Biblical Mourning: Ritual and Social Dimensions.

• Author: Parker, Simon B.
• Position: Book review

Biblical Mourning: Ritual and Social Dimensions. By SAUL M. OLYAN. Oxford: OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS, 2004. Pp. x + 174. [pounds sterling]5.

Olyan's subject is the temporal and spatial settings, the ritual patterns, and the social implications of the mourning rites referred to in the Bible. It remains unclear whether these rites corresponded closely to the actual situation in Israel. With the Bible as the only direct source of information on the subject from the people in question, Olyan is careful not to claim that his findings reflect historical practice and experience--hence his title.

Recognizing that theoretical models "ought to function as useful stimulants," while basic research on data ought to "contribute to the ongoing assessment and shaping of the theoretical models," Olyan begins with a critical review of discussions of mourning in social scientific literature (beginning with R. Hertz and A. van Gennep). He then reaffirms that in the Bible mourning and rejoicing are two contrasting ritual states, incompatible in the same person or group at the same time and in the same situation (though possible in different parties in the same place, e.g., the temple). Next he lays out the four types of mourning that he finds in the biblical texts: mourning for the dead, mourning in conjunction with petition, mourning in response to a disaster, and (minimally attested) the mourning of a person with skin disease. These all share common behaviors that are separate from rejoicing behaviors; and the texts that speak of them use common vocabulary and at times refer to mourning for the dead as the model for the other types of mourning. On the other hand, there are differences among the four types in terms of location, duration, and the presence or absence of pollution. The fourth type is sharply distinguished from the others in that comforters cannot be present to identify with the mourner, who is thus completely isolated.

After this introduction, the following three chapters examine the biblical evidence for the four types of mourning. A fourth chapter investigates the "constraints on mourning rites"--the prohibition in Leviticus and Deuteronomy of shaving and laceration. Olyan is able to explain these prohibitions as being based not on the foreign origin of the behaviors, as is often done, but on their lasting effects. They would extend beyond the period of mourning for the dead (or of waiting for a divine response to a petition), so that when a...