and Lynn Kaye for helpful discussions on rabbinic ideology, especially on the notion of meʻilah. A special thanks to Fritz Graf for allowing me to see a pre-publication copy of his book, Roman Festivals in the Greek East. I also would like to extend thanks to the Melton Center for Jewish Studies, who provided funding for two of the years during my PhD program. Finally, a special thank you to my wife, Thora Shannon, both for her patience and for her helpful editorial comments on this dissertation. iv Vita 1999................................................................Homeschool 2007................................................................B.A. Ancient Near Eastern Studies, Brigham Young University 2008................................................................M.St. Jewish Studies, University of Oxford 2008 to present ..............................................Graduate Teaching Associate, Department of Near Eastern Languages and Culture, The Ohio State University Publications “‘Come Near Unto Me: Guarded Space and Its Mediators in the Jerusalem Temple.” Pages 66–84 in Ascending the Mountain of the Lord: Temple, Praise, and Worship in the Old Testament (2013 Sperry Symposium). Edited by Jeffrey R. Chadwick, Matthew J. Grey, and David Rolph Seely. Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University; Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2013. Fields of Study Major Field: Near Eastern Languages and Literatures Graduate Interdisciplinary Specialization in Religions of the Ancient Mediterranean v Table of Contents Abstract .............................................................................................................................. ii Dedication ......................................................................................................................... iii Acknowledgments ............................................................................................................ iv Vita ..................................................................................................................................... v List of Tables .................................................................................................................... xi Abbreviations .................................................................................................................. xii Chapter 1: Introduction ................................................................................................... 1 Text and Context in Ritual Law ...................................................................................... 1 Religion in the Ancient World ........................................................................................ 8 Derivation of the English Word “Idol” ......................................................................... 14 Avodah and Meʻilah in Hebrew .................................................................................... 19 An Overview of Foreign Worship in the Bible and Ancient Israel ............................... 26 Methodological Considerations..................................................................................... 35 Arrangement of the Dissertation ................................................................................... 38 Chapter 2: Scholarship on Non-Jewish Rituals ........................................................... 41 vi “Idolatry” in Biblical Studies ........................................................................................ 42 New Testament Influence on Scholarship on Foreign Worship ................................... 47 The Sages and Image Worship ...................................................................................... 50 Lieberman and Beyond ................................................................................................. 53 Foreign Worship and Egypt .......................................................................................... 63 Language and the Question of Foreignness .................................................................. 65 Rituals............................................................................................................................ 66 Studies of Greek and Roman Ritual and Religion ........................................................ 70 Sources Used in This Dissertation ................................................................................ 73 Chapter 3: Mishnah Avodah Zarah .............................................................................. 81 Sacred Space and Commerce ........................................................................................ 82 Ornaments and Images .................................................................................................. 96 Place and Space ........................................................................................................... 109 Obscure Objects in Mishnah Avodah Zarah: Asherah and Merqolis.......................... 117 Use and Abuse of Images ............................................................................................ 125 Libation and Wine ....................................................................................................... 134 Chapter 4: Tosefta Avodah Zarah .............................................................................. 145 Characteristics of Tosefta Avodah Zarah .................................................................... 145 Festivals and Fairs ....................................................................................................... 147 vii Theoretical Underpinnings .......................................................................................... 155 Interaction with the Broader World ............................................................................ 160 Images and Materiality ................................................................................................ 168 Law and Land .............................................................................................................. 171 Food and Sacrifice ....................................................................................................... 174 Iconography ................................................................................................................. 177 Annulment of Avodah Zarah....................................................................................... 186 Definitions and Descriptions ....................................................................................... 192 Music and Ritual ......................................................................................................... 194 Space and Impurity...................................................................................................... 197 Merqolis and Custom .................................................................................................. 209 Making Wine and Libations ........................................................................................ 212 Chapter 5: Mishnah Sanhedrin 7 ...............................................................................
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