RT Article
T1 The Canonization of Ancient Hebrew and Confucian Literature
JF Journal for the study of the Old Testament
VO 32
IS 1
SP 3
OP 22
A1 Stordalen, Terje 1958-
LA English
PB Sage
YR 2007
UL https://www.ixtheo.de/Record/177701333X
AB Recent humanistic scholarship regards canonization as a common anthropological phenomenon. Comparing religious canons gives insight on their various canonization processes and functions. Apparently, concepts commonly applied in biblical studies are anachronistic, reflecting notions of canonicity brought about by Islamic Scripture as well as by European mass printing technology. Philip Davies in his Scribes and Schools considered ancient Hebrew canonization in its technological, cultural and social framework, and identified the scribal class as a primary focus for the study of biblical canonization. This article argues that there were similarities between the canonization of ancient Hebrew and Confucian literature. The two occurred under comparable technological and cultural conditions. Using implications from Confucian canonization, this essay attempts to evaluate certain models in Scribes and Schools, in particular Davies' view of a `top-down' canonizing process. The Confucian material hints that Hebrew canonization had rather more of a two-way movement of influence.
K1 Comparative Religious Studies
K1 Confucian classics
K1 Hebrew Bible
K1 Canonization
DO 10.1177/0309089207083763