In the Hebrew Bible animal and vegetable sacrifices are presented as the quintessential channel of religious worship, as was the case throughout the ancient world. The destruction of the Jerusalem temple at the end of the first century C.E. led to the effective demise of this practice, and to the emergence of a common perception according to which sacrifices were superseded by religious practices that are taken to be more “modern” and refined, such as prayer and study. Professor Balberg's paper seeks to challenge and refine the "supersession" hypothesis by examining two post-temple junctures in which biblical sacrifices are strongly endorsed but are radically reinterpreted: early rabbinic literature (2nd-3rd centuries CE) on the one hand, and discourse among religious-Zionist circles in Israel in the 21st century on the other hand. The paper will argue that while early rabbis and contemporary religious leaders pursue diametrically opposed approaches to sacrifice, they both insist on its physical concreteness and on its enduring relevance.

Sponsored by: Classical Studies, Eisenberg Institute for Historical Studies, and Jean & Samuel Frankel Center for Judaic Studies