Light Against Darkness
Dualism in Ancient Mediterranean Religion and the Contemporary World
edited by Armin Lange, Eric M. Meyers and Randall Styers
Light Against Darkness is comprised of articles that put on display the power and pervasiveness of dualistic thought. Dualism has proved a potent cultural tool for clarifying and ordering reality. Particularly in times of social stress and psychological insecurity, it can offer a valuable conceptual grid that provides orientation to the world and a clear sense of identity. At the same time, though, there are important questions to be asked about the social effects of binary thinking. As history amply illustrates, dualistic notions can readily be deployed to legitimate cultural demonization and to rationalize violence. At a deeper level, a dualist worldview can also obscure the possibilities to be found in multiplicity. The articles in this volume treat Dualism across a wide historical spectrum and from multiple methodological perspectives. The studies are organized around the religious and cultural contexts of Ancient Judaism and they include contributions from leading voices on ancient Persia, Israel, Greece, and Egypt. Experts on modern religious and philosophical thought not only lend context to concepts applied to the ancient world, but engage recent European and American experiments in binary thought. All of the studies contribute to a richer and more complete portrait of dualism in ancient Judaism.
- Edited by Armin Lange
- Edited by Eric M Meyers
- Edited by Benno Peters
- Edited by Bennie H Reynolds III
- Edited by Randall Styers
Other Titles in this Series
Gender and Social Norms in Ancient Israel, Early Judaism and Early Christianity
Texts and Material Culture
Volume 28
Between Cooperation and Hostility
Multiple Identities in Ancient Judaism and the Interaction with Foreign Powers
Volume 11
At the Intersection of Texts and Material Finds
Stepped Pools, Stone Vessels, and Ritual Purity Among the Jews of Roman Galilee
Volume 16
Evil Within and Without
The Source of Sin and Its Nature as Portrayed in Second Temple Literature
Volume 9
Between Symbolism and Realism
The Use of Symbolic and Non-Symbolic Language in Ancient Jewish Apocalypses 333-63 B.C.E.
Volume 8
Between Text and Text
International Symposium on Intertextuality in Ancient Near Eastern, Ancient Mediterranean, and Early Medieval Literatures
Volume 6
The Faces of Torah
Studies in the Texts and Contexts of Ancient Judaism in Honor of Steven Fraade
Volume 22
The Land to the Elect and Justice for All
Reading Psalms in the Dead Sea Scrolls in Light of 4Q381
Volume 14
At the Intersection of Texts and Material Finds
Stepped Pools, Stone Vessels, and Ritual Purity Among the Jews of Roman Galilee
Volume 16
In Search of the Promised Land?
The Hasmonean Dynasty Between Biblical Models and Hellenistic Diplomacy
Volume 24
‘See, I will bring a scroll recounting what befell me’ (Ps 40-8)
Epigraphy and Daily Life from the Bible to the Talmud. Dedicated to the Memory of Professor Hanan Eshel
Volume 12
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