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Quote by Frank Moore Cross

“It fascinates me to analyze these things and, yes, to see layers in the texts and the building up of Biblical literature. I think this provides insights that one simply does not get by the direct approach.”

Quote by Frank Moore Cross

Author

Frank Moore Cross

Frank Moore Cross was a renowned scholar known for his research in ancient Near Eastern languages, history, and archaeology. His work has had a profound impact on understanding ancient Near Eastern civilizations. more

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“I prefer to have all of this apparatus - historical, literary, critical - and then, beyond initial innocence and naiveté, to try to achieve a new innocence, a new naiveté.”

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“Israel defined its God and its relation to that God in existential, relational terms. They did not, until quite late, approach the question of one God in an abstract philosophical way.”

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“If I had to choose between the two ways of approaching the deity, I should prefer the existential relational way, to the abstract philosophical way. I think it is truer, or in any case, less misleading, to say that God is an old Jew with a white beard whom I love, than to say that God is the ground of being and meaning, or to say that God is a name denoting the ultimate mystery. I prefer the bold primitive colors of the Biblical way of describing God.”

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“I remember when I heard the words "Biblical criticism" in my town, it was with disdain: "Biblical criticism? How dare you?".”

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“One day - I remember it was a Sabbath afternoon - I came to the synagogue with a book in my hand. I saw a commentary on the Bible by a certain Rabbi Moshe Dessauer, better known as Moses Mendelssohn. An elderly man came up to me - I was then maybe 10 or 12. "What are you studying?" he said. "Dessauer's commentaries," I said. So he gave me a slap on my face.”

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“I was never without a book in my hand.”

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“I developed an anger at [Moses] Mendelssohn. Later, I read the book. I realized there was nothing subversive in it.”

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“[Moses] Mendelssohn was a religious Jew. I felt sorry for him.”

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“I became one of [Moses Mendelssohn] defenders. But then I heard the words "Biblical criticism" again. And, of course, afterward, I studied it more closely.”

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“Of course, afterward, I studied [commentary on the Bible by a Rabbi Moshe Dessauer] more closely. But, in truth, it doesn't touch me. It doesn't change my attitude toward the text.”

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