Category Archives: II Maccabees

Paper on IV Maccabees: Was Jerusalem a Polis?

Posted on September 26, 2008 by jamesbradfordpate

II Maccabees 4:22 says that Antiochus IV “was welcomed magnificently by Jason and the city, and ushered in with a blaze of torches and with shouts” (NRSV). The Greek word for city is polis. In Hellenistic Civilization and the Jews … Continue reading →

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Paper on IV Maccabees: Leads–Homosexuality

Posted on September 26, 2008 by jamesbradfordpate

Someone suggested to me that the Jewish objection to Jason’s gymnasium in the second century B.C.E. might have related to homosexuality that was occurring there. I found an Internet site that claims this: First Maccabees – Marriage and Giving in … Continue reading →

Posted in I Maccabees, II Maccabees, IV Maccabees, Life, Lost, Papers, Politeia Paper, School, Television | Comments Off on Paper on IV Maccabees: Leads–Homosexuality

Paper on IV Maccabees: Quotes on Athletics

Posted on September 23, 2008 by jamesbradfordpate

I said I would look at Encyclopedia Judaica and the Jewish Encyclopedia to see if there were references to athletics in Jewish sources. Here’s some of what I found. Jesse Harold Silver’s article on “Sports” in Encyclopedia Judaica: “This opposition … Continue reading →

Posted in II Maccabees, IV Maccabees, Papers, Politeia Paper, Religion, School | 5 Comments

Paper on IV Maccabees: Other Challenges to Politeia

Posted on September 22, 2008 by jamesbradfordpate

What follows are quotations from Josephus, II Maccabees, and IV Maccabees that describe challenges to the Jewish politeia. I’d like to check out the context of the quotes in red, and I may do that tomorrow. The Josephus quotes are … Continue reading →

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Paper on IV Maccabees: Bickerman on the Gym

Posted on September 19, 2008 by jamesbradfordpate

I’m going through Elias Bickerman’s The God of the Maccabees (Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1979) right now. He states the following: “[W]hereas athletic contests were merely strange to Cappadocian custom, they were objectionable according to Jewish law…These high priests, then, one … Continue reading →

Posted in I Maccabees, II Maccabees, IV Maccabees, Papers, Politeia Paper, Religion, School | Comments Off on Paper on IV Maccabees: Bickerman on the Gym

Paper on IV Maccabees: Antiochus’ Decree

Posted on September 18, 2008 by jamesbradfordpate

Antiochus III (not to be confused with the evil Antiochus IV Epiphanes) allowed the Jews to live according to their ancestral constitution, or politeia. Josephus records the following about his decree: “‘King Antiochus to Ptolemy, sends greetings:–Since the Jews, upon … Continue reading →

Posted in History, I Maccabees, II Maccabees, IV Maccabees, Papers, Politeia Paper, Religion, School | Comments Off on Paper on IV Maccabees: Antiochus’ Decree

Paper: IV Maccabees

Posted on September 16, 2008 by jamesbradfordpate

These are rough notes for a paper I’m writing on 4 Maccabees (for a class). IV Maccabees 4:19-21 states: “Jason changed the nation’s way of life and altered its form of government in complete violation of the law, so that … Continue reading →

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My Agenda for a While: Three Papers

Posted on September 15, 2008 by jamesbradfordpate

I have three papers to write for this month (and maybe the next). I’m going to brainstorm some on this blog. Writing papers can be hard. I don’t always know where to start. This blog can be a place where … Continue reading →

Posted in Bible, Books, I Maccabees, II Maccabees, Papers, Plunder Paper, Politeia Paper, Religion, School, Wisdom of Solomon | Comments Off on My Agenda for a While: Three Papers

Still More on Maccabees and Theodicy

Posted on September 5, 2008 by jamesbradfordpate

I finished III Maccabees last night. III Maccabees is not actually about the Maccabees, for it relates to the persecution of the Jews under King Ptolemy Philopator of Egypt (221-203 B.C.E.). Ptolemy defeats the Seleucid Antiochus III at the Battle … Continue reading →

Posted in Bible, Daily Quiet Time, I Maccabees, II Maccabees, III Maccabees, Religion, Theodicy | Comments Off on Still More on Maccabees and Theodicy

Were the Maccabees Aaronides?

Posted on September 2, 2008 by jamesbradfordpate

The Catholic Study Bible says the following about the Hasmoneans, the priesthood that took over in Jerusalem after the Jews’ defeat of Antiochus Epiphanes (second century B.C.E.): “The purpose of 1 Maccabees is clear: it defends the legitimacy of the … Continue reading →

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