| If one believes that the examination of the Bible limits | | | | interest in defining and delimiting "the territory" of the |
| itself only to its text, one couldn't be more wrong. | | | | biblical events. Due to the fact that the contents of the |
| Cultural anthropology is another branch of research | | | | Holy Book revolve around the life and history of |
| that gets involved in the exegesis process. This | | | | Jewish people in the area of current Israel, the term |
| scientific field attempts to explain in a nonjudgmental | | | | "biblical archeology" is sometimes replaced by the |
| and objective way what is the role that religion or | | | | archeology of the land of Israel. Still, some scientists |
| history plays within a certain culture through the prism | | | | consider both terms too restrictive seeing that many |
| of social, psychological and intellectual aspects. | | | | biblical events were placed in Egypt, Mesopotamia and |
| For instance, understanding the principles, sayings and | | | | other regions. As a consequence, they call themselves |
| teachings of Jesus, one needs to know the cultural | | | | archeologists of the lands of the Bible or of the Near |
| and historical contexts of the time. His story is put in a | | | | East. |
| special light when getting acquainted with his | | | | Nevertheless, Palestine encompasses more or less the |
| background, namely being a Jew who lived in Palestine | | | | geographical area within which the majority of the |
| under Roman occupation. | | | | biblical events took place. Derived form the word |
| A great contribution to unraveling some of the | | | | Philistine, which denominated the people who lived |
| mysteries of the Bible was brought through | | | | along the coast, Palestine refers to the region located |
| archeology. The scope of this discipline is related to the | | | | at the crossroads between Egypt and other large |
| study of the remains of the human past (ancient | | | | ancient civilizations to the North and East (Phoenicians |
| artifacts, texts and bones) in order to obtain insight of | | | | and Mesopotamians). The name was used until the |
| passed historical periods. Archeology has been | | | | formation of the modern state of Israel in 1948. This |
| considered a "tool" of testing the truth of the things | | | | region was a source of dispute because of its qualities, |
| emitted in the Bible. Biblical archeology settles its | | | | which justified the paraphrase "the Promised Land". |