Possessing the Iconic Book: Ben Sira as Case Study
Issued Date: 27 Jun 2012
Abstract
I propose that the notion of possession adds an important ideological nuance to the analyses of iconic books set forth by Martin Marty (1980) and, more recently, by James Watts (2006). Using the early second century BCE book of Sirach as a case study, I tease out some of the symbolic dynamics through which the Bible achieved iconic status in the first place, that is, the conditions in which significance was attached to its material, finite shape. For Ben Sira, this symbolism was deeply tied to his honor-shame ethos in which women posed a threat to the honor of his eternal name, a threat resolved through his possession of Torah figured as the Woman Wisdom. What my analysis suggests is that the conflicted perceptions of gender in Ben Sira’s text is fundamental to his appropriation of, and attempt to produce, authoritative religious literature, and thus essential for understanding his relationship to this emerging canon. Torah, conceived as female, was the core of this canon, but Ben Sira adds his own literary production to this female “body” (or feminized corpus, if you will), becoming the voice of both through the experience of perfect possession.
Download Media
PDF (Price: £17.50 )
References
Beal, Timothy K. 2002. “Bibles du Jour.” The Chronicle of Higher Education, July 26, B5.
Camp, Claudia V. 1991. “Understanding a Patriarchy: Women in Second Century Jerusalem Through the Eyes of Ben Sira.” In Women Like This: New Perspectives on Jewish Women in the Greco-Roman World, edited by Amy-Jill Levine, 1–39. Atlanta, GA: Scholars Press.
———. (forthcoming). Gender and the Rise of Canon-Consciousness: Ben Sira and the Men Who Handle Books. Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix Press.
Carr, David M. 2005. Writing on the Tablet of the Heart: Origins of Scripture and Literature. New York: Oxford University Press.
Davies, Philip R. 1998. Scribes and Schools: The Canonization of the Hebrew Scriptures, Library of Ancient Israel. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox.
Folkert, Kendall A. 1989. “The ‘Canons’ of ‘Scripture’.” In Rethinking Scripture: Essays from a Comparative Perspective, edited by Miriam Levering, 170–179. Albany: State University of New York Press.
Gallup, George H. Jr. 2003. “How Are American Christians Living Their Faith?” Gallup. 19 August. http://www.gallup.com/poll/9088/how-american-christians-living-their-faith.aspx. Accessed 11 January 2011.
Gallup, Alec and Wendy W. Simmons. 2000. “Six in Ten Americans Read Bible at Least Occasionally.” Gallup. 20 October. http://www.gallup.com/poll/2416/six-ten-americans-read-bible-least-occasionally.aspx. Accessed 11 January 2011.
Goshen-Gottstein, Alon. 2002. “Ben Sira’s Praise of the Fathers: A Canon-Conscious Reading.” In Ben Sira’s God: Proceedings of the International Ben Sira Conference (Durham, 2001), edited by Renate Egger-Wenzel, Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft 321, 235–267. Berlin/New York: de Gruyter.
Graham, William A. 1987. “Scripture.” In The Encyclopedia of Religion, edited by Mircea Eliade, 13: 133–145. New York: MacMillan.
Jackson, Wayne. 1991. “Are There Two Creation Accounts in Genesis?” ApologeticsPress.org. http://www.apologeticspress.com/articles/2194. Accessed 6 January 2011.
Marty, Martin. 1982. “America’s Iconic Book.” In Humanizing America’s Iconic Book: Society of Biblical Literature Centennial Addresses, edited by Gene Tucker and Douglas Knight, Society of Biblical Literature – Biblical Scholarship in North America 6, 1–23. Chico, CA: Scholars.
Newport, Frank. 2007. “One-Third of Americans Believe the Bible is Literally True.” Gallup. 25 May. http://www.gallup.com/poll/27682/onethird-americans-believe-bible-literally-true.aspx. Accessed 11 January 2011.
Nickelsburg, George W. E. 2001. 1 Enoch: a Commentary on the Book of 1 Enoch. Hermeneia. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress.
———. 2003. “Response to Claudia Camp, ‘Orality, Literacy, and Textual Authority in the Work of Ben Sira.” Wisdom and Apocalypticism Section, SBL, November 23.
Pew Research Center. 2010. “U.S. Religious Knowledge Survey.” The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. 28 September. http://pewforum.org/other-beliefs-and-practices/u-s-religious-knowledge-survey.aspx. Assessed on 11 January 2011.
Sanders, Jack T. 1979. “Ben Sira’s Ethics of Caution.” Hebrew Union College Annual 50: 73–106.
Sanders, James A. 1992. “Canon.” In The Anchor Bible Dictionary, edited by David Noel Freedman, 1: 837–52. Doubleday: New York.
Schniedewind, William M. 2004. How the Bible Became a Book: the Textualization of Ancient Israel. New York: Cambridge University Press. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511499135
Sheppard, Gerald T. 1980. Wisdom as a Hermeneutical Construct: A Study in the Sapientializing of the Old Testament, Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft 151, Berlin/New York: de Gruyter.
———. 1987. “Canon.” In The Encyclopedia of Religion, edited by Mircea Eliade, 3: 62–69. New York: MacMillan.
Skehan, Patrick W. and Alexander A. Di Lella. 1987. The Wisdom of Ben Sira: A New Translation with Notes, The Anchor Bible 39. New York: Doubleday.
van der Toorn, Karel. 2007. Scribal Culture and the Making of the Hebrew Bible. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Watts, James W. 2006. “The Three Dimensions of Scriptures.” Postscripts 2: 135–159.
Camp, Claudia V. 1991. “Understanding a Patriarchy: Women in Second Century Jerusalem Through the Eyes of Ben Sira.” In Women Like This: New Perspectives on Jewish Women in the Greco-Roman World, edited by Amy-Jill Levine, 1–39. Atlanta, GA: Scholars Press.
———. (forthcoming). Gender and the Rise of Canon-Consciousness: Ben Sira and the Men Who Handle Books. Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix Press.
Carr, David M. 2005. Writing on the Tablet of the Heart: Origins of Scripture and Literature. New York: Oxford University Press.
Davies, Philip R. 1998. Scribes and Schools: The Canonization of the Hebrew Scriptures, Library of Ancient Israel. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox.
Folkert, Kendall A. 1989. “The ‘Canons’ of ‘Scripture’.” In Rethinking Scripture: Essays from a Comparative Perspective, edited by Miriam Levering, 170–179. Albany: State University of New York Press.
Gallup, George H. Jr. 2003. “How Are American Christians Living Their Faith?” Gallup. 19 August. http://www.gallup.com/poll/9088/how-american-christians-living-their-faith.aspx. Accessed 11 January 2011.
Gallup, Alec and Wendy W. Simmons. 2000. “Six in Ten Americans Read Bible at Least Occasionally.” Gallup. 20 October. http://www.gallup.com/poll/2416/six-ten-americans-read-bible-least-occasionally.aspx. Accessed 11 January 2011.
Goshen-Gottstein, Alon. 2002. “Ben Sira’s Praise of the Fathers: A Canon-Conscious Reading.” In Ben Sira’s God: Proceedings of the International Ben Sira Conference (Durham, 2001), edited by Renate Egger-Wenzel, Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft 321, 235–267. Berlin/New York: de Gruyter.
Graham, William A. 1987. “Scripture.” In The Encyclopedia of Religion, edited by Mircea Eliade, 13: 133–145. New York: MacMillan.
Jackson, Wayne. 1991. “Are There Two Creation Accounts in Genesis?” ApologeticsPress.org. http://www.apologeticspress.com/articles/2194. Accessed 6 January 2011.
Marty, Martin. 1982. “America’s Iconic Book.” In Humanizing America’s Iconic Book: Society of Biblical Literature Centennial Addresses, edited by Gene Tucker and Douglas Knight, Society of Biblical Literature – Biblical Scholarship in North America 6, 1–23. Chico, CA: Scholars.
Newport, Frank. 2007. “One-Third of Americans Believe the Bible is Literally True.” Gallup. 25 May. http://www.gallup.com/poll/27682/onethird-americans-believe-bible-literally-true.aspx. Accessed 11 January 2011.
Nickelsburg, George W. E. 2001. 1 Enoch: a Commentary on the Book of 1 Enoch. Hermeneia. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress.
———. 2003. “Response to Claudia Camp, ‘Orality, Literacy, and Textual Authority in the Work of Ben Sira.” Wisdom and Apocalypticism Section, SBL, November 23.
Pew Research Center. 2010. “U.S. Religious Knowledge Survey.” The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. 28 September. http://pewforum.org/other-beliefs-and-practices/u-s-religious-knowledge-survey.aspx. Assessed on 11 January 2011.
Sanders, Jack T. 1979. “Ben Sira’s Ethics of Caution.” Hebrew Union College Annual 50: 73–106.
Sanders, James A. 1992. “Canon.” In The Anchor Bible Dictionary, edited by David Noel Freedman, 1: 837–52. Doubleday: New York.
Schniedewind, William M. 2004. How the Bible Became a Book: the Textualization of Ancient Israel. New York: Cambridge University Press. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511499135
Sheppard, Gerald T. 1980. Wisdom as a Hermeneutical Construct: A Study in the Sapientializing of the Old Testament, Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft 151, Berlin/New York: de Gruyter.
———. 1987. “Canon.” In The Encyclopedia of Religion, edited by Mircea Eliade, 3: 62–69. New York: MacMillan.
Skehan, Patrick W. and Alexander A. Di Lella. 1987. The Wisdom of Ben Sira: A New Translation with Notes, The Anchor Bible 39. New York: Doubleday.
van der Toorn, Karel. 2007. Scribal Culture and the Making of the Hebrew Bible. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Watts, James W. 2006. “The Three Dimensions of Scriptures.” Postscripts 2: 135–159.
