Travel and Hospitality in Josephus’ Representation of the Essene Community (Judean War 2.124–127) and Its Literary and Cultural Contexts

What is it about?

In his description of the Essenes in the Judaean War, Josephus asserts that members of this group settled in many cities, and, forming an interregional community whose members travelled between and visited each other in different places. How can we explain Josephus’ emphasis on the Essenes as a hospitable community in view of a first-century readership of War and in the wider socio-cultural context of the Roman Mediterranean? article has two aims. First, we examine the emphasis on travel and hospitality in Josephus’ description of the Essenes by situating this passage in its wider narrative context. Using the Essene passage as our a starting point, our second aim is to elucidate the cultural constructs that underpin Josephus’ descriptions of hospitality throughout his writings.

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