Dark Times The Roman occupation was such a dark time in Jewish history. Some of the most brilliant of the rabbinical sages had been murdered by Herod. Corruption had crept into the Temple hierarchy. Jews had split into three major groups: 1. the wealthy Sadducees (many of them were Cohanim ― the priestly families), who denied the authority of the Oral Law, pledging allegiance to Rome; 2. the fanatically religious and nationalistic Zealots ready to battle Rome to the death in a suicidal war; and 3. the mainstream Pharisee majority, still loyal to Torah and Oral Law, caught in between. Out of this chaotic time ― marked by virulent anti-Semitism and cruel oppression of the Jews ― were born a number of splinter sects, whose members believed that the Apocalypse was at hand. Finding a receptive ear among the disfranchised, these sects preached that the ultimate battle of good versus evil would soon be fought, followed by the Messianic redemption of humanity. The Dead Sea Sect ― which became famous in modern times after the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in Qumran, and which may or may not have been associated with the Essenes ― was one such sect, but there were many others. The teachings of these sects did not catch on in any significant way among the Jews. In the same way that the Jews usually rejected foreign religions, they also rejected attempts to tamper with the inner workings of Judaism. Nevertheless, at this tumultuous time, the Jews were more susceptible than ever before. The countryside was alive with charismatic healers and preachers, and people flocked to them hoping to hear prophecy that the years of strife and suffering were at an end. The one who would become most legendary, was Yeshua, or Jesus, who later in history came to be called Christ, which is Greek for Messiah. It is outside of this post to describe the beginnings of early Christianity under the name Jesus. Currently, there exist approximately 2,700 books in print on the subject, many of them written in recent years discussing the issue of the historical Jesus vs. the legendary Jesus, and debating what he said or did not say and what can be said of him with any certainty. Historically speaking, very little is known. The authors of the Gospel, beginning with Mark c. 60 C.E., all lived after the accepted date of Jesus death (c.34 C.E.) There are several references in the Talmud to various personalities of whom the rabbis disapproved and some have speculated that one or more of these references are to Jesus. The closest possibility is Yeshu HaNotzri, but there are several problems with this idea: First, there are at least two characters in the Talmud with the name Yeshu HaNotzri. Second, according to Jewish chronology, these two individuals lived about 300 years apart and neither lived at the time of Jesus. The first Yeshu lived at the time that Joshua Ben Perachyah led the Sanhedrin (circa 150 BCE) and, therefore, predated Jesus according to Christian chronology by at least 150 years. The second Yeshu lived sometime during the second century C.E. about 100 years after the death of Jesus. Finally, the limited narrative we do find in the Talmud about Yeshu does not match anything from the Gospel. One would expect ― if Jesus was at all influential in his time – that the great Jewish historian Josephus (c. 38 – c. 100 C.E.) would have devoted considerable space to him. In all of Josephuss writings there is but one mention of Jesus (Josephus, Antiquities, 18:3:3.) and this single reference is considered by virtually all scholars to have been an insertion into the original text-added later by Christian monks who copied such texts for church libraries. The best we can say with certainty from a Jewish point of view is that the Christian world does agree that Jesus was a Jew who was familiar with the Torah, observed the Law of Moses and taught many of its precepts, though he also departed from some of them (traditions). One of the most famous of his teachings consists of two Torah quotations that were staples of Judaism and echoes the emphasis of the rabbinic teachings of his era. Asked to name the greatest commandment, Jesus, as cited in the Gospel of Matthew (22:37-40), replies: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it. Love your neighbor as yourself. All the law and the prophets hang on these two commandments. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might is a quotation from Deuteronomy 6:5. Love your neighbor as yourself is from Leviticus 19:18. These teachings predated Jesus by some 1,300 years. As already mentioned, the extant Gospels, which are said to record what were the teachings of Jesus were written in Greek many years after his death (which, incidentally, Christian sources give as c.34 CE or some 35 years before the destruction of the Temple.) It is hard to believe everything told in Greek about someone who lived a Jewish life. One cant rule out scribal error in the translation process. This is history not easily told.
Posted on: Mon, 27 Jan 2014 16:20:30 +0000
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