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Journal of Undergraduate Research

Keywords

Angel of Death, Jewish literature, Hebrew Bible

College

Religious Education

Department

Ancient Scripture

Abstract

My original proposal was entitled “Ancient Near Eastern Perspectives on the Process of Death in the Hellenistic Period.” I initially chose this topic because the human fascination with death extends far back into history; in fact, it alone has been the reason for the founding of many cults, the erecting of innumerable monuments, and the writing of a great number of documents. Furthermore, the people most famous for their fascination with death are the inhabitants of the ancient Near East. Well-known examples of their enthrallment with death are the Egyptians who mummified their dead and built exquisite pyramids for funerary rituals; the Greeks who firmly believed in Hades, the god of the Underworld; and the Hebrews who taught the exalting of the righteous and the punishment of the wicked upon death. With such a rich background, it is not surprising that the ancient Near East has been the focal point of many archaeological, textual, and anthropological studies on the subject of death. When I actually began my research, however, I noticed a missing link in past and present publications concerning this subject.

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