Hebrew kingdoms (1 gen 1500 anni a. C. – 1 gen 600 anni a. C.)

Descrizione:

"For a period of several centuries, a people known as the Hebrews controlled first one and then two small states on the western end of the Fertile Crescent, Israel and Judah. Politically unimportant when compared with the Egyptians or Babylonians, the Hebrews created a new form of religious belief called monotheism, or worship of a single god. They called their all-powerful god Yahweh (YAH-way)..."

"According to scripture, the Hebrews settled in the area between the Mediterranean and the Jordan River known as Canaan."

"The Bible reports that the greatest danger to the Hebrews came from a group known as the Philistines, who were most likely Greek-speaking people who had migrated to Canaan as part of the movement of the Sea Peoples and who established a kingdom along the Mediterranean coast. The Philistines’ superior technology and military organization at first made them invincible, but the Hebrews found a champion and a spirited leader in Saul. In the biblical account, Saul and his men battled the Philistines for control of the land, often without success. In the meantime, Saul established a monarchy over the Hebrew tribes, becoming their king, an event conventionally dated to about 1025 B.C.E."

"The Hebrews were originally nomadic, but they adopted settled agriculture in Canaan, and some lived in cities. The shift away from pastoralism affected more than just how people fed themselves. Communal use of land gave way to family or private ownership, and devotion to the traditions of Judaism came to replace tribal identity."

"Marriage and the family were fundamentally important in Jewish life; celibacy was frowned upon, and almost all major Jewish thinkers and priests were married. Polygamy was allowed, but the typical marriage was probably monogamous. In the codes of conduct written down in the Hebrew Bible, sex between a married woman and a man not her husband was an “abomination,” as were incest and sex between men. Men were free to have sexual relations with concubines, servants, and slaves, however."

"the bearing of children was seen in some ways as a religious function. Sons were especially desired because they maintained the family bloodline, while keeping ancestral property in the family. As in Mesopotamia, land was handed down within families, generally from father to son. A firstborn son became the head of the household at his father’s death. Mothers oversaw the early education of the children, but as boys grew older, their fathers gave them more of their education. Both men and women were expected to know religious traditions so that they could teach their children and prepare for religious rituals and ceremonies. Women worked in the fields alongside their husbands in rural areas, and in shops in the cities. According to biblical codes, menstruation and childbirth made women ritually impure, but the implications of this belief in ancient times are contested by scholars."

"Commerce and trade developed later than crafts. Trade with neighboring countries was handled by foreigners, usually Phoenicians. Jews dealt mainly in local trade, and in most instances craftsmen and farmers sold directly to their customers."

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