Old Testament

In 2019, an exceptionally rich array of biblical archaeological finds came to light. The discovery of Herodotus’ seafaring ship (baris) confirmed the credibility of the ancient historian. In Jerusalem, material evidence of the Babylonian siege of 586 BC was unearthed, including seal-impressed vessels and traces of exotic vanilla. At the city gate of Lachish, tangible traces of King Hezekiah’s religious reforms were discovered. The excavation of the Jerusalem pilgrimage road (from Siloam to the Temple Mount) corroborated the account of Josephus Flavius.

In this paper, I examine Nicaea, Constantine and Eusebius through the lens of anti-Judaism – a concept distinct from anti-Semitism. Whilst church historians often distinguish sharply between these phenomena, I argue against completely separating Nazi racial anti-Semitism from traditional Christian anti-Judaism. Such separation risks absolving churches of their complicity in Jewish suffering throughout history.

Since the second half of the 20th century, form-criticism has assumed the existence of the genre of the call narratives, after a certain pattern was discovered in the biblical call stories. The pericope I examine in this paper (Ex 2,23–4,17) is considered a call story. However, Ex 2,23–4,17 contains many other features beyond the familiar elements of the call narratives, which raises questions about the appropriateness of this genre identification.

In his article, Yohanna Katanacho discusses the relationship between Israeli Jews (both indigenous and settlers) and other indigenous people classified as foreigners. His thoughts focus on the issue of equal ownership of the country. He believes that Jews originally owe their land to God’s covenant, specifically his love and mercy, rather than their military successes. Implicitly, his writing echoes the Deuteronomic declaration that the people received the land from the Lord as a dwelling place. He derives the legal basis for the possession of the land from the Book of Ezekiel (33:23–29).