JENKS | The quest for historical Nazareth 1 The Quest for the Historical Nazareth 1 Gregory C. Jenks (School of Theology, Charles Sturt University) One of the critical issues when pursuing historical Jesus research has been to distinguish the ‘voice print’ of one man (Jesus) from the larger crowd (Second Temple Judaism) at the time. Historians always find it easier to describe movements than individuals, places rather than events, technologies rather than artifacts. For that reason, searching for the historical Nazareth may be an easier task than the quest for the historical Jesus. While this comes as a surprise to some people, the historical existence of Nazareth at the time of Jesus has been a controversial topic. 2 This is really an example of the larger minimalist-maximalist debates within biblical studies. In these debates, a ‘maximalist’ tends to assume that the Bible reflects events that actually happened, unless historical evidence directly refutes it. On the other hand, a ‘minimalist’ tends to assume that the Bible does not reflect a memory of events that really happened, unless there are independent historical grounds for the event. In the case of first-century Nazareth, 3 religious scholars tend to talk up the size of Nazareth, while skeptics tend to question whether Nazareth even existed at the time. The Galilee During the last few decades scholarship on the Galilee has made significant advances. Until then our only substantial sources for information were ancient literary accounts, especially the writings of Josephus 4 and the NT Gospels. The earlier literary studies 1 This investigation into ancient Nazareth is dedicated to friends in contemporary Nazareth who have always made me so welcome in this my alternative hometown, and without whose friendship my sabbatical in 2013 would have been a very solitary existence. I also acknowledge the contributions of colleagues from the Bethsaida Excavations Project and from the Israel Antiquities Authority. While the responsibility for any errors and omissions is mine, they have assisted me with their advice and encouraged me to pursue my research into Nazareth around the beginning of the Common Era. 2 For a recent and influential discussion see René Salm, The Myth of Nazareth: The Invented Town of Jesus (Cranford, NJ: American Atheist Press, 2008). See also his "Christianity at the Crossroads— Nazareth in the Crosshairs," American Atheist Jul-Aug (2010). Salm’s work is positively reviewed by Robert M. Price ("Review of Rene Salm, the Myth of Nazareth: The Invented Town of Jesus. (American Atheist Press, 2008)," http://www.robertmprice.mindvendor.com/reviews/salm_myth_nazereth.htm.). This skepticism about the historical existence of Nazareth in the first century is also seen in popular web sites such as http://www.jesusneverexisted.com/nazareth.html. Salm’s book has been convincingly critiqued by K. R. Dark, "Review of René Salm, the Myth of Nazareth," Bulletin of the Anglo-Israel Archaeological Society 26 (2008). 3 Unless indicated otherwise, here and in what follows “first century” always refers to the first century CE. References to the first century BCE will always include that abbreviation. 4 Josephus, The Life. Against Apion., Loeb Classical Library, 186 (London: W. Heineman, 1926-1965); The Jewish War, Loeb Classical Library, 203, 487, 210 (London: W. Heineman, 1926-1965); Jewish Antiquities, Loeb Classical Library, 241, 281, 326, 365, 410, 433 & 456 (London: W. Heineman, 1926- 1965).