On Pagans, Jews, and Christians

358 Pages·1987·10.195 MB·English

by  Arnaldo Momigliano

Arnaldo Momi^iano
On Pagaps,
Jews, and
Christians
Also by Arnaldo Momigliano
La composizione della storia di Tucidide (1929)
Prime linee di storia della tradizione maccabaica (1931)
L'opera dell'imperatore Claudio (1932)
Filippo il Macedone (1934)
Contributo alia storia degli studi classici e del mondo antico
(1955-1987)
Secondo contributo alia storia degli studi classici (i960)
The Conflict Between Paganism and Christianity in the
Fourth Century (ed.) (1963)
Terzo contributo alia storia degli studi classici (1966)
Studies in Historiography (1966)
Quarto contributo alia storia degli studi classici (1969)
The Development of Greek Biography (1971)
Quinto contributo alia storia degli studi classici (i975.
Alien Wisdom (1975)
Essays in Ancient and Modern Historiography (1977)
Sesto contributo alia storia degli studi classici (1980)
Storiografia Greca (1982)
New Paths of Classicism in the Nineteenth Century (1982)
Problemes d'historiographie ancienne et moderne (1983)
Sui fondamenti della storia antica (1984)
Settimo contributo alia storia degli studi classici (1984)
Arnaldo Momigliano
On Pagans,
Jews, and
Christians
WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY PRESS
Middletown, Connecticut
Copyright © 1987 by Arnaldo Momigliano
Chapters 2 and 11, Copyright © 1986 by Macmillan Publishing
Company, a division of Macmillan, Inc.
Chapters 4 and 9, Copyright © 1984 by The University of Chicago
Chapter 5 appeared originally in Approaches to Ancient /udaism
Vol V {Atlanta: Scholars Press for Brown Judaic Studies, 1985),
Copyright © 1985 by Brown University
Published by Wesleyan University Press
Middletown, ct 06459
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA
Momigliano, Arnaldo.
On Pagans, Jews, and Christians.
Bibliography: p.
Includes index.
i. Rome—Religion, Judaism. 3. Historiography.
i. Title.
bl8io.m66 1987 291'.0937 87-24264
ISBN 0-8195-5 173-i
ISBN 0-8195-6218-1 {pbk.)
For Professor Karl Christ

CONTENTS
[Chapter bibliographies appear on pages 29, 52, 199, 221, 284, 313)
Preface ix
List of Abbreviations xi
I. Biblical Studies and Classical Studies: Simple
Reflections upon Historical Method 3
Historiography of Religion: Western Views 11
3. The Origins of Universal History 31
4. The Theological Efforts of the Roman Upper Classes
in the First Century b.c. 58
5. Religion in Athens, Rome, and Jerusalem in the First
Century b.c. 74
6. How Roman Emperors Became Gods 92
7. What Josephus Did Not See 108
8. Some Preliminary Remarks on the "Religious
Opposition" to the Roman Empire 120
9. The Disadvantages of Monotheism for a Universal
State 142
10. Ancient Biography and the Study of Religion in the
Roman Empire 159
11. Roman Religion: The Imperial Period 178
12. The New Letter by "Anna" to "Seneca" 202
13. The Life of St. Macrina by Gregory of Nyssa 206
viii Contents
14. A Medieval Jewish Autobiography 222
A Note on Max Weber's Definition of Judaism as a
IS­
Pariah-Religion 231
16. The Jews of Italy 238
17. Gershom Scholem's Autobiography 2.54
18. How to Reconcile Greeks and Trojans 264
Georges Dumezil and the Trifunctional Approach to
IS»-
Roman Civilization 289
Notes
315
Index
3*5
PREFACE
I hope that these papers speak for themselves. They are a selection
from the more recent volumes of my Contributo alia storia degli
studi classici e del mondo antica (Rome, Edizioni di Storia e Let-
teratura, 1955 — 1987) and form a continuation of the Essays in
Ancient and Modern Historiography published by Wesleyan Uni­
versity Press in 1977. The title, On Pagans, Jews, and Christians,
defines the present choice more precisely and perhaps indicates
what has been my main interest in historical research. The treble
tradition—Jewish, Classical, and Christian—that I have inherited
as a Jew and as an Italian invited exploration and clarification, but
did not carry inside it the seeds of any dramatic conflict. The
spirit of the Risorgimento is still active in Italy. The conflicts
in which I have been involved during my life—and the resulting
cruelties—have other origins.
A.M.
December 1986
University of Chicago
Scuola Normale Superiore Pisa