Opposition to Idolatry in the Book of Habakkuk
In: Vetus TestamentumSearch for other papers by Michael C. Legaspi in
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Habakkuk is unique among books in the Twelve in its criticism of foreign cultic practices. Instead of condemning Israel and Judah for the worship of other gods, it criticizes the worship offered to a foreign deity by that deity’s own people. This article examines Hab 2:18-19, arguing that the reduction of the pesel or massēkâ to a lifeless object is intelligible in moral rather than ontological terms. The integration of this cultic criticism into a more standard denunciation of a foreign nation’s non-cultic transgressions yields a distinctive form of opposition to idolatry. What Habakkuk shows is that disbelief in the reality of idols may owe less to a mocking, debunking rationalism than to a cynicism regarding the uses of ritual.
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See Jon D. Levenson, Resurrection and the Restoration of Israel: The Ultimate Victory of the God of Life (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2006), esp. pp. 201-216.
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Opposition to Idolatry in the Book of Habakkuk
In: Vetus TestamentumSearch for other papers by Michael C. Legaspi in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Habakkuk is unique among books in the Twelve in its criticism of foreign cultic practices. Instead of condemning Israel and Judah for the worship of other gods, it criticizes the worship offered to a foreign deity by that deity’s own people. This article examines Hab 2:18-19, arguing that the reduction of the pesel or massēkâ to a lifeless object is intelligible in moral rather than ontological terms. The integration of this cultic criticism into a more standard denunciation of a foreign nation’s non-cultic transgressions yields a distinctive form of opposition to idolatry. What Habakkuk shows is that disbelief in the reality of idols may owe less to a mocking, debunking rationalism than to a cynicism regarding the uses of ritual.
| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 318 | 51 | 2 |
| Full Text Views | 418 | 6 | 0 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 425 | 16 | 0 |