Journal of Biblical Literature - Society of Biblical Literature

Book Reviews
recent analysis and insightful discussion in Michael O. Wise, “Dating the Teacher of
Righteousness and the Floruit of his Movement,” JBL 122 [2003]: 53–87).
Magness’s findings suggest that although Qumranology may not be in a state of
chaos, it is far from the “impressive consensus” that Charlesworth believes the field has
reached (p. 21). A deeper look into the issues raised in these two outstanding books raises
the disturbing thought that we would perhaps be closer to a consensus regarding the
archaeology of Khirbet Qumran if not for the perplexing references contained in the
pesharim and related Dead Sea Scrolls (for an examination of the pesharim apart from the
archaeology of Khirbet Qumran, see the excellent treatment of Timothy H. Lim, Pesharim
[Companion to the Qumran Scrolls 3; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 2002]). Rather
than serving as a model for the integration of texts and archaeological remains, the findings
from Khirbet Qumran and the Dead Sea Scroll caves continue to defy all efforts toward
reaching any kind of a consensus. Let us hope that the appearance of these two exceptional
books will urge scholars to call for the prompt publication of all the archaeological
findings and records from de Vaux’s excavations, lest the archaeology of Khirbet Qumran
become the academic scandal par excellence of the twenty-first century.
Kenneth Atkinson
University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA 50614
Pontius Pilate: Portraits of a Roman Governor, by Warren Carter. Interfaces Series.
Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press/Michael Glazier, 2003. Pp. xii+162. $14.95 (paper).
ISBN 0814651135.
Interfaces is a new series of book-length character studies drawn from the Bible
and intended for use in undergraduate classes. While serving as a focal point, a biblical
character such as King Saul or John the Baptist also exposes students to a portion of the
Old or New Testament. The exposure is designed to be critical, with each study drawing
on methodologies current in biblical studies, some even cutting edge. In lieu of the traditional
survey course, it is suggested, a professor may assign several of the Interfaces
volumes during a semester to introduce students to a range of interpretive approaches
as well as to a significant portion of biblical content. Included in the series is Warren
Carter’s Pontius Pilate: Portaits of a Roman Governor, a book that endeavors to show
how a relatively minor character in the Gospels can provide a window on issues of social
justice and reflect significant literary artistry on the part of the evangelists.
In ch. 1, Carter prepares the ground for his own views of the biblical Pilate by
referring to several scholarly positions. He questions whether Pilate was, as many have
held, an indecisive and ultimately weak governor who became a pawn of the Jewish
leadership intent on executing Jesus. Carter disputes other standard descriptions of
Pilate’s role (e.g., Christian convert) before proposing that Pilate was arrogant and
manipulative so as to protect the interests of the ruling elite as well as the structures of
Roman imperial power upon which those interests were based. In fact, this proposal
becomes the book’s thesis, and as such it is developed in subsequent chapters from the
perspectives of the four Gospels.
In ch. 2, Carter explains his methodology: the character of Pilate is to be studied
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