Between Text and Artifact: Integrating Archaeology in Biblical Studies Teaching (Archaeology and Biblical Studies)

REALIZING DIVERSITY: REFLECflONS0, TEACHING

PAGANRELiGION(S)INLATEHELLENISTICAND

EARLY ROMAN PALESTINE

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ACKI\OWI.EDGlt\GTilEEXISTEI\CI'01''111'"OnII'M":\'VIIAT\XlI'MEANBY;'PAGAN"

Tomany peopleancient Palestine isperceived~l1ldportrayedasa
countrypopulatedbyJews.S;:llnarilansandlateragrowingnumberof
Christians.Palestine,after,Ill,Milli:;the~HolyLand~eventomanypeople
intheWeMernworld.IIisoflenoverlookedthatalongsideandinman)'
respecL"iIOgctherwiththesethreeoflshoolSof-biblicalreligion."a large
numlX'f 01 JX.-"Ople livedintheregion whodidnotalalladheretothis
biblical If''Jdilion. L'sually these groups are collectivel)' labelled as
Mpagans~orkGenliles.-
TheproblemofIcaching~paganreligions
M
inHellenisticandRoman
Pa[('~tincdoc~notstan\ithfindingtheirhabitatsandmappingIhem:it
stallswithbecomingawareofhowU'Caddressthem,whalu:ecallthem:
it slanswithterminology:mclnomenclature.Iwillcertainlynot~urprisc
anyonewithmysuspicionthatreflcclinguponthedifficultiesintryingto
findorcoin an appropriate expression for"paganism" should indeed
teachusmoreabout howweperceiveforeignreligionsandhowmuch
ourpern~ptions:Ireboundupwithourowntradilionthantheybringus
anycloser 10 wh'ltpagansthoughtofthemselves.Moreover,sinceevery
terminologyindicate~howilsinvenlOrsandusersstructuretheworldand
theirplaceinit,talking:lhoutpag:msopensinsighL'iintoourworldview
aswell.
Sowh'lIdowcmeanwiththeIcrm"p.lgans"?J[isnotoriouslydifficult
tosubsumeallthesedifferentreligiousgroupsundera Singleterm,even
moresobecauseIhetwoIcrnl'>wcfrequentlyuscincolloquialoraca-
demic bngu:lSc betray ollr Chrio,;tbn background. The English word
JXlgallcomcsfromtheLitinpagmms. whichoriginallymeant~Ii\'ingon

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