Academic literature on the topic 'Helena of Adiabene'

AbstractThe Temple of Jerusalem was reconstructed and enlarged under the patronage of Herod the Great beginning in 20/19 BCE. This essay assembles epigraphic sources from Jerusalem and literary sources preserved in the writings of Flavius Josephus and the ancient rabbis for benefaction to the Temple by individual wealthy Jews. Donors from as far afield as Rhodes, Alexandria and Adiabene may be identified, with Nicanor of Alexandria and Queen Helena and her son Monobazus of Adiabene appearing in archaeological remains, Josephus and rabbinic literature. This corpus provides a controlled example of ways that literary sources of various genre and archaeological remains may be placed in conversation so as to elicit historical evidence that may be of use to students of Jewish and general Roman antiquity.

Three women in Josephus'sAntiquitiesare well known for their purported devotion to Jewish religious practices: Poppaea Sabina, the consort/wife of the emperor Nero, whom Josephus describes as “God-fearing” (θɛοσɛβής); Fulvia, a Roman convert of consular rank whom he pegs as the source of the expulsion of Jews from Rome under Tiberius; and Helena, Queen of Adiabene, also a convert to Judaism. In this article, I show that the stories of these three Gentile noble women, who share an interest in Jewish religious practices, are part of a larger narrative pattern in theAntiquitiesthat repeatedly characterizes Gentile women of high standing as saviors and benefactors of the Jewish people. According to Josephus, imperial women intercede on behalf of Jewish aristocrats before every Julio-Claudian emperor, often with ramifications for the entire Jewish people. He also claims that Domitia, the wife of the emperor Domitian, was one of his own patrons. Patronage on behalf of the Jewish community is integral to the stories of both Fulvia and Queen Helena of Adiabene. Furthermore, the salvific acts of foreign noblewomen feature prominently in Josephus's retelling of the story of Moses early in theAntiquities.

زانیارییه‌كانمان له‌باره‌ی Adiabene وسنووره‌كه‌یه‌وه‌ پشت به‌ جوگرافی ناسه‌كانی یۆنان ورۆمان وه‌كو (سترابۆ Strabo وبه‌تلیمۆس Ptolemy وپلینی Pliny) ده‌به‌ستێت. ئه‌دیابین له‌گه‌ڵ ده‌ركه‌وتنی ئه‌شكانییه‌كان وه‌كو شانشینێكی سه‌رده‌می ئه‌شكانی ده‌ستنیشانكرا، پایته‌خته‌كه‌ی ئه‌ربێلا (هه‌ولێری ئێستا) بوو، ده‌كه‌وێته‌ نێوان هه‌ردوو زیێ گه‌وره‌ وبچووك کە لە لیکوس وکاپرۆس ناسراون، وهاوسنوور بووه‌ له‌گه‌ڵ ئه‌رمینیا، كۆردوێنێ/گۆردینێ (له‌ باكوره‌وه‌) وده‌ریاچه‌ی ورمێ (له‌ رۆژهه‌لاته‌وه‌) ، ڕووباری دیجله‌ (له‌ رۆژئاواوه‌) وته‌نانه‌ت هه‌ندێك زه‌وی رۆژئاوای دیجله‌ش وه‌كو شاری ئاشور. شانشيني ئەدیابین بوو بە پەناگەی بۆ پادشایانی ئەشکانی، بە تایبەت لەسەردەمی ئیزاتیسی دووەم دا. شانشینی ناوبراو وپایتەختەکەی کە ئەربێلا بوو پێگه‌یه‌كی دیاریان هه‌بوو بۆیه‌ به‌شێكی زۆر له‌ ته‌رمی پادشایانی ئه‌شكانی له‌ ئه‌ربێلا ده‌نێژران.شاژنی ئەدیابین ʼهێلینا Helena ʽ وکوڕەکانی ئیزاتیس دووه‌م و مۆنۆبازۆس دووه‌م چوونە سه‌ر ئاینی جوله‌كه وخزمه‌تی په‌رستگا وئاینی جوله‌كه‌یان كردوووە،‌ دوای ئەوە بنەماڵەی شاهانەی ئەدیابین چوون بۆ ئورشەلیم-قودس ولەوێ نیشتەجێ بوون چەند پرۆژەیەکی نیشتەجێ بوون وخێرخوازییان ئەنجام دا، هێلێنای شاژنی ئەدیابین له‌گه‌ڵ كوڕه‌كانی له‌ گۆرستانی پادشایانی ئورشه‌لیم نێژراون. جار هه‌بووه‌ فه‌رمانڕه‌وا ڕێگه‌ پێدراوبوو به‌وه‌ی نازناوی پادشا له‌خۆی بنێت. بۆ ماوه‌یه‌كی زۆر كورت ئه‌دیابین كه‌وته‌ ژێر ده‌ستی ڕۆمانه‌كانه‌وه‌ كاتێك تراجان (98-117ز.) له‌ 115ز./ 116ز هێرشی كرده‌ سه‌ر ئه‌شكانییه‌كان. بەمەش تراجانی ئیمپراتۆر نازناوی ئه‌دیابینیكۆس Adiabenicus ی وه‌رگرت. بەڵام له‌ دوای كاراكاللا وهاتنی ʼماكرینوس ʽMacrinus (217-218 ز.) بۆ سه‌رده‌سه‌ڵات كۆتایی به‌و ناكۆكییه‌ هات كه‌ له‌ نێوان ئه‌شكانییه‌كان ورۆمانه‌كان دروست ببو.

Le travail de recherche doctorale dans lequel je me suis engagée traite de l'histoire, au Ier siècle de notre ère, au Nord de la Mésopotamie et en Judée, de la conversion au judaïsme de la reine Hélène d'Adiabène, vue par trois différentes sources : Flavius Josèphe, historien juif romain contemporain de cette reine, la littérature rabbinique, et les découvertes archéologiques. La conversion de la reine d'Adiabène fut l’« une des plus éclatantes de cette première moitié du Ier siècle ».Une reine Hélène apparaît dans la version « Helena » des Toledot Yeshu, manuscrits médiévaux anonymes relatant une histoire de Jésus différente de celle des Évangiles. Dans les Evangiles, la femme témoin de la mort de Jésus, la première à attester de sa résurrection, est Marie-Madeleine, tandis que dans les Toledot Yeshu version "Helena", c'est la reine Hélène. Dans cette autre vie de Jésus, elle constate sa mort, mais pas sa résurrection. Comment peut-on l'interpréter ? L'héroïne féminine, témoin capital privilégié de la mort et/ou témoin unique de la résurrection de Jésus, diffère dans les deux histoires. Qui est cette reine Hélène à laquelle ces manuscrits se réfèrent ? Le cheminement et la démonstration menant à la conclusion fort probable que la reine Hélène mentionnée dans les Toledot Yeshu n'est autre que la reine Hélène d'Adiabène, convertie au judaïsme, ainsi que son fils Izatès II et toute la maison royale d'Adiabène, écartant toute éventualité d'une autre reine Hélène, comme l'Impératrice Helena Augusta, mère de l'Empereur Constantin Ier, ayant œuvré à la propagation du Christianisme, sont présentés dans la Thèse que je rédige dans le cadre de ma recherche. La mise en parallèle des deux femmes icônes, Hélène d'Adiabène et Marie-Madeleine, est motivée par leurs importantes similitudes, des « caractéristiques uniques, singulières », décrites tant par Flavius Josèphe et la littérature rabbinique pour Hélène d'Adiabène, que par les Évangiles pour Marie-Madeleine, et pourtant leur étant communes sur divers plans (physique, personnalité, actions, épisodes de la vie, nom). Trop d'analogies les rapprochent, jusqu'à devenir quasiment des répliques, d'autant plus que toutes deux vécurent à la même période, durant le ministère de Jésus au Ier siècle de notre ère, et dans la même ville, Jérusalem. Marie-Madeleine est une figure féminine marquante du christianisme. Les quatre Évangiles la mentionnent assistant à la mise en croix de Jésus. Dans les trois Évangiles synoptiques, elle assiste également à la mise au tombeau. Devenue disciple de Jésus, elle le suivit jusqu'à sa mort. Dans l'Évangile de Jean, datant au plus tôt de l'an 90-95 de notre ère, Marie-Madeleine est le premier témoin de la résurrection, désignée ainsi comme « L'Apôtre des Apôtres ». Cependant, elle est un personnage dont la position et le rôle auprès de Jésus sont encore flous et mal définis dans le christianisme. Ni son identité réelle, ni la manière dont elle est impliquée dans la vie de Jésus n'ont encore été tranchées définitivement, après de longs siècles de recherche et d'interrogations par des hommes d'Églises et des chercheurs. De ces faits se dégage une problématique. Pourquoi les sources chrétiennes n'ont-elles pas pu s'accorder sur l'identité de Marie-Madeleine ? Pourquoi a-t-elle plusieurs histoires ? Ce manque d'homogénéité au cœur même des Évangiles quant à la vie de Marie-Madeleine et à l'unicité ou non des trois Marie (Marie-Madeleine ou Marie de Magdala, Marie de Béthanie, et la pécheresse mentionnée dans l'Évangile selon Luc), pose problème. Mais là où le chercheur reste pantois, c'est au vu des nombreuses similitudes entre les deux figures, Hélène d'Adiabène et Marie-Madeleine, les faisant se confondre, se superposer. Peut-on penser que la figure de Marie-Madeleine s'est construite, telle une réminiscence, sur celle de la reine Hélène d'Adiabène ? Par un jeu de miroir, Marie de Magdala aurait été créée à partir d' Hélène d'Adiabène
The doctoral research work I am involved in, is based on that undertaken during my Master's Thesis at the Sorbonne in France, which dealt with the story of the conversion to Judaism of Queen Helena of Adiabene, who lived in the first century AD, in northern Mesopotamia and in Judea, as related by three different sources: Flavius Josephus, a Jewish historian who lived at the same time as this queen, rabbinical literature and archaeological discoveries. The conversion of the queen and her family was "one of the most remarkable in the first half of the first century".Toledot Yeshu are anonymous manuscripts written in the Middle Ages, according to the opinion of most of the Searchers, and which tell a different story than the one we know in the Gospels about the life of Jesus. In the "Helena" version of Toledot Yeshu, the most common one, Jesus talks to a queen, her name is Helene. She testifies to the death of Jesus and that he was not resurrected.Toledot Yeshu are a counter-story to the Gospels. In the Gospels, the woman who testifies to Jesus's death and to his resurrection is Mary Magdalene.How can we explain that the only witness female who is by Jesus's side at the time of his death, is different in the two stories about his life, in the Gospels and in the Toledot Yeshu? In my research work, I bring arguments aiming to prove that the queen Helena we are talking about in the Toledot Yeshu, is not other than the Queen Helena of Adiabene, who lived in Jerusalem in the first half of the first century, at the time of Jesus. In the second phase of my thesis, I highlight the connection between the heroine of the Christian Gospels, Mary Magdalene, and the heroine of Toledot Yeshu, the Christian Gospels' counter-story, i.e. Queen Helena (of Adiabene).When we compare the two iconic figures of Judaism and Christianity, we discover many important similarities and analogies between them: "singular and unique characteristics", which they have in common in different fields (physical, personality, actions, life episodes, name).Too many analogies, which cannot be the result of mere chance, bring the two women together and confuse them. Queen Helena was known in her time because she helped the needy and was devout in the new religion she had chosen to convert to, Judaism.The rabbis saw in Queen Helena an example, a model of conversion and devotion. The Hellenists and the Romans appreciated the worship and the cult of heroes, even from the countries they conquered, turning them into gods. From these facts, a question arises: can we think that the image of Mary Magdalene as known in the Gospels, was built on the one of Queen Helena of Adiabene, turning Queen Helena of Adiabene's story into Mary Magdalene's myth?

Abstract author, translation, and text: See entry 15. bibliography: Shelly Matthews, First Converts: Rich Pagan Women and the Rhetoric of Mission in Early Judaism and Christianity (Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press, 2001); see also the Introduction to this section. 17 At the same time Helena, queen of Adiabene, and her son Izates became converts to Judaism under the following circumstances. 18 Monobazus, surnamed Bazaeus, king of Adiabene, seized with a passion for his sister Helena, took her as his partner in marriage and got her pregnant. On one occasion as he was sleeping beside her, he rested his hand on his wife’s belly after she had gone to sleep, whereupon he thought he heard a voice bidding him remove his hand from her womb so as not to cramp the babe within it, which by the providence of God had had a happy start and would also attain a fortunate end. 19 Disturbed by the voice, he at once awoke and told these things to his wife; and he called the son who was born to him Izates. 20 He had an elder son by Helena named Monobazus and other children by his other wives; but it was clear that all his favour was concentrated on Izates as if he were an only child. 21 In consequence of this, Izates’ half-brothers by their common father grew envious of the child. Their envy grew into an ever-increasing hatred, for they were all vexed that their father preferred Izates to themselves. 22 Although their father clearly perceived this, he pardoned them, for he attributed their feeling not to any bad motive but rather to the desire that each of them had to win his father’s favour for himself. Yet, as he was greatly alarmed for the young Izates, lest the hatred of his brothers should bring him to some harm, he gave him an abundance of presents and sent him off to Abennerigus the king of Charax Spasini, to whom he entrusted the safety of the boy.