Astrology and Judaism in Late Antiquity is the doctoral dissertation by Lester Ness submitted to Miami University. This astrology article explains Jewish astrology, various zodiac mosaics, horoscopes and other astrological magics.
Abstract (By Author)The goal of this dissertation will be to explain how it was that the Jews of the Hellenized world adopted and adapted astrology. There will be a focus on the zodiac mosaics found in the synagogues of Byzantine period Israel. The dissertation will begin with a chapter on the origins of astrology in Mesopotamia. There we will see how astrology grew from the beliefs that the planets manifested the gods, and that one could predict the gods' wills by predicting, mathematically, the planets' motions. The result was the first horoscopes.
The second chapter will tell how the Hellenistic world adopted the Mesopotamian practice and blended it with Greek science to produce the mathematical "scientific" astrology familiar to most twentieth century readers. The following third chapter will show how astrology's religious side fared in the Hellenized Near East. The planets were important gods, astrological art was used to praise the gods, and to portray their power and ability to care for the world and their worshippers. Horoscopes and astrological magic allowed one to communicate with the gods and persuade them to help one through life.
Chapter four will deal with Jewish astrology, both "scientific" and "religious." We will examine a variety of Jewish writings from the Hellenized Near East to demonstrate that Jews did indeed practice astrology. We will conclude that Jews adapted the polytheistic assumptions of astrology to their own monotheistic world-view by interpreting the planet gods as planet angels, beings superior to humans, but subordinate to the one genuine god, YHWH.
The fifth and final chapter will discuss the various zodiac mosaics, both as archaeological sites and as works of art, and the various theories which try to explain what they meant. Finally, we will conclude that, since the planets are the subordinates of YHWH, administering His will in the world as part of His creation, the zodiac mosaics are best explained as indirect portrayals of God. The sun and the zodiac signs were His creatures. They carried out His commands. They were the satraps of His cosmos. Thus, they were appropriate visual substitutes for the God whom even Moses might not see.
Following are the topics covered in this astrology article.
- Astrology in Mesopetamia
- Hellenistic Scientific Astrology
- Astral Religion
- Jewish Astrology
- Astrology in Synagogue Art
You can read/download this free astrological article from the following link.
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