Contesting Identities

Abstract

There was no agreed upon definition of who was a Jew among the ancients, and changing political and social circumstances brought about far-reaching innovations in the ways Jews understood the nature of their distinctiveness. This chapter surveys the major stations and disputations concerning these issues during Antiquity. The unique situation of the Jews during this period served to dismantle initial ethnic affiliations and encouraged the creation of new versions of cultic and genealogical identity. The penetration of Greek cultural categories and the Roman civic model further accelerated the creation of an abstracted conception of Judaism, as an acquired cultural and legal system. At the same time, sectarian tendencies created alternative non-ethnic identities and laid the foundation for the rise of Christian inclusivity within the divine body of the Church. Building upon this diverse heritage, rabbinic traditions offered a new version of the community of law.

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