A Good Read - The Mystery and Meaning of the Dead Sea Scrolls

Not your usual estate sale. An entire Episcopal church closing in Kansas City. Church, parsonage, school, rectory, everything. It was kinda sad.

But there is always a bright side. Among the many many books at the sale, I ran across a copy of The Mystery and Meaning of the Dead Sea Scrolls by Hershel Shanks, which is one of the best histories and layman's explanation of the Dead Sea Scrolls (it is certainly the most readable). In a whole bunch of different ways, a completely fascinating book. First, the history of the discovery of the scrolls, and how they were obtained against the backdrop of the birth of the State of Israel. Shanks is remarkably even in his hind-sight look at history, even when discussing in incidents and individuals he clearly found objectionable. For example, while he clearly took issue with the composition of the original scroll team (primarily Catholic priests, and no Jews), he does clarify that the team was technically employed by the Jordanian Government, which would never have countenanced Jewish involvement.

Alternately, Shanks tends to defer a bitt too much to the professional reputations of the original scroll scholars, even though he was a lifelong critic of their slowness and secretiveness regarding their findings. What does come through, however, between the lines was that many of the scholars and their financial sponsors acted very badly, at times almost childishly, regarding their research and their place in history.

In one part of the book I found a bit head scratching, Shanks at length describes his puzzlement at a prohibition in the scrolls against spitting. Frankly, I didn't think it strange at all. Most of the Jewish dietary and ritualistic prohibitions, such as not eating pork, have their ancient origin in health and disease prevention roots. A prohibition against spitting, which spreads diseases like tuberculosis, is entirely logical (as it is in China today). Just because this particular restriction died out in the Jewish traditions over time, I couldn't see why Shanks found it so unusual, or improbable.

Finally, Shanks does an excellent job in tying together biblical history with that of the the scrolls and making is accessible for the layman. Shanks is clearly more comfortable, and much more scholarly in his knowledge of the relevance of the Old Testament to the scrolls. Frankly, I found his references between the scrolls and books of the New Testament to be somewhat unsupportable, if not a little far fetched.

For anyone wanting a basic introduction and history to the Dead sea Scrolls, this is the first book to read.