Religion Fact of the Day

The Documentary Hypothesis is the most widely accepted theory for the origin of the Pentateuch (aka Torah, aka the Five Books of Moses). While it has come under increasing criticism in recent decades, it still stands as the theory against which all others are measured. In essence, it states that their were four authors called the Yahwist (J), Elohist (E), Priestly (P), and Deuteronomist (D). A fifth player, the redactor (R), brought these strands together into the Pentateuch as we know it. As mentioned in a previous RFoD, this happened in the postexilic period (6th century BCE).