The Co-production of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
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Book Series
Co-produced Religions, vol. 2
The Co-Production of Hypocrisy in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
Carson Bay, Katharina Heyden, David Nirenberg (eds)
- Pages: approx. 280 p.
- Size:156 x 234 mm
- Language(s):English
- Publication Year:2026
- € 95,00 EXCL. VAT RETAIL PRICE
- ISBN: 978-2-503-62347-4
- Hardback
- Forthcoming (Dec/26)
- ISBN: 978-2-503-62348-1
- E-book
- Forthcoming
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A history of how hypocrisy became a central concept in religion, politics, and psychology, from the ancient world to the modern.
Subject(s)
BIO
David Nirenberg is Leon Levy Professor and Director of the Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton.
Katharina Heyden is Full Professor for Ancient History of Christianity and Interreligious Encounters at the University of Bern.
Carson Bay is Associate Professor of Classics and Biblical Studies at the University of Austin (UATX).
Summary
The obscure Greek term ‘hypocrisy’ burst into the New Testament, becoming a key word in the theological, political, and psychological history of the Christian and Islamic worlds. Ever since, arguments about hypocrisy have been integral to the sectarian processes whereby various groups of Jews, Christians, and Muslims have defined themselves and competed with one another, with the boundary between hypocrisy and sincerity becoming a battleground in contests over religious authority and legitimacy. How did hypocrisy become such a powerful concept, through which so many peoples have come to understand the dangers of communication and the difficulties of distinguishing between good and evil? The contributions in this volume answer this question from different angles, with studies focusing on biblical texts, ancient Jewish and/or Christian literature, writings from the early Islamic period, sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Spanish political thinkers, and moral, philosophical, and imaginative work from the nineteenth century. Together they demonstrate how the powers of hypocrisy have emerged from the efforts of Jews, Christians, and Muslims to distinguish themselves from each other, creating a concept that — for good or ill — continues to help much of humanity make sense of the world.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Co-produced History of Hypocrisy in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
DAVID NIRENBERG
Who’s a Liar? Hypocrisy, Deceit, and Martyrdom in Jewish and Christian Religious Discourses from the Hellenistic Period until Late Antiquity
MAUREEN ATTALI and JILLIAN STINCHCOMB
Apostolic Hypocrisy: A Driving Force of Religious Co-production in Late Antiquity
KATHARINA HEYDEN
Co-producing Hypocrisy in Jewish-Christian Antiquity: The Pharisees, Esau, and Other Hypocrites
SHLOMO ZUCKIER
Heretical Hypocrisy: The Construction of Hypocrisy in Debates about Heresy
GAETANO SPAMPINATO
The Problem of the Double Heart in Ancient Christianity and Medieval Islam
DAVID GYLLENHAAL
Political Hypocrisy as Judaizing in Early Modern Spanish Anti-Machiavellism
BENNY BAR-LAVI
The Idea of Unconscious Hypocrisy
ANTHONY OSSA-RICHARDSON