POSTURE. Posture and bodily movements in the Bible and biblical religions
Researcher: Paola Mollo
Start date: 1 June 2022
End date: 31 May 2025
Project Number: 101066209
Partner Institutions/Supervisors: University Sapienza of Rome, Italy, Department of History Anthropology Religions Art Performing Arts (supervisor: prof. A. Camplani); Pontifical Biblical
Institute, Vatican City (supervisor: A. Gianto); Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Faculty of Theology (supervisor: H. Gzella)
Project summary:
Postures and movements are relevant for both a linguistic and a socio-anthropological investigation. From a cross-linguistic perspective, verbs of posture and motion show several interesting idiomatic and metaphorical usages and can be employed to express abstract concepts (like psychological states) and grammatical aspects (e.g., urgency or gradual progression of an action). From a socio-anthropological perspective, posture and body language can express real or assumed power relationships and hierarchies, and serve as “externalizers” of status, gender, age,
and physical weakness. They establish, express, and maintain group identity; and they indicate friendship and respect or, on the contrary, hostility and self-protection.
POSTURE investigates the theme of bodily attitudes, postures and movements within one of the most important pieces of cultural heritage, the Hebrew Bible (HB). Furthermore, it also
investigates the reception of Biblical postures and motions within cultural and intellectual products that depend on the HB, either directly or indirectly, i.e., ancient translations (Aramaic, Syriac, Greek and Latin) and Late Antique Jewish and Christian exegesis (1st-3rd c. CE).
Descriptions of bodily postures and motions are very recurrent in the HB, both literally and metaphorically. However, as of today, not enough attention has been paid to this topic. Combining the semantic analysis of posture and motion verbs in Biblical Hebrew and Biblical Aramaic with
their anthropological and social implications, will allow to gain new knowledge about the idea of body in the HB.
POSTURE also investigates the reception of Biblical postures and motions within later cultural and intellectual products, i.e., ancient translations (Targumic Aramaic, Syriac, Greek and Latin) and Late Antique Jewish and Christian exegesis (1st-3rd c. CE). Since biblical conceptions that are
present in modern and contemporary societies have been transmitted through these texts, the ast part of the research will shed light on the development of the meaning of body and bodily attitudes through centuries of translations and theological interpretations.