Goodeimough's Posthumously Published 'Jewish
Symbols in Greco-Roman Period' Summarizes
Study of Hellenic Influence xeried on Judaism
/
"Jewish Symbols in the Greco- synagogue discovery at Hammath teaching, there seem to have
bis are now recorded as having have been discussing, but, •herev(
Roman Period," the first 11 vol- by Tiberias. He had only pre- been a great number of Jews
done in Palestine and Babylonia. possible, destroyed it by clippin,
umes of which already have been liminary reports about it and he
everywhere who had been in-
Such Hellenized Judaism seems out the offensive forms, or, as at
reviewed in these columns, is one analyzed it thus: -
fluenced by paganism, to the
witnessed from Rome and Tunis Sardis, by laying a plain mosaic
of the very great and monumental
`'The city was famous for a point not only that, like Philo,
to Mesopotamia." over the old floor."
works of this
time during the later Second
they expressed their religious
What became of this type of
Thus, from Dr. Goodenough, the
Century as the seat of the
century. Its au
aspirations in the language of Judaism? Stating that "from direct student of the eminent Christian
Sanhedrin. Yet a bulletin on the
thor, Prof. Erwin*
Greek mystery and metaphysics, evidence we know nothing," Dr. Hebraist George Foote Moore, we
first season of excavation in the
R.. Goodenough,
but also that they found the Goodenough added that "it would have a great study that not only
synagogue of Hammath Tiberias,
incorporated in
symbolic vocabulary of later seem that the leaders of this Juda- reveals the past but serves as a
put out in 1962 by the Department
these volumes his
Greco-Roman art equally suit- ism from the sixth to the eighth commentary on assimilation of all
of Antiquities in Israel, says: 'Most
lifetime study of
able to their thinking. I have centuries had a great change of times and on revivalism and stir-
of the inscriptions found in the
Hellenistic influ-
seen no evidence that Jews were attitude," and he declared: vivalism in Jewish ranks.
synagogue are in Greek'; indeea
ences upon Jews
worshiping other gods than
"They learned Hebrew, after
Dr. Goodenough mentions in his
the only Hebrew word. it reports Yahweh; hence in that sense no
and Judaism.
more than half a millenium when preface, with gratitude, the assist-
is Shalom at the end of a Greek
The 12th and
trace of syncretism has appeared. Hebrew had been a dead language ante he had begun to receive from
inscription celebrating the generos-
final volume
But there is a great deal of for all but the learned even in a young scholar, Jacob Neusner.
ity of 'Elder Profoturos.' The bul-
in his great study
evidence that they ascribed to Palestine. As they did so they
His summaries and conclusions
letin concludes, quite inevitably,
— the summary
Yahweh Helios' rulership as could for the first time learn to are as much gems as were his basic
1 that 'The Jews of that time knew charioteer of the universe, such pray in Hebrew, to read the works on the subject of symbolism.
and conclusions
Greek.' The full conclusion, how- having power as that of Heracles Scriptures in Hebrew, and to study Dr. Goodenough's postumously
to "Jewish Sym-
ever, is that in view of the inscrip-
bols in the Greco-
and Ares, such gracious mercy the rabbinical writings. In addition published "Jewish Symbols in the
,, tions we should presume that the
Roman Period"
as that offered by Aphrodite and to the Torah, the great guide of Greco-Roman Period" represent
— was completed Dr. Goodenough Jews of this synagogue, at least,
the Nymphs . . . The Hellenized
Jews became the Babylonian Tal- the most significant encyclopedic
before Dr. Goodenough's death on spoke and prayed only or chiefly
Jews were loyal to the People mud, with its Hebrew Mishnah effort in our time in research on
March 20, 1965. He had read most in Greek, which put the whole
and the holy Writings, but they and Aramaic Gemarah. At the the era when Hellenism exerted
of the proofs. In fact, the preface, matter in a different light. Also interpreted them more as did same time, they not only stopped its influence upon Judaism.
dated Oct. 24, 1963, has a note the synagogue had a mosaic floor
Philo than in the way the rab- using the symbolic vocabulary we
—P. S.
appended to it dated Cambridge, which centered, like the one at
Beth Alpha, in a pattern of Helios,
1965, which reads:
"While this volume was in press, zodiac, and Seasons, with the same
a synagogue was discovered at array of Jewish cult instruments
Sardis with some totally new above it. How the Jews who built
■
LIZ DE ,544/Z.44/61Z,
23ZZ/EW /4/
LIZ Of ,S4N7/7/V6EL, OF A NOTED
features, and I have been able to such a synagogue got along with
#07 NECESSARY
YoU A/2E 4N
THE QUEEN REFUSES TO YOUR CAUSE,
dE-W/SH F,4/141LY OF ARAGON WAS
>MR /11,4JESTY/
PERSL/AS/E,
alter the concluding section to the certainly Hebrew — and
HELP
I
W/ZZ
LEAVE COL(//t1BUS./
VERY /NFLYEN77/1L.„
SGAWN COLUMBUS De- 5,44/7-9/17 6- EZ!
Aramaic — speaking Jews of the
comment upon some of them."
SP.V/V./
WA/T./
r QUEEN 154,5fLLA,
/P
IO/ 7 v4 7
- %
.
Now, a general index to the 12 great council in the city remains
\ I PRAY YOU.( VERY WELL—
COLUMBUS WILL CONQUER ShALL I
e
volumes is in preparation, and it to be shown. We have obviously
r
NEW LANDS FOR SPA/N! THEN PAWN
will include relevant maps, ac- no more right to assert that all
0/JEWELS?
cording to the publishers, Bol- Jews at Tiberias were living by
lingen Foundation, (140 E. 62nd, the halacha of the rabbis there
NY 21). Bollingen Series are than that all Jews in Alexandria
distributed by Pantheon Books at Philo's time thought of Judaism
(22 E. 51st, NY 22), a division of as did Philo."
Random House.
In the summary, Dr. Good-
NEXT DAY,
2- CAN
W/ZZ NOT FAIL
The summary in Volume 12
.7-4E GREAT DAY ARR/VED. ON /cP/DAy
enough went into a thorough
.00 NO
YOUR /t/i/wEs7/./
and the conclusions will serve
AUGUST /5'9,2 , „
I OFFER 000
evaluation and analysis of Philo
NOR WILL H•TORY
FLO12/NS--- HALF THE LESS!
/OAT Tf/E
students of Hellenistic Judaism
Judaeus' views. He showed that
FORGET THE COURAGE
60.Z.PiLc,a/ GOOD W/A/OS DLO
COST OF COLa123U,5'
and of the symbolisms in the
he had many points in common
AND V/SlOA/ OF
FORTUNE; WELL ./
EXPED/T/Oht./
Greco - Roman eras remarkably
with rabbinic Judaism, that he
ZII/S DE SANT,44/61Z./
CRAYSTOPlite?
.—•--
*%
well. Dr. Goodenough indicated
"revered every word of the writ-
COLZ/Alz9Z1S.
that there are three chief
ten law" but to stop with the
sources of information regarding
letter was for him "to miss the
the impact of Greek thought
basic planned purpose of revela-
upon Jews in ancient times:
tion." Dr. Goodenough wrote:
literary remains of admittedly
"Rabbinic tradition rejected
Hellenized Jews, archaeological
Philo, presumably, because of
1N4 SOME STRANGE SIOEL/GHTS.
FURTHER, OF THE MEN 14/ THE CREW
.a/AL5' THE CHARTS USED By COLUA/Bers
remains from graves and syna-
the way he interpreted the Torah
AT LEAST F71/E. WERE— \
WERE CREATED BY THE IEW/SH M4/271/141(ER,
gogues and the biblical paint-
as a whole. Philo differed with
,z1BRA11411 ZACLITO/
ings found in the Dura Syna-
the rabbis primarily in that he
gogue. He points to added
regarded all verbalized law as
studies suggested — examina-
only a reflection of legal reality,
tion of rabbinical writings for
a symbolic approach to it. No
evidence of Greek influences
verbal formulation could be the
and a study of the Septuagint
reality itself. The code of Moses
ONE DAY EARL/ER, AC/6e/Sr
JEWS, /NCLI/0/N6 ZU/S DE TORRES,
to see how, in the process of us-
presented the most magnificent
THE 9 LA OF ,4K HAD SEEN THE
M/TERPREZa-R; AND BERNAL AM /114RCa
ing Greek words for Hebrew,
verbal guide men have ever had,
EXPUZS/ON OF S/?, 4/V/SH JEWRY..
THE SHIPS DOCTOR AND SURGEON
original meanings would have
he believed, one phrased by God
been modified.
himself, yet it could not be the
IN DRAT/TI/DE, COL (1/14 81/5 SENT Le//.5
7/1/5 WAS LOS DE SANTA GEL, FAMED
There is an interesting com- true Law, for the truly Real
THE FAST LETTER FROI,I PIE NEW WORLD.
JEW/51/ STATES/MAN OF SPA/N...
ment relating to the extent of could never be put into an object
ue que vitoro c
2,454R ZU/_5: OA/ 14 ;11:
abandonment of Jewish allegiance.
apprehensible by the senses,
erior, Por d q e la
72795 DAY OF FF8. /5:
C,
dado
Dr. Goodenough asserts in the while words can be both seen an
pozer
/4193, I SALUTE YOU,..
e ■ 10 ests Pov",:aqUa
Tigstro gl-ior.me
course of his conclusion:
p3s
heard. Matter simply can never
eScri
)00071 e tas
"To what extent Jews were receive and represent metaphys-
viaje, NOS
arinado yue
=-33breto cow°
abandoning their people and tradi-
a4/ AEOL1
ical form or ultimate Reality."
tas (con
\\\
1 1e c l
has lO
tion for paganism, as did Philo's
SSI cos
.
3
101.•47117
Although the Sardis synagogue
nephew Alexander, or what pro-
Z1/5
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77-/E
„
,
IN
SPA/N,
LETTER
,
AcS/90/1457BLE
FOR
THE
RRST
PRINT60
portion of them left to become was found as he was preparing
PR1N7- .5.0.
RECORD Of .WE D/S-(01/ERY OF441611647
his final volume in this important
Christians, we have no way of
This cartoon is reproduced from "A Picture Parade of Jewish History" by Morris Epstein, pub-
study,
much
space
is
devoted
in
knowing. The only thing the
lished by Shengold Publishers, New York by special arrangement with the author and publishers.
archaeological evidence tells us this volume to these findings. In
many
respects
these
discoveries
on this matter is that some Jews
Dr. Epstein's accompanying ex- of Columbus' project was of the demands. Santangel had pleaded
correspond with findings in other
in the Diaspora remained true, at
planatory essay on "Friends of highest importance.
for him and had offered to pay
Diaspora synagogues and those re- Columbus" follows:
least to the extent that they still
In Portugal he studied the charts half the cost of the voyage. Colum-
cently dug up in Israel.
Was Columbus a Jew? No one of Judah Cresques, known as the bus later showed his gratitude by
worshiped in synagogues and liked
The conclusion to the encyclope- knows for certain, although accord-
to be buried together in Jewish
dic work analyzes the presentations ing to one fascinating theory, he "map-Jew." At the Portugese court. sending his first letter from the
cemeteries. But we can no more
he met the royal physician, Joseph New World to Luis de Santangel.
in the first II volumes, relating to was born in Spain to Jewish par-
go over to Jamnia or any other
Vecinho, who had translated into
Columbus' second voyage in 1493
literary sources for Hellenistic ents and he hid the secret of his
Spanish the astronomical tables
Palestinian center of rabbinic Judaism, the synagogue and the
was
paid for by the wealth taken
study to find what Judaism meant Jewish burials in the Greco-Roman Jewish origin behind a Marrano's written in Hebrew by Abraham
Zacuto. Columbus carried these away from Jews expelled the year
to Jews in Rome or Sardis, or how period, the inscriptions and Gentile mask.
before, from silk and velvet Torah
Columbus himself wrote, in one charts with him on his voyages.
they worshiped, than we could allusions to Jews, the symbols
His closest Jewish friends were mantles, and gold and silver cere-
describe the Judaism of Berlin from Jewish cult — fish, bread, of his letters: "I am not the first
Jews in 1820 in terms of the Juda- wine, and the pagan symbols admiral of my family; for David two Marranos at the Spanish court. monial objects. A historian has
was first a shepherd and after- They were Luis de Santangel, said, "Not jewels, but Jews" paid
ism at that time in Minsk. We can
found in synagogues. An important wards King of Jerusalem, and I am chancellor of the royal household, for Columbus' expeditions.
still less do so, I believe, because
analytical chapter is devoted to
The crew of the first voyage in-
there is no evidence that Jews the findings in the Dura Syna- a servant of that same Lord Who and Gabriel Sanchez, chief treasur-
raised him to such dignity." And er of Aragon.
cluded a number of Jews. Luis de
even in Palestine itself, understood
gogue, the mosaic-paved house of in his will Columbus directed that
Columbus had asked for the title Torres, who understood Hebrew,
the Hebrew or Aramaic of the
worship at Hammam Lif in Tunisia. a "halfmark of silver be paid to a of admiral and a share in all the „Chaldaic and Arabic, was the in-
Schools, or that the rabbis had any
The conclusions are indicative Jew dwelling at the gate of the profits of any new lands he might terpreter; Roderigo Sanchez was
interest in making their Mishnah
not only of deep study of his sub- Jewish section of ,Lisbon."
discover. Turned down by the related to the royal treasurer; Mas-
available to outsiders."
ject but of thorough comprehen-
However, while scholars still de- throne, he was on his way to plead tre Bernal and Dr. Marco were the
He made reference to a new
sion of the effects on Judaism from bate the Jewish origin of the man his case at the court of France ship's surgeons; and there was one
aspect of- the problem in the new
outside influences. Dr. G o o d- who set sail on his historic voyage when he was overtaken by a mes- Alonso de la Calle, a former resi-
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
enough wrote:
on August 3, 1492;,.everyone agrees senger.
dent of Jews' Lane, for which he
"Outside the circles of rabbinic that the aid of Jews in the success
32—Friday, December 31, 1965
Queen Isabella had agreed to his was named.
Friends of Columbus The New World
\
--
At2a
-4'