Die Kultreform Josias

Josiah's cult reform has been called the main event in the history of literature and religion in ancient Israel. The reform of the system of religious symbols, expressed in Josiah's measures related to cult policies, marked a turning point in the history of the religion of ancient Israel on its way to a monotheistic concept of God. Conventional wisdom has it that this also provided the historical background for the creation of the so-called proto-Deuteronomy. According to the latest research however both the agenda and the historicity of Josiah's cult reform are highly controversial. Against this backdrop, Michael Pietsch takes a new look at the relevant literary and archeological sources and provides a reevaluation of the processes in the history of religion which led to the transformation of the religion of ancient Israel.