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Multidisciplinary approach to the origins of Isrealites: Kemetian or not?
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[QUOTE]Originally posted by Mystery Solver: [QB] [QUOTE]Originally posted by Mystery Solver: Some unobservant folks talk of "Jews" in ancient Egypt prior to the possible departure of Israelite forebearers from the Nile Valley and then onto the Levant. The absurdity of such claims stems from the fact that no such entity existed in Dynastic Egypt at the time in question...nor do we come across any Egyptic literature or any other concrete evidence attesting to some *monotheistic* foreign Ammu-affiliated group that existed therein, even under the Hyksos leadership. However, [b]we do learn about a relatively discernable monotheistic inclination of the Amarna era leadership, that is distinct from AE spiritual belief systems of earlier periods[/b]. Certainly during this period, I cannot think of any *monotheistic* group in the Levant, which is where the Israelites would locate by the 13th century BC. To this end, I don't find the following unreasonable: Re: [i]When the Israelites came out of Egypt, the people [b]brought with them the many stories about Egyptian gods and goddesses, stories they believed to be true histories of their country[/b]. But [b]because the Israelites were militantly monotheistic[/b], with [b]a strong prejudice against the god Osiris[/b], the [b]deities were transformed into human ancestors[/b]. [b]As with any immigrant group[/b], after [b]centuries of immersion in new cultures and surroundings, the settlers adopted the traditions and beliefs of their new neighbors, often integrating their old beliefs with the newly learned traditions[/b]. And as the biblical prophets make clear, [b]over and over, Canaanite culture exerted a mighty force over the Israelites.[/b][/i] [/QUOTE][b]Akhenaten’s brand of monotheism, the only one of its kind in the region at the time, and it interesting link to Israelite monotheism:[/b] [i]Remarkably, Akhenaten did little to counteract the foreign revolts and generally ignored his allies’ calls for help. [b]Under his reign, Egypt’s Canaanite empire collapsed.[/b] This state of affairs continued throughout the balance of the 18th Dynasty. Although many Egyptologists assume that Horemheb, the last king of the dynasty, reinstituted much of Egypt’s authority in Canaan, no evidence to that effect exists. Indeed, shortly after his death, records depict Sethos I attempting to recapture control all along the routes leading from Egypt into Canaan. More important than Akhenaten’s inattention to foreign affairs was the domestic religious revolution wrought in his name. Ill prepared to be king after his father’s designated heir died prematurely, [b]Akhenaten assumed the Theban view of Amen as chief deity in Egypt.[/b] Beginning in the fifth year of his reign, life in Egypt changed. [b]Akhenaten launched a religious revolution that had a profound impact on Egypt’s religious affairs.[/b] This new religion held that [b]only one deity existed[/b], Re-Harakhty, manifest in the form of Aten, the sun disk. [b]No other gods were to be worshiped and graven images of deity were banned[/b]. Representations of Amen, the chief deity of Thebe[b]s, were not only prohibited, but the god’s name and image were physically removed from monuments[/b] all over Egypt. Akhenaten also [b]downplayed the role of Osiris[/b] in funeral… …The [b]elevation of a northern, Set-worshiping, Hyksos-appeasing pharaoh could not have occurred without some difficulty in Thebes and other parts of Egypt and its empire[/b]. Perhaps this was the sign Osarseph (Moses) waited for. Sensing the opportunity for rebellion and a rehabilitation of the Atenist cult, Osarseph organized a military alliance aimed at overthrowing Rameses I. In the north he induced the kingdom of Shechem to join him. In the south he probably had Ethiopian contingents. [b]And throughout the country were the remnants of the Aten cult, the displaced allies who wanted revenge. To these we must add disparate groups of resenters, power seekers, mercenaries, and opportunists, “a mixed multitude” of non-Atenists.[/b] Osarseph launched a two-front attack, from the Shechemites in the north and his own troops in the south. Soon after, the Shechemites were stopped at the Egyptian borders, but Osarseph had a large enough force to hold his ground in the south. Eventually, the two sides negotiated a peace treaty, granting safe passage out of Egypt for Osarseph, his army, and their families. This negotiated departure from Egypt constituted the Exodus. The civil war between the forces of Osarseph and the armies of the pharaoh appear in the Bible, along with the negotiations for safe passage, as the story of the Ten Plagues, an epic account drawing from upon Egyptian literary conventions to describe events. Osarseph or Moses, to use the shortened form of his adopted name (Ramose or Hormose), [b]settled his entourage in the area associated with the tribe of Reuben.[/b] As was [b]common in ancient times, people tended to identify foundation settlements with a mythical ancestor[/b], and in later Israelite writings this mythical ancestor came to be known as Reuben. Because this territory served as the first homeland of Israel, Reuben, according to conventional mythological grammar, [b]came to be known as the first born son of Jacob.[/b] ….Over time the Israelites in Reuben spread out into central Jordan and then across the river into the largely unoccupied hills of central Canaan, establishing many small communities throughout the land. From the hills in Canaan further settlements spread north and south. At the same time that Israel moved into the central highlands, Canaan [b]experienced several waves of invasion from the powerful Sea Peoples’ confederation, chief of which were the Philistines[/b]. Led by Greek warrior castes, the Sea Peoples established strong roots in this new territory and [b]on several occasions, most notably during the reigns of Merneptah (c. 1239 -1229 BC) and Rameses III (c. 1197 - 1166 BC), they battled fiercely against Egypt itself[/b]. The [b]pressures exerted by the Sea Peoples in Canaan and against Egypt provided the cover that allowed the Israelites to smoothly cross over to the Jordan and easily settle in the central highlands[/b]. Despite the biblical allegations, [b]at this time Israel had no tribal structures[/b]. They [b] may have had influential families, political factions, and some settlements with special military strengths, but there were no tribes[/b]. As [b]evidenced by the Song of Deborah, the subsequent tribal divisions reflected the growth and merger of territorial bases...[/b][/i] - G. Greenberg ^It would be ridiculous to assume that this monotheism, with its roots in the Nile Valley, would continue to resemble the original religion without modifications through external influences from Canaanite neighbors of Nile Valley Israelite forebearers, and so, reading further... [i]***[b]While Israel’s allies shared political and military allegiances, they didn’t share religious views[/b]. *** In addition, [b]many of the Egyptians who left Egypt with Moses did not subscribe to Atenist orthodoxy[/b]. The [b]presence of Canaanite, Greek and Egyptian deities and priests within the Israelite ranks fueled dissention among the mainstream Atenists[/b], leading [b]to a variety of conflicts, intrigues, and schisms.[/b] It is at about [b]this point in history that our inquiry into Israel’s origins ends.[/b] Shortly [b]thereafter the monarchy[/b] emerged. Under King David, [b]a fusion of ideals seems to have taken place.[/b] On the one hand, [b]he established the orthodox Atenist view as the central religion of ancient Israel.[/b] On the other, however, [b]he (and Solomon after him) seems to have encouraged all the other factions to worship in their own way, as long as they recognized the fundamental supremacy of the Atenist priesthood.[/b] Much of the [b]subsequent Israelite writing about this time revolves around these religious feuds and schisms[/b]. [/i] [/QB][/QUOTE]
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