Survey
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
08/03/2015 1 2 3 4 5 6 The Various Sects of Judaism in the 1st Century A.D. Why Might Different Sub-Groups (Sects) Develop Within a Society or Group? One Religion, Many Groups Judaism was not monolithic in the 1st c. (nor is it today) Actually made up of a number of sub-groups What seems to have kept followers of Judaism together were core common practices such as: ◦ Monotheism ◦ Circumcision ◦ Laws of Moses ◦ Dietary restrictions (kashrut) ◦ Weekly Sabbath services ◦ Worshiping at the Temple There was disagreement on a number of details relating to Jewish practice and belief The Various Groups Flavius Josephus, a historian, poet, and military commander identified 5 groups of Jews existing at the time of Jesus ◦ There could have been as many as 12 different groups Groups during the 1st c. according to Josephus were: ◦ Pharisees ◦ Sadducees ◦ Essenes ◦ Zealots ◦ Sicarii Pharisees Considered the fathers of modern Judaism The name Pharisee, comes from he Hebrew/Aramaic word meaning “Separated one” ◦ Originated in protest against the trend of Jews to accept Greek culture and customs Aimed to preserve their national identity ◦ Became a religious and political party Laypeople ◦ Blue-collar; representative of the common people Opposed to Roman rule and their puppet kings ◦ Not sympathetic with rebellious groups though Pharisees Cont. Believed the Torah (written and oral) should be strictly applied to every aspect of life ◦ Accepted all of what we call the Old Testament (46 books) ◦ Oral Torah – knowledge of the meaning and interpretation of the Laws (God gave this ability to Moses) Observance of the Law included strict observance to: ◦ Worship at the Temple ◦ Strict observance of the Sabbath ◦ Obeying purity laws ◦ Dietary rules ◦ Ritual cleansing ◦ Tithing Believed in ◦ Existence of angels and spirits ◦ Existence of an afterlife, and therefore of an immortal soul 7 1 08/03/2015 7 8 9 10 11 ◦ Existence of an afterlife, and therefore of an immortal soul ◦ Resurrection of the Dead ◦ Final judgment (rewards and punishments after death) Sadducees Smaller group than the Pharisees, but more influential Members of the wealthy, aristocratic, ruling class Were elitists, desiring to maintain the priestly class ◦ The Chief Priests, and Elders were from this group (lesser priests may also have been members, but not all were) Priesthood was hereditary (born into it, not a career choice) In charge of maintaining holiness of the Temple, and managing it Made up the majority of the membership for the Sanhedrin (71 members) ◦ Like a Supreme Court – had final say on issues affecting religion and politics ◦ In charge of interpreting civil and religious laws ◦ Also had political responsibilities Willing to incorporate Greek culture into their lives Actively worked with the Romans Sadducees Cont. Considered by themselves and others to be conservatives ◦ Followed only what was in the written law, rejecting oral tradition Believed only what was written in the Torah (literal interpretation) Believed worship at the Temple was the main focus of the Law Rejected belief in: ◦ Life after death ◦ Resurrection of the dead ◦ Final Judgment ◦ Existence of angels and spirits Felt the above beliefs were corruptions of the faith Scribes Not a specific group ◦ Connected to both the Pharisees and Sadducees Specially trained in writing ◦ e.g. produced legal documents, recorded deeds, copied scriptures ◦ Important as many people couldn’t read of write Functioned as interpreters of the Law (their specialty) and teachers Often worked for the ruling class Essenes This group originated with a group of priests ◦ Smaller group than the other 2 Disapproved of the other two groups ◦ Believed that Jerusalem and the Temple had been corrupted by the others Rejected Temple worship ◦ Refused to attend festivals Avoided contact with foreign cultures May have influenced John the Baptist Essenes Cont. They were very concerned with purity Moved out into the desert away from society ◦ Lived in cave dwellings in the mountains In Qumran, close to the Dead Sea (lowest place on Earth) 2 08/03/2015 11 12 13 14 15 16 In Qumran, close to the Dead Sea (lowest place on Earth) Mosaic Law was strictly observed Observed strict dietary rules and also celibacy Believed in immortality of the soul Held apocalyptic ideas (hope that God would destroy the enemies of Israel, and establish a new age) ◦ Believed this new age was coming ◦ Part of the growing hatred of Roman rule Moved into wilderness in order to prepare the way for the coming of the Messiah ◦ Believed there would be 2 (one kingly, the other priestly) Dead Sea Scrolls Discovered in 1947 by a shepherd named Jum’a (from the Bedouin Ta’amierh tribe) ◦ Stumbled into cave, while looking for lost sheep, containing jars with parchment (some papyrus) manuscripts inside They seem to date from 1st c. B.C. to 1st c. A.D. ◦ Thought to have been hidden in the years 66-70 A.D. to protect them from the Roman army which was invading What is on the Scrolls? There are two type of scroll that were found ◦ Biblical ◦ Non-biblical Written in Hebrew, but some also in Aramaic and Greek The Biblical scrolls contain texts found in the Hebrew Bible ◦ Approx. 230 manuscript fragments Partial or complete copies of every book (except Esther) ◦ They are the oldest copies (to date) of the Hebrew Bible Approx. 1000 years older then other known copies Non Biblical scrolls contain other texts like, bible commentaries, hymns and prayers, and texts containing the beliefs of the group. Zealots Most well known revolutionary group ◦ Not the only ones Deeply nationalistic, and set themselves against Roman rule Political and Religious freedom by any means necessary Known for their use of force/violence against the Roman rulers ◦ Often characterised as fanatics who will go to extremes to achieve their goals Began the Great Revolt (66-70 A.D.) against Rome ◦ Ended with the destruction of the Temple Sicarii Another group who undertook violent measures Active mostly in Jerusalem (even within the Temple), but also in smaller villages Engaged in kidnappings and assassinations ◦ Assassinated targets in crowded places then slipped away Their targets were largely Jews who were collaborators with or inactive against Roman rule ◦ Many victims were elite Jews associated with the priesthood Name comes from the Latin word for dagger (sica) ◦ Short dagger was weapon of choice Those not belonging to any sect (aka. Plain Jews) 3 08/03/2015 16 17 Those not belonging to any sect (aka. Plain Jews) Most numerous ◦ And arguably the most important The ones who went about their daily lives as their parents, grandparents and great grandparents had done ◦ Believed in God Followed the rules outlined in the Torah ◦ Observed the Sabbath, holidays, festivals ◦ Went on pilgrimage to the Temple ◦ Observed Jewish rituals and food laws Response How might the existence of multiple different groups within a single religion/faith affect that religion/faith? 4