==================================================================
                     @@@@@      @@@@@    @@@@@
                     @    @    @        @
Allred               @     @   @@@@@    @@@@@               Spring
on Cook              @     @        @        @                1995
                     @    @         @        @
                    @@@@@@    @@@@@@   @@@@@@  
==================================================================
        R       E       V       I       E       W       S
==================================================================

Dead Sea Scroll Book Reviews, for Religious Studies 225
University of Pennsylvania, Robert Kraft, Spring Term 1995
Copyright by the respective authors; 
reproduction with appropriate credits is permitted.

[[NOTE: The assignment was to summarize the reviewed book and to 
compare it especially with the textbooks used in the course, by James 
VanderKam <t>The Dead Sea Scrolls Today</> (Eerdmans/SPCK 1994) and 
Joseph Fitzmyer <t>Responses to 101 Questions on the Dead Sea 
Scrolls</> (Paulist Press 1992). As with this note, any comments by 
the course instructor are enclosed in double brackets below.]] 
-----

Edward M. Cook <t>Solving the Mysteries of the Dead Sea Scrolls</>. 
Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1994. 191 pages. 

Reviewed by Lance B. Allred
lallred@sas.upenn.edu

<1.1>
The book begins, as do most such books on the subject, with the 
exciting history of the scrolls. While suppyling many details about 
the initial discovery of the scrolls, C. carefully tries not to make 
the subjest any more confusing than it already is. After chronicling 
thier discovery and removal from Qumran, C. follows the scrolls to 
East Jerusalem, where he begins the lengthy story of the "scrolls 
cartel", first under de Vaux, then Benoit, then Strugnell, and finally 
Emanuel Tov. Along the way, C. discusses some of the more notable 
scroll "personalities" and their expliots. Included among those 
"personalities" are Frank Cross, the ever personable John Strugnell, 
and of course, John Allegro. 

<1.2>
The remaining two-thirds of the book deal primarily with the 
authorship question: who wrote the scrolls? A good portion of the 
discussion is spent on the most popular theory, the Essene 
hypothesis. C. makes a good case for the hypothesis, and provides 
much of the standard evidence: Josephus, Philo, text from the Manual 
of Discipline, etc. In addition to the evidence for the hypothesis, C. 
also includes several strong objections that scholars have raised over 
the years. 

<1.3>
Along with the Essene hypothesis, however, C. brings up many of the 
other less-plausible theories, including the identification of the 
scrolls with the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the Zealots. Sadly, the 
theory that the scrolls were written by hyper-intelligent mushrooms is 
not covered. As with the Essene hypothesis above, C. also raises valid 
objections to each theory. 

<1.4>
In the final section of the book, C. discusses Christianity and the 
scrolls. He points out the many similarities between the scrolls and 
the gospels of the New Testament, but concludes that the scrolls have 
no direct connection to early Christianity or Jesus. 

<2.1>
As mentioed above, C. makes it quite clear that this book is really 
just an introduction to the Dead Sea Scrolls, and that is exactly what 
<t>Solving the Mysteries of the Dead Sea Scrolls</> is, an 
<e>introduction</>. C. doesn't get technical with discussions of 
Hebrew paleography, or turn-of-the-era archaeology, thus allowing an 
introducatary student or layperson a simple and easy grasp of the 
material. 

<2.2>
Another plus of the book is that it is extremely well annotated. By 
the end of the book, C. lists just about every [[English]] book or 
article that mentions the scrolls. With such a comprehensive list, it 
is easy to find other, more advanced works regarding the scrolls. 

<3.1>
The only drawback of the book is that it is not of much use for a more 
advanced class or study group (like ours). The story of the discovery 
of the scrolls, almost a third of the book, is really rather trivial 
in a scholarly setting, and the discussion of the theories of 
authorship are not deep enough for an advanced class to gain much. 

<00.1>
This book is excellent for those individuals and classes who don't 
intend to study the scrolls beyond a basic level. As mentioned above, 
it is very readable on a popular level, and can easily be studied and 
enjoyed as such. However, those interested in taking their study of 
the scrolls to a more advanced understanding may do better to choose a 
work that more suits that aim (see VanderKam, for example). 

Lance Allred
PO Box 31975
Philadelphia, PA 19104

after May 21, 1995
923 Osage Dr.
Stillwater, OK 74075

//end//