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The Dead Sea Scrolls
- Narrated by: Gary A. Rendsburg
- Length: 12 hrs and 21 mins
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The Dead Sea Scrolls
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Summary
Whether complete or only fragmentary, the 930 extant Dead Sea Scrolls irrevocably altered how we look at and understand the foundations of faith and religious practice. Now you can get a comprehensive introduction to this unique series of archaeological documents, and to scholars' evolving understanding of their authorship and significance, with these 24 lectures. Learn what the scrolls are, what they contain, and how the insights they offered into religious and ancient history came into focus.
In following the extraordinary story of how the scrolls were acquired and ultimately published - a story fully 40 years in its unfolding - you'll also explore an almost unlimited treasure trove of new facts and insights. Throughout the lectures, you'll learn about these and other topics: the only historical instance of the Jews ever forcibly converting a conquered people to Judaism; the rare stroke of scholarly fortune represented in the discovery of the first seven scrolls sealed in jars; and the extraordinary intrigue (sometimes spanning generations) that overlays the story of the scrolls.
At the heart of this series are the documents themselves. You'll spend a wealth of time reading parts of the actual scrolls in English translation, training your eye to uncover the salient religious practices and intriguing theological ideas expressed in these documents. By the conclusion of the final lecture, you'll have developed a newfound understanding and appreciation of an unprecedented historical find and its enduring influence on the way we think about - and talk about - ancient Judaism and Christianity.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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- John London
- 21-05-23
Good primer for the topic
Interesting also to see it from the Jewish intellectuals perspective versus Christian, overall shows how incredible the find was
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- Jean
- 12-12-18
Fascinating!
I learned so much and found myself listening to certain chapters again and again to ensure that I’d caught all the interesting information! Brilliant stuff!
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- callum
- 21-06-22
fantastic!
I truly enjoyed this! completely informative and as somebody coming new to the Dead Sea scrolls gave so much information and food for thought, and further research.
I couldn't recommend it enough and I'm a great fan of the great courses.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Clare
- 09-01-24
Fascinating!
There is so much content in these lectures. It includes information about how the scrolls were found, how and who has interpreted them, what life was like at the time, Jewish history leading up to this period, deeper investigations into what some of the scrolls say and how the different sects of Judaism at the time thought - and so much more!
There appears to not be full scholarly agreement on everything, and I thought he presented the different options well, didn’t seem particularly biased, and when he took a side, he explained why.
There is nothing wrong with Prof Rendsburg’s voice. However the delivery of a lecture is different to the narration of an audiobook. I found that as much as I was absorbed by the material, I couldn’t listen for more than about an hour before needing a break. There is a slight ‘shoutiness’ (he is not shouting) rather than dulcet tones.
Well worth a purchase
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Caroline Lawrence
- 08-07-20
Superb course about game changing documents
"Before the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, scholars typically viewed Judaism through a single lens, namely the Rabbinic one since the rabbis would emerge as the dominant stream within Judaism after the destruction of the temple in 70 CE at the hands of the Romans... The Dead Sea Scrolls changed all of that... Finally we have the voice of a specific Jewish sect from the first century BCE – that is a half century before the life of Jesus – from a century before the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. And with these texts we finally realise how little we knew about the period… The Dead Sea Scrolls have provided information in every area including theological beliefs, the calendar, religious practises, daily life and much more." These soundbytes from the end of lecture one give an idea of how important this subject is.
Professor Gary Rendsburg is a brilliant teacher. Accessible but erudite, he presents the material in a great way, telling lots of fascinating stories and anecdotes about the main players (including goats) and even quoting a little Hebrew so we can hear what the game-changing scrolls sounded like when read in the original language.
I loved this course and have listened to it twice. It's one of the best things Audible has to offer.
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6 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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- John Tower
- 04-12-16
a star off because of narrator-dont be discouraged
Seems if the subject is religious the authors get quite animated at times. fascinating. interesting. loved it
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Clare J Fowler
- 03-05-17
Dead Sea Scrolls
Fascinating- thank you
Complicated matter explained by someone much involved but seemingly unbiased. Nicely narrated too.
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2 people found this helpful
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- craig
- 09-05-18
very informative and interesting
I would recommend this book to anyone with an interest in either history or in religion. the topics covered set the Dead Sea Scrolls in the context nicely. I feel it doesn't matter if you are a complete novice to the atopic or have some good understanding you can learn a lot from these lectures
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- t.baruch
- 18-09-16
Very good
Very broad and interesting review of this sect. It could do with a more understanding of the Roman way towards the sect.
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- Mikey_Mac
- 17-05-21
Excellent interpretation for any level of interest
I have been waiting for a less academic interpretation of the scrolls, and this fits perfectly in between . The lay person with an interest in what is undoubtedly one of not the most important historical finds of all time, and anyone with an academic interest. A wonderful journey back 2 millennia.
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