Religion plays a multi-faceted role in the scheme of civilization and humankind. In Latin, the word religion emanates from the root word religio which means great imprecision. The institution of great imprecision has also prompted a shift in the focus on the sacred and the secular, which in past instances has been separated. In ancient Israel, a socio-theological milieu has created relationships between society, the religious community and governmental structure both in polict and procedure.
Quite interestingly, what strengthens this milieu is the presence of solidarity within the ancient Israelite civilization. The first type of this manifestation is divine intervention through claiming to be God’s chosen people. Furthmore, the Davidic succession in Israelite kingship is a more crisp illustration, as initiated by the seer named Nathan in I Samuel, chapters 9 and 10. In this passage, the deity preselects and consecrates the ruler. After the ruler is determined, Samuel receives this revelation and sends the selected ruler to the king. Finally, the king anoints his successor David who will assume the monarch.
The second demonstration of this solidarity is biblically sanctioned legalism within the ancient civilization. This, in addition, spawned the well-grounded relationship between law and religion in ancient Israel. For instance, the Decalogue, which is informally known as the Ten Commandments, constructed the ethical procedues and moral premises upon which normative behavior gains its traction. The Covenant, or Deuteronomy Code, encapsulates essential “do’s and don’t(s)” of the Israelite culture. The results of which are delineated within Deuteronomy 12 through 26.
The Essay on Ancient Religion vs Modern Religion
There are many differences between an ancient religious viewpoint of the Greeks and Romans and a modern world religion viewpoint. I feel that the most distinguishing difference and the difference that I feel makes the biggest impact is that in a modern world religion society believers say there is one God or that the religions today are monotheistic, whereas in the ancient religions we have ...
Also replete with regulations, priestly law in Exodus, chapters 25 through 30 and 35 through 40, entails the duties, responsibilities, dietary practices and ritualistic demands to be exercised by all temple officials and laity. Thrid, nationalism, is another area of solidarity amongst the Israelite people. As a marker of Abrahamic faith, the election of the Israelite nation is heavily predicated upon divine confirmation of Yahweh (Pfeiffer 1).
Religion, in this sense unveils the poignant basis of manifest destiny in the state of Israel. This explains the relationship between Yahweh and Israel as not intrinsic, but immanently supported (Pfeiffer 3).
Such declaration concerning religion and politics in ancient Israel initiated a militaristic undercurrent which formulated the basis of tribal and communal war. Particularly, in the 7th and 8th centuries B.C.E., battles surged between Syria and Samaria (specifically Syro-Ephraimite War), the fall of Philistia and Sennacherib’s siege of Jerusalem that stirred and sequestered much camaradarie from the Israelites, only to be divided by Greco-Roman culture.
As a method of proper contextualization, historical examination of the Israelite people and their culture provides
