Queries & Comments
008
This issue, we print just a few of your thoughtful letters noting the many contributions of departing BAR Editor Bob Cargill and the recent passing of BAR’s founder, the legendary Hershel Shanks. Even amid these changes, our readers continue to offer impressive insights, reflections, and questions about the many topics covered in the pages of BAR. You can find more letters online, along with a few responses, at biblicalarchaeology.org/letters.
A Job Well Done
Your resignation, Mr. Cargill, surprised me (not in a good way!), because you brought BAR to a new level of readability and common sense—especially with the redesign, but also by your insistence on a level of scholarship that transcends those people with a preconceived notion of what they think is truth. I hope that your successor will continue pointing BAR in the right direction!
NAPERVILLE, ILLINOIS
Bob Cargill, thanks for all you have done in the past three years, picking up the ball from Hershel and running with it. About the only thing I disagreed with was your steadfast rejection of publishing unprovenanced artifacts, though, I understood your reasoning. You are a credit to all Hawkeyes!
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA
Congratulations on your successful tenure as editor, Bob Cargill, and very best wishes on your future endeavors. I drank in every drop of ink off the pages of BAR over the past three years, and I do appreciate the diverse views you brought to the magazine. BAR is my go-to magazine to take to the hospital when visiting a friend. When I leave it behind, it always seems to stir up good conversation. Bon Voyage!
ABERDEEN, MARYLAND
In Memory of Hershel Shanks
My most profound condolences on your loss—and the loss to the intellectual world—in learning of the passing of Mr. Shanks. I was much saddened when he retired as I would so miss his commentary. When he acknowledged his retirement traced to a diagnosis of dementia, my thought immediately was how, even in being impaired, he was sharper than the vast majority of people I have met. To his family, colleagues, and friends: Be well. May your loss be lessened by the fact it is so widely shared.
CARLYLE, ILLINOIS
Diversity Appreciated
Thank you for publishing stories about a wide variety of religions, both past and present. In this world today, we need to be considerate of other peoples and their beliefs more than ever. Your articles about past cultures and the interactions they had illustrate that necessity beautifully.
The more I learn about cultural differences, the more our sameness stands out. We should not be angry with people who believe differently. Rather than feeling threatened by our differences, we should be fascinated by the many ways we find to be human. Archaeology shows us that many wars have been fought over our beliefs. It also uncovers stories of people helping others despite dramatic differences in culture. You approach it all with respect and often a touch of humor.
TECOPA, CALIFORNIA
Where’s “Glossary” Gone?
I was recently reading an old BAR, and I really enjoyed the Glossary section. I appreciated the pronunciations for the proper nouns and thought the pictures helped me better understand the terminology. What happened to this section of the magazine?
BOISE, IDAHO
Thanks for the excellent observation and question. Indeed, in the late 80s and early 90s, BAR did have a regular department called Glossary that featured straight-forward explanations of key biblical archaeology terms, such as ossuary and massebah, as well as simple overviews of complex topics, such as ceramic dating methods and ancient fortification types. While Glossary faded from the pages of BAR, we have recently started several irregular departments that generally communicate similar content: Field Notes introduce archaeological methods; Archaeology Argot explains archaeological terminology; 009010and Biblical Archaeology 101 articles aim to introduce readers to archaeological basics, subfields, theories, and methodologies. We look forward to bringing our readers more of this informative content in future issues.—G.J.C.
I wanted to express my sadness and condolences to all at BAR on the passing of the founding editor, Hershel Shanks, זייל ,whose writings and insights we were privileged to read (and learn from) over many decades. Yehi zichro baruch. HaMakom yenachem etchem betoch shear avlei Zion veYerushalayim.
JERUSALEM, ISRAEL
BAR-Inspired Poetry
I am sharing my poem “The Archaeologist,” which was inspired by my deep interest in biblical archaeology, nurtured and fed through the years by the wonderful trips into antiquity found in the pages of your magazine. I submit this in appreciation of what you have given me.
Miners dig for diamonds / for silver and for gold. / Seeking that which will enrich / the purse with wealth untold.
Yet none so brave / and none so bold / as those who seek / to find the old.
The leftovers of history are what they seek / to know. / They dig the hole and then they peek / into the past, deep down into below.
This earth, you see, is like a book. / These layers are its pages. / It takes our understanding down / through eons and through ages.
Where we will find where we have been / and maybe where we’re going. / The prize you see is not in gold / but rather wealth of knowing.
So, hail to the few / archaeologists to you. / Who brave sun and bugs on the ground. / For, without their hard work / (and never they shirk …) / nothing we know would be found.
PHOENIX, ARIZONA
Wow, thank you! We are so glad that BAR has nurtured your interest in archaeology, which comes across clearly in your poem, which we have excerpted here. We are posting the full poem on our website.—G.J.C.
For the full poem, go to biblicalarchaeology.org/letters.
Jesus’s Infancy Stories
In the “infancy stories” column, the author states that the Hebrew word for “virgin” is bethula (Regina A. Boisclair, “The Whole Christmas Package,” BAR, Winter 2020). The point being that if virgin was meant in Isaiah 7:14, that word would have been used there. According to the article, since the word bethula was not used, “There was no prophecy of a virginal conception in the Hebrew text of Isaiah.” The word bethula, however, appears in Joel 1:8. The young woman (bethula) wails for the “husband of her youth” because of impending disasters. Here, bethula appears to refer to a married woman. Therefore, one cannot argue there was “no prophecy of a virginal conception” in Isaiah 7:14 simply because the word bethula was not used.
AUGUSTA, GEORGIA
REGINA A. BOISCLAIR RESPONDS:
In the Hebrew text of Isaiah 7:14, the word is ‘alma, which means “young woman.” There was no prophecy of a virginal conception in the Hebrew text of Isaiah. Matthew used the Septuagint, where the word ‘alma was translated to Greek as parthenos, which means “virgin.” That the word bethula appears in Joel 1:8 is not pertinent to Isaiah 7:14.
Academic Hit Job
THIS RETIRED HARVARD PROFESSOR knows an academic hit job when he sees one, and that is exactly what the authors did in their article attacking Yosef Garfinkel (“Facing the Facts About the “Face of God,” Winter 2020). The authors slam Garfinkel for his prior article, “The Face of Yahweh?” (Fall 2020).
Note that Garfinkel simply asked a question—and a most interesting one for public and scholarly discussion based on the recent findings at Khirbet Qeiyafa and Moza. But the authors’ refutation treated Garfinkel’s question as a declaration and missed the point of his surmise: that the cultic figurines may have permitted acolytes to see the face of their idol in a temple.
The critics failed to offer any insight into what else Garfinkel’s findings could represent. While they don’t know what he found, they somehow are sure of what he didn’t find. Questioning and disagreement are at the heart of science, but non-substantive attacks are unscholarly as well as unhelpful in seeking to piece together a more accurate understanding of history.
LANCASTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE
Writing on the Floor
I just finished reading James McGrath’s interesting article “The Writing on the Floor” (Spring 2021). He states that the sotah ritual—in which a woman suspected of adultery is subjected to an ordeal—was discontinued under Rabbi Yohanan ben Zakkai and that Jesus was subtly criticizing this discontinuation. However, is it not possible that ben Zakkai “discontinued” this ritual because it was no longer possible to perform it once the Temple was destroyed in 70 C.E.? In this case, of course, his decision would have more to do with not replacing the ritual—to leave it abandoned. Is there any reason to date Mishnah Sotah 9:9 011012to four decades before 70? Would he have had the clout to authorize such a change?
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA
JAMES MCGRATH RESPONDS:
I agree completely that it is historically unlikely that Yohanan ben Zakkai (or any other rabbi) had significant influence, if any, on what was done in the Temple. The tradition that he himself stopped the practice is thus anachronistic. The parallel passage in the Tosefta in fact does not attribute the decision to Rabbi Yohanan, but simply connects the tradition about the cessation with him. The context in the Mishnah is a longer list of changes in practice which are not connected with the destruction of the Temple. It is thus plausible that they predate that event.
Lasting Expressions
The Whence-a-Word? column on the translation of Job 19:20 (Epistles, Summer 2020) shows the importance of knowing the original languages and the problem of relying on translations in understanding the biblical text. Though “skin of the teeth” has been commonly used by translations since the publication of the King James Bible (1611), it has by no means been the only way Job 19:20 has been translated. For example, the Douay Version, translated from the Latin, has “nothing but my lips are left about my teeth.” The Matthew Bible of 1537 has “only there is left me the skynne aboute my teth.” The translation by James Moffatt (1922) has “my teeth are falling out,” which is similar to the rendering suggested in Whence-a-Word.
Thank you for including such articles, along with those on archaeology. They are why I love reading every issue from cover to cover.
HADDON TOWNSHIP, NEW JERSEY
Praise for Popularizers
Robert Cargill’s First Person in the Winter 2020 issue explained BAR’s role very well. Reading it, I was reminded of a biblical archaeology lecture I attended at a local synagogue, given by some scholar whose name I forget. What struck me was how dismissive the speaker was of BAR, barely deigning to even name it. I have to say, it took me very much by surprise.
However, over the years, I have seen a lot of this sort of dismissive treatment of “popularizers” of science and scholarship. I just do not understand the hate. Those dismissive of popularizers almost never try to explain their fields to the general public. On the one hand, they complain about the public’s ignorance, but on the other, pooh-pooh anyone who tries to explain their field in terms a layman can understand.
BAR serves an admirable purpose and needs to keep up the good work.
DES MOINES, IOWA
No Saint Worship!
The Explication of the Raphael Sistine Madonna painting (Clip Art, Winter 2020) is good—with one egregious exception: No saints are worshiped at San Sisto church—nor in any Catholic church. Saints are revered. Only God is worshiped. In the year 2020, one would think that the false idea of saint-worship in the Church had been cleared up ages ago.
BAR remains my favorite magazine, occasional errors notwithstanding.
BLOOMSBURY, NEW JERSEY
Our apologies, and we sincerely appreciate this and other letters that noted and corrected our poor choice in wording to describe the exalted position of saints in the Catholic faith.—G.J.C.
Ancient Cancel Culture
On the Letters page (Queries & Comments, Spring 2021), a writer suggests that “Tutankhamun was possibly the earliest practitioner of cancel culture.” But Thutmose III (r. c. 1479–1425 B.C.E.) erased references to his mother and predecessor, Hatshepsut, more than a century earlier. And I suspect even he was not the earliest to try to blot a name out of the history books of the day.
MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA
Altar Aromatics
Your column on the discovery of traces of frankincense and cannabis on two altars in ancient Judah states that “Although frankincense is condoned in the Bible, cannabis is not mentioned at all” (Strata: “High Offerings,” Winter 2020). Actually, frankincense is commanded by the Bible (Exodus 30:34), 013014and cannabis may be referenced in the same context. In the instructions for producing the sacred anointing oil, the following ingredients are included: solidified myrrh, fragrant cinnamon, aromatic cane, cassia, and olive oil. The Hebrew for aromatic cane is k’nei bosem, which has been suggested by Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan (in The Living Torah [Moznaim, 1981]) to have been cannabis. The recent discovery at Arad might corroborate this, as an altar would have to be smeared with such oil before use.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
Last Supper Location
Jonathan Klawans in his “The Other Upper Room” (Site-Seeing, Spring 2021) wrote that the Syrian Orthodox church of St. Mark in Jerusalem claims to contain the room where the Last Supper was held. The room is very small and would tightly hold 13 people. As it appears that Jesus’s mother Mary and Mary Magdalene were present in Jerusalem at the time, this Passover Seder would most likely have included these women. Moreover, it is unlikely that the 13 men prepared the meal, so possibly other women were at the feast. Thus, a room snugly holding only 13 people is unlikely to have been the site of the Last Supper.
CORVALLIS, OREGON
Pentateuch Picture
You printed the photo of the Sanaa Pentateuch upside down (A Thousand Words, Spring 2021). Since this is a Hebrew manuscript, then the spine of the book should be on the right. I’m used to my prayer books being in Hebrew, so this jumped out at me right away.
ORLANDO, FLORIDA
We appreciate your close examination of this beautiful manuscript. We double-checked, and the image is printed correctly, as it shows a right-hand, interior page of the Pentateuch, not the cover, as might be suggested by how the image was cropped. To learn more about the Sanaa Pentateuch, you can read the British Library catalog entry at www.bl.uk/collection-items/sanaa-pentateuch-or-2348#.—G.J.C.
I am blown away with all the content the Library, your online archive, offers! It’s not just archived text but full issues of the magazine (and two more, now discontinued, magazines), including photos and illustrations. As an example, I decided to search for “Antioch,” a place I visited many years ago, to see what was available in the archive. You have tons of information and many, many photos and illustrations. Thank you so much for this great and entertaining educational resource.
EL CAMPO, TEXAS
This issue, we print just a few of your thoughtful letters noting the many contributions of departing BAR Editor Bob Cargill and the recent passing of BAR’s founder, the legendary Hershel Shanks. Even amid these changes, our readers continue to offer impressive insights, reflections, and questions about the many topics covered in the pages of BAR. You can find more letters online, along with a few responses, at biblicalarchaeology.org/letters. A Job Well Done Your resignation, Mr. Cargill, surprised me (not in a good way!), because you brought BAR to a new level of readability and common sense—especially with the […]
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