Nero Caesar, Roman Emperor, 64–5, 74, 79, 83
New Testament, 31–2, 35–6, 45, 120, 139, 153–4
Nicanor gates (of Temple), 162
notarikon (like a notary public), 103
nothos (bastard), 150
Oenomaus of Gadara, 144
oikoumene (Hellenistic world), 27, 47, 53
omphal os teˉs geˉs (belly button of the world/center of the universe), 28
Oral Torah, 11, 137–8, 142
oral tradition, 10–11, 22
Ostia Antica, 32, 33, 177–8, 182, 200
palatini (court officials), 155
para basileus ho nomos agrophos, 121
parables, 218
fox and fish, 15–7, 220–1
king parables, 106–9, 145, 210
mashal (parable), 107
nimshal (moral or analogue), 107
See also fables
paradosis (oral transmission of tradition), 11, 138
Passover, 94, 98–104
Haggadah, 98–101, 104
Seder, 98, 104, 222
Paul, St., 31–2, 152, 227
Pharisees, 34–7, 105
Philo of Alexandria, 29, 32, 34, 37, 145, 150
Philosophus, 125–6
Philostratus, 141,
Pirke Avot, 131, 136–41, 219
Plato, 32, 96, 144–6
Plutarch, 95–6
polemus (polemics), 88–9
Polybius, 154
Polycharmos, Claudius Tiberius, 178
popular culture, 124–5
prayer, 32, 43–4, 57, 164–6, 170, 174, 179, 195
El Malei Rahamim (“God full of mercy”), 2–3
and Hebrew vs. Greek language, 115–21
Sefer HaRazim, 117–19, 196, 200
Shema, 17, 115, 127, 180
Yom Kippur, 18
presbyter (elder), 9
priests and priesthood, 7–8, 10–11, 20, 28–9, 34–9. See also rabbis and elders
puns, 57, 71, 119–20, 123, 145, 214–15
putti, 187, 193, 208
Q.E.D. (quod erat demonstrandum), 101
rabbi, use of the term, 9–10
rabbinic Judaism, 8–12, 20, 27–8, 44, 48, 51–3, 64, 66, 217–26
and education 87–111
and language, 113–30
and law, 147–60
and philosophy, 131–47
rabbanization of Biblical figures, 10
rabbis and elders
Abbahu, 83, 123–4, 149
Akhah, 149
Aqiba, 16–19, 43, 68, 75, 78–9, 98, 135, 156, 175, 182–4
Bar Kappara, 23, 106
Elazar ben Arakh, 137, 139–41
Elazar ben Azariah, 98, 142, 147
Eliezer ben Hyrcanus, 43, 67, 98, 137, 139, 155–7, 175, 182
Eliezer Hakkapar, 23–4, 48
Euphos, 109
Gamaliel, 9, 48, 70, 90, 125–6, 132–8, 141, 194, 196, 215
Haggai, 45–6
Hama bar Hanina, 131
Hanina, 59
Hillel, 9–10, 93–4, 137–8, 142, 227
Hiyya, 39, 128–30
Jesus of Nazareth referred to as, 10
Judah II, 80
Judah son of Converts, 59
Judah the Patriarch (Rebbi), 23–4, 70, 80–5, 88, 138, 143–4, 181, 184
Kahana, 11
Lazar, 83
Meir, 65, 66, 172
Nathan, 128
Resh Lakish (Rabbi Shim’on), 103, 116
Shammai, 9, 95, 137–8, 227
Shimeon ben Azzai, 108, 124
Shimeon ben Netanel, 137, 139–40
Shimeon ben Gamaliel, 141
Shimeon ben Yochai, 59
Tarphon, 98
Yehoshua ben Hananiah, 43, 67–8, 75, 98, 132–7, 139, 175, 195
Yehoshua ben Levi, 59–61, 155
Yehoshua ben Nehemiah, 155
Yehoshua of Gerasa, 182–4
Yohanan ben Nuri, 133
Yohanan ben Zakkai, 67–70, 105, 122, 136–40, 148–9, 218–19, 221
Yonatan, 209
Yosé ben Halfota, 44–5, 115,
Yosé of Galilee, 59, 147–8, 172
Yosé the Priest, 137–40
Yosef, 68
Rebecca, 56–7
Repudium, 148
Roman emperors. See individual emperors
Roman empire
Bar Kokhba rebellion against (132–135 CE), 11, 46–7, 55, 74, 78, 84–5, 89, 228
conquest of Greeks, 4, 227
Esau as symbol of, 24–5, 56–9, 71, 85, 162, 221
fall of, 4, 228
and fox fables, 16–19, 24–5
Jews in, 27–53
and rabbinical texts, 55–85
rebellion against (66–70 CE), 11, 29, 34, 36–7, 55, 165, 221, 227
year of the four emperors, 7, 74
Rome
Arch of Titus, 72, 72, 198, 199, 200, 207
Capitoline Museums, 77, 110, 186, 198, 199, 225
Jews in, 3–4, 32
Museo della Terme, 136
Pantheon, 168, 169
sacked by Visigoth king Alaric, 228
synagogues in, 32, 33, 177–8, 182, 200
Vigna Rondinini catacombs, 184, 185, 186, 200, 201, 202, 206–7, 208
Villa Torlonia catacombs, 1–4, 192
Rosh HaShannah (New Year), 44, 155, 202
Rufus, Tinius, 78–9
Sabbath/Shabbat, 31–2, 35–7, 46, 53, 59, 78–9, 94–5, 101, 105–6, 150, 172, 221–2
Sadducees, 34–5, 37, 105
Salome Komaise, 148–9
Samaritans, 28, 50
sanhedrin (council or senate), 35, 154
sarcophagus, 184, 186, 187, 188, 191, 205, 206
Sardis, 39–40, 41, 42, 170–1, 171–2, 177
Sasanian Empire, 10, 18, 50–3, 176, 209–11, 214, 228
Schechter, Solomon, 27
Scriptores Historiae Augustae, 109, 157
sella curulis (senior magistrate), 122
sellion (divan), 122
Sepphoris, 179–81, 190–5, 202–3
Septimius Severus, Roman Emperor, 81
Septuagint, 29
Shakespeare, William
Julius Caesar, 113, 114
Taming of the Shrew, The, 146
shalom (peace), 42, 48, 69, 74
Shema, 17, 115, 127, 180
shofar (ram’s horn), 32, 33, 47, 180, 191, 201
Sicarii, 36–7
siman/seimeion (sign or mnemonic), 104
Socrates, 32, 41, 84, 146–7
Sperber, Daniel, 118, 120
Stein, Siegfried, 98
Stoics, 36, 55, 80–2, 135, 137, 138–42, 220
subsellium (small bench or step stool), 128–9, 183
Sukkot, 32, 44, 191
symposium, 96–8, 104, 187, 222
synagogue, meaning of the term, 47
Alexandria, 30–1
American, 114, 189–90
Aphrodisias, 42, 45, 83–4, 182, (tetrapylon) 183
architecture of, 164–82
and art, 41, 51–2, 165–6, 175–6, 179–97, 200–4, 208–14, 230–1
Athens, 31
Atrium, 170
Beit Alpha, 49, 195, 196, 202, 204, 212
benches in, 165–6, 177–8, 213
Caesarea Maritima, 115, 179–83, 190, 195
communal books, 119
donors and donor plaques in, 39, 41, 45, 47, 52, 83–4, 108–9, 174–5, 178, 180–1, 211
Dura-Europos, 51–2, 52, 53, 171–2, 173, 176–7, 208–12, 212–13, 213–14,
Ein Gedi, 201
entrances to, 47, 170–1, 177–81
floor mosaics in, 117, 122, 181, 191–200
functions of, 47, 166
Gamla, 165, 166
geographic orientation of, 174, 176–81
Hammam Lif (Naro), 179
Hammat Tiberias, 109, 115, 175, 180, 195
and language of prayer, 115
and legislation, 158–60
Matrona (Daphne), 43–5
and menorahs, 32, 33, 41, 47, 74, 84, 165, 172, 178–81, 200–1
Migdal/Magdala, 165, 176
Mikvah (ritual immersion pool), 173–4
narthex, 170
Ostia Antica, 32, 33, 177–8, 182, 200
Rehov, 48
Sardis, 39–40, 41, 42, 170–1, 171–2, 177
Scythopolis, 74
Sepphoris, 179–81, 190–1, 192–5, 202–3
side rooms, 172–3
stoa, 30, 166
Stobi, 178
Theodotus’s synagogue inscription, 164–5
Tiberias, 47, 80, 81, 115, 179, 180, 181. See also Hammat Tiberias
syngkrisis pros ison (equation of equals), 101–2
synhedrion (Roman Senate/executive committee), 154
Talmud
Babylonian Talmud, 15–19, 21, 51, 53, 59–60, 64–73, 81–2, 89–90, 95, 106, 120, 151, 154, 162, 164, 172, 195, 218, 226, 228
Jerusalem (Palestinian) Talmud, 80, 83–4, 93–4, 96, 149, 154, 228
Temple Mount, 163–4
temples
destruction of Jerusalem Temple (70 CE), 7–8, 10, 20, 29, 36–7, 55, 64–73, 100, 137, 153, 215, 218, 227
at Elephantine, 28–9
Jerusalem Temple, 2, 4–10, 20, 28–9, 34–8
King Solomon’s Temple, 28
at Leontopolis, 29
Samaritan Temple, 28, 50
Second Temple, 9, 28–9, 35–6, 152, 161–2, 164–5, 217
Temple cult, 9, 12, 20, 25, 65, 217–20
Ten Commandments, 39, 41, 126, 194
tetrapylon (four-arched gate), 177, 182–83, 183, 190
Theodosian code, 154–5, 158–9
Therapeutae, 34
Tiberius, Roman Emperor, 32, 157
Tiberius Julius Alexander, 29
timeline, 227–8
Titus, Roman Emperor, 71–3, 198
Arch of Titus, 72, 72, 198, 199, 200, 207
Tomb of Absalom, 164
Torah, 7, 11, 16–20, 29, 34–6, 41–2, 45, 52, 74–5, 99–108, 119–21, 125–8, 137–8, 142, 217–21, 226
Trajan, Roman Emperor, 156
triclinia (dining rooms), 166, 218, 219
Turkey, 42, 90, 177. See also Antioch; Aphrodisias; Sardis
Tyre, 45–6, 150
Vespasian, Roman Emperor, 66, 68–74, 88, 122, 181, 221
VeZot HaTorah, 226
Wallace, David Foster, 220
Washington, George, 10, 14, 19
Xanthippe (wife of Socrates), 146–7
year of the four emperors, 7, 74
yevvani (Greek town), 70–1
Yom Kippur, 18, 44, 83–4, 134–5
ze ta hepta, ei ta okto, 124
Zealots, 36–7
Ziegler, Ignaz, 107
zodiac, 49, 117, 180, 193–5, 196, 200
Zoroastrianism, 10, 51, 53, 211
Moses at Dura
Photo by Dura Europas
King Ahashverosh and Esther in Dura
Photo courtesy Yale University Art Gallery, Dura-Europa Archives
Dura synagogue wall and Torah shrine
Photo by SodaBottle
Dura Europa synagogue
Photo by Marsyas
Jewish Catacomb at Vigna Randanini, Rome
Photo by Robin Jensen, top fig. Burton Visotzky, lower fig.
Alexander the Great mosaic (Naples Museum)
Photo by Carol Raddato
Herculaneum
Photo by Wolfgang Rieder
Jewish Catacomb at Vigna Randanini, Rome
Photo by Robin Jensen
Beit Alpha synagogue mosaic
Photo by J. Schweig
Beit Alpha synagogue
Photo by J. Schweig
Madaba map, Jordan
Photo by Jean Housen
About the Author
Ellen Dubin Photography
BURTON L. VISOTZKY serves as Appleman Professor of Midrash and Interreligious Studies at the Jewish Theological Seminary. He has been featured on Bill Moyers’ Genesis and Christiane Amanpour’s “Back to the Beginning.” The author of ten other books, including Sage Tales: Wisdom and Wonder from the Rabbis of the Talmud, he has been named to “The Forward 50” and repeatedly to the Newsweek/Daily Beast list of the “The 50 Most Influential Jews in America.” He lives in Manhattan.
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Contents
Title Page
Dedication
I: Greek, Roman, Hellenist, Jew
II: Like a Fish Out of Water? Stories of Judaism in Historical Context
III: Judaisms of the Oikoumene: Who Were the Jews in the Roman World?
IV: Esau, Edom, Rome: What Did the Rabbis Really Say about the Romans?
V: Rabbis Learn the Three Rs: Reading, Writing, and Roman Rhetoric
VI: How Many Languages Does a Jew Need to Know?
VII: Love of Wisdom and Love of Law: In Pursuit of Philosophy and Justice
VIII: History Where It Happened
IX: The Handwriting on the Wall (and the Floor and Ceiling): Roman Jewish Art
X: From Temple Cult to Roman Culture
Timeline
Acknowledgments
Photo Credits
For Further Reading
Index
Art Color Insert
About the Author
Copyright
APHRODITE AND THE RABBIS. Copyright © 2016 by Burton L. Visotzky. All rights reserved. For information, address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.
www.stmartins.com
Cover art: mosaic art © Dea/Achivio J. Lange/Getty Images; Jerusalem © Sangaku/Shutterstock; wall texture © M88/Shutterstock
Design by Meryl Sussman Levavi
The Library of Congress has cataloged the print edition as follows:
Names: Visotzky, Burton L.
Title: Aphrodite and the rabbis : how the Jews adapted Roman culture to create Judaism as we know it / Burton L. Visotzky.
Description: First edition. | New York : St. Martin’s Press, 2016.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016024623| ISBN 9781250085764 (hardback) | ISBN 9781250085771 (e-book)
Subjects: LCSH: Judaism—Relations—Roman religion. | Judaism—History—Talmudic period, 10–425. | Judaism—Relations—Greek religion. | Jews—Civilization—Greek influences. | Jews—Civilization—Roman influences. | Civilization, Classical—Influence. | Rabbinical literature—History and criticism. | BISAC: RELIGION / Judaism / History. | AR
T / History / Ancient & Classical.
Classification: LCC BM536.R66 V57 2016 | DDC 296.3/992—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016024623
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First edition: September 2016