The Agenda of Priestly Taxonomy in Leviticus 11

Lance Hawley, Ph.D.

The Agenda of Priestly Taxonomy in Leviticus 11

Harding University

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

<div class="line" id="line-5"> Anthropologists and biblical scholars have long sought to understand the</div><div class="line" id="line-37"> rationale for the categorization of animals in Leviticus 11. The text itself provides no</div><div class="line" id="line-39"> overt answer; rather, it presents the reader with a systematic taxonomy. In this article,</div><div class="line" id="line-41"> I seek to demonstrate how the Priestly authors conceptualize ṭ&amacr;m&emacr;ʾ (“unclean”) and</div><div class="line" id="line-43"> &scaron;eqeṣ (“detestable thing”) as identifications for different sets of animals in Leviticus</div><div class="line" id="line-45"> 11. The system of differentiation and classification itself, as it is expressed in the</div><div class="line" id="line-47"> compositional layers of Leviticus 11, provides the best way forward for determining</div><div class="line" id="line-49"> the Priestly justification for distinguishing between permissible and impermissible</div><div class="line" id="line-51"> animals for eating. After tracing the compositional history of Leviticus 11, I argue that</div><div class="line" id="line-53"> the taxonomy has a clear focus on land quadrupeds, which may hint at the agenda of</div><div class="line" id="line-55"> the Priestly authors, namely, to undergird theologically Israel’s sacrificial practices.</div><div class="line" id="line-57"> Additionally, the taxonomy directly corresponds to the systematic ordering of the</div><div class="line" id="line-59"> world in Genesis 1, reflecting the Priestly ideal that temple life is woven into the</div><div class="line" id="line-61"> fabric of the created cosmos.</div>

Original language	American English
Journal	Catholic Biblical Quarterly
Volume	77
State	Published - 2015

Disciplines

Biblical Studies

Access to Document

CBQ proof.pdfFinal published version, 595 KBLicense: Unspecified

Cite this

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title = "The Agenda of Priestly Taxonomy in Leviticus 11",

abstract = " Anthropologists and biblical scholars have long sought to understand the rationale for the categorization of animals in Leviticus 11. The text itself provides no overt answer; rather, it presents the reader with a systematic taxonomy. In this article, I seek to demonstrate how the Priestly authors conceptualize ṭ&amacr;m&emacr;ʾ (“unclean”) and &scaron;eqeṣ (“detestable thing”) as identifications for different sets of animals in Leviticus 11. The system of differentiation and classification itself, as it is expressed in the compositional layers of Leviticus 11, provides the best way forward for determining the Priestly justification for distinguishing between permissible and impermissible animals for eating. After tracing the compositional history of Leviticus 11, I argue that the taxonomy has a clear focus on land quadrupeds, which may hint at the agenda of the Priestly authors, namely, to undergird theologically Israel’s sacrificial practices. Additionally, the taxonomy directly corresponds to the systematic ordering of the world in Genesis 1, reflecting the Priestly ideal that temple life is woven into the fabric of the created cosmos.",

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year = "2015",

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AB - Anthropologists and biblical scholars have long sought to understand the rationale for the categorization of animals in Leviticus 11. The text itself provides no overt answer; rather, it presents the reader with a systematic taxonomy. In this article, I seek to demonstrate how the Priestly authors conceptualize ṭ&amacr;m&emacr;ʾ (“unclean”) and &scaron;eqeṣ (“detestable thing”) as identifications for different sets of animals in Leviticus 11. The system of differentiation and classification itself, as it is expressed in the compositional layers of Leviticus 11, provides the best way forward for determining the Priestly justification for distinguishing between permissible and impermissible animals for eating. After tracing the compositional history of Leviticus 11, I argue that the taxonomy has a clear focus on land quadrupeds, which may hint at the agenda of the Priestly authors, namely, to undergird theologically Israel’s sacrificial practices. Additionally, the taxonomy directly corresponds to the systematic ordering of the world in Genesis 1, reflecting the Priestly ideal that temple life is woven into the fabric of the created cosmos.

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