Didache and Judaism: Jewish Roots of an Ancient Christian-Jewish Work (Texts and Studies) [Paperback]

Marcello del Verme (Author)

Book Description

Series: Texts and Studies | Publication Date: January 2005

The present study of the Didache is certainly neither new nor innovative in pointing out the presence and richness of borrowings from and references to Judaism prior to or coeval to this ancient Christian-Jewish text, which still remains, for certain aspects, enigmatic. However, there are "new paths" of reading that - through an analysis focusing on some institutions and rituals and doctrinal beliefs typically Jewish 'sedimented' in the text and reformulated for a Christian-Jewish milieu - redeem the interpretation of the Didache from an unjust 'New Testament mortgage' or from the 'generic reference' to Judaism. The fecundity of the text is enriched by limiting the research to the exploration of historical questions regarding the definition of the identity of the various groups/currents/movements present in the Didache, which often institutionally and, at times, even doctrinally interact with antecedent or coeval Judaism(s). The identities of these groups/currents/movements must be continuously defined and not merely evoked. The perspective nurtured by avoiding the danger of 'generically' referring to the Jewish origins/roots of the Didache could lead to the identification - in some parts or strata of the text which has survived - of groups/factions within the Christian-Jewish community which share the same (Jewish) institutions and re-proposes the same dialectics among different (Jewish) groups. At the same time - yet in a broader sense - such perspective allows the research on the Didache to enter into the rich and fruitful stream of recent studies that aim at exploring the many identities existing in the Ancient Near East, in particular among Jews and Christians with their inner dialectics. This is the inaugural book in a series called "Texts and Studies." The series will examine specific Jewish and Christian texts from the first and second centuries, offering English translations side-by-side with the Greek or Hebrew.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"He is one of the best trained expersts in the field fo Early Christian-Jewish thought and history, and this accomplishement is recognized in Italy, Jerusalem and in Oxford, as I have observed." -J.H. Charlesworth (J.H. Charlesworth )

'del Verme provides an astonishingly detailed annotated bibliography of his "imaginary scriptorium"...This certainly provides a useful resource for newcomers to the field...I find this collection and translation into English of the work of del Verme to be an important contribution to the debate and research into the Didache.'

Jonathan A. Draper, Neotestamentica 40.1 (2006)

(Jonathan A. Draper )

'worthy of study' (Andrew Gregory, Themelios, 32/1 Themelios )

'His ambition to venture beyond the generality 'Judaism' to comparison with a particular movement with Judaism is...praiseworthy.' (Alan Garrow, Vol 28.50, 2006 Journal For The Study Of The New Testament )

"The author expresses the hope that studies like his...will eventually contribute to a better understanding and coexistence between Jews and Christians and, maybe, also others. In the world like ours, that may be too much to expect...but Del Verme's book is a very welcome step in this direction."

(Journal of the Italian Research Group )

"fascinating"

"this work is to be commmended for its attention to detail and, in particular, the excellent annotated bibliography with which it begins"

(Llyod K. Pitersen, Journal of Jewish Studies )

'Del Verme is clearly a fine scholar and is to be commended for his literary achievment, as well as for his insights into a topic that has become an anvil upon which many recent scholars have struck their own distinctive hammers... Undoubtedly the solution to modern scholarship's quest for the roots of the Didache and its community will need to take seriously the sharp ring of Del Verme's own research perspectives and historical deliberations.

Clayton N. Jefford

St. Meinrad Archabbey

Biblica

(Clayton N. Jefford, St. Meinrad Archabbey )

"He is one of the best trained expersts in the field fo Early Christian-Jewish thought and history, and this accomplishement is recognized in Italy, Jerusalem and in Oxford, as I have observed." -J.H. Charlesworth (, )

'del Verme provides an astonishingly detailed annotated bibliography of his "imaginary scriptorium"...This certainly provides a useful resource for newcomers to the field...I find this collection and translation into English of the work of del Verme to be an important contribution to the debate and research into the Didache.'

Jonathan A. Draper, Neotestamentica 40.1 (2006)

(, )

"The author expresses the hope that studies like his...will eventually contribute to a better understanding and coexistence between Jews and Christians and, maybe, also others. In the world like ours, that may be too much to expect...but Del Verme's book is a very welcome step in this direction."

(, )

"fascinating"

"this work is to be commmended for its attention to detail and, in particular, the excellent annotated bibliography with which it begins"

(, )

'Del Verme is clearly a fine scholar and is to be commended for his literary achievment, as well as for his insights into a topic that has become an anvil upon which many recent scholars have struck their own distinctive hammers... Undoubtedly the solution to modern scholarship's quest for the roots of the Didache and its community will need to take seriously the sharp ring of Del Verme's own research perspectives and historical deliberations.

Clayton N. Jefford

St. Meinrad Archabbey

Biblica

(, ) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Marcello Del Verne is Professor of Early Christianity and History of Religions, University of Naples, Federico II, Italy. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 312 pages
• Publisher: T. & T. Clark Publishers (January 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0567025411
• ISBN-13: 978-0567025418
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,213,078 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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