Violent Rituals of the Hebrew Bible

Reviews / Votes

The Author deserves our gratitude * H.G.M. WILLIAMSON, Journal for the Study of the Old Testament * While drawing on Olyan's previous research on the dual themes of ritual and violence, there are a wealth of new and compelling insights and observations developed in this book. The result is a masterful study that more than fulfills Olyan's aims of bringing "the study of ritual violence in the Hebrew Bible from the margins of the field to its center". This book will be essential reading for scholars of biblical literature with interests in violence and ritual as discrete phenomena, as well as biblical literature and the ancient world more generally. * Laura Quick, Society of Biblical Literature * This book is a marvel of original scholarship. Saul Olyan brings an innovative perspective to texts that seemed to hold no more secrets. His study of a neglected theme in the Hebrew Bible teases out new and compelling insights. A must-read for anyone interested in biblical literature, the ancient world, and the ritual aspects of violence. * Karel van der Toorn, author of Scribal Culture and the Making of the Hebrew Bible * Olyan is one of the most original interpreters of the Hebrew Bible of this generation, with his distinctively anthropological approach. In this study, he casts new light on violence in the biblical world, by showing that it was not an ad hoc phenomenon but was deeply embedded in the rituals of society. At the same time, he shows that the role of ritual was not confined to the cult. * John J. Collins, Holmes Professor of Old Testament, Yale University * What one wants in a book is a new way of thinking and reading. Olyan provides that here in spades. Violent Rituals brings together and illuminates material in the Hebrew Bible that is not always easy to read about. Clearly written, with a strong theoretical framework, it fills a gap between ritual studies and work on violence. It will open your eyes to things you would not have seen before. * Bernard M. Levinson, Berman Family Chair of Jewish Studies and Hebrew Bible, University of Minnesota *