Well, here is the basic history I learned in my biblical studies and Israelite religions classes.
The folk worship of the early Hebrews was NOT that different from the worship of the Canaanites and their neighbors. There are inscriptions to "Yahweh and his Asherah," and a TON of other similarities between the God of the Israelites and the neighboring gods, particularly El and Baal. I totally wish I had access to my class notes in Pittsburgh so I could make this case more strongly, but this is what I was taught at a very middle-of-the-road seminary. There is ample evidence of large continuations between Canaanite religion and Israelite religion.
Obviously, Hebrew religion became something very different. Animal sacrifice replaced human. Monotheism replaced henotheism. Worship at a single temple replaced decentralized folk worship. I don't think these things are necessarily indicative of a divine revelation, unless you want to argue that folks like Akhenaton also became monotheistic as a result of divine revelation. :-)
I don't think the entire Exodus story is a fable; I think it's hyperbole. I think a core group of Semites did live in slavery in Egypt and then return to Canaan. But I don't see evidence of the enormous disconnect between Canaanite and Israelite worship I would expect if an entire new religion was revealed from on high. I see what I would expect if a new religion evolved out of an old one.
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timeasmymeasure
Re: Hilkiah
Date: 2005-06-12 01:58 pm (UTC)The folk worship of the early Hebrews was NOT that different from the worship of the Canaanites and their neighbors. There are inscriptions to "Yahweh and his Asherah," and a TON of other similarities between the God of the Israelites and the neighboring gods, particularly El and Baal. I totally wish I had access to my class notes in Pittsburgh so I could make this case more strongly, but this is what I was taught at a very middle-of-the-road seminary. There is ample evidence of large continuations between Canaanite religion and Israelite religion.
Obviously, Hebrew religion became something very different. Animal sacrifice replaced human. Monotheism replaced henotheism. Worship at a single temple replaced decentralized folk worship. I don't think these things are necessarily indicative of a divine revelation, unless you want to argue that folks like Akhenaton also became monotheistic as a result of divine revelation. :-)
I don't think the entire Exodus story is a fable; I think it's hyperbole. I think a core group of Semites did live in slavery in Egypt and then return to Canaan. But I don't see evidence of the enormous disconnect between Canaanite and Israelite worship I would expect if an entire new religion was revealed from on high. I see what I would expect if a new religion evolved out of an old one.