In first century Palestine Jewish groups In first century Palestine

The Jewish people in first century Palestine saw their religious faith as part of their daily lives. Many of their daily activities were therefore based around fulfilling the mitzvoth, or commandments that are found in the Torah. In the time of Jesus, Jewish life and culture centred around the Temple. 

Groups within judaism In first century Palestine there were many groups in Jewish society. These included the Essenes, who separated themselves from the community and the Pharisees who are depicted in the New Testament. The opponents of the Pharisees were the Sadducees, who were religious but did not believe in following the laws that the Pharisees followed.

pharisees The Pharisees had a connection to the synagogues that were found in the larger villages and towns, particularly in the area of Judea. They were often educated men who were merchants, tradesmen or landholders. Gathering together for communal meals was very important to the Pharisees Pharisees strictly obeyed the Law of Moses. They emphasised outward observance and applying the law correctly.

The Pharisees interpreted the Law of Moses and created customs and practices that promoted being pure and following the correct path to holiness Pharisees avoided contact with Gentile people, who were not Jewish and did not follow the Law, so that they could keep pure. They also tried to avoid people who had sinned or had done wrong, because they were also not pure. Pharisees tried not to touch objects that might have become unclean through contact with unclean people such as Gentiles (non-Jewish people), outcasts and people who had sinned.

purity Ritual cleanliness was very important to Jewish people in first century Palestine. Books of the Torah (e.g. Numbers and Leviticus) outline what observant Jews needed to do to become clean after contact with certain foods, diseases, blood, non-Jewish people, or someone who may be Jewish but ‘unclean’ The main way that Jewish people became ritually clean again was through immersion in water. Ritual baths, called mikvehs, were built near the Temple in Jerusalem, and some wealthier people had the ritual baths in their own homes. The water in the mikveh had to have at least some ‘living’ water, which could be rainwater, river water or sea water.

Priests, levites and tax collectors Priests and Levites (or temple workers) had to follow very strict purity laws because they were responsible for the sacrifices in the Temple People believed that tax collectors were ritually unclean because they had contact with Gentiles (non-Jewish people), especially when they handled the Gentile money.

sadducees The Sadducees were the priestly group of the Jewish people who followed the written law that was found in the first five books of the Bible. They believed only in the written word found in the Torah The Sadducees were often from the wealthy classes and they were powerful in the Sanhedrin, or Jewish council. Many Sadducees lived in Jericho as it was close to the Temple in Jerusalem where they worked in two week assignments each year

scribes Scribes could read and write so therefore they often held positions in the government or city/town administration They were linked to both the Pharisees and the Sadducees Work that the Scribes did included copying decisions made in court, making contracts, and filing documents. They also wrote official records and histories. Some Scribes were also rabbis or teachers. They could also be lawyers or keepers of the sacred Torah scrolls.

essenes The Essenes were a smaller Jewish group in first-century Palestine. They were not happy with the way that the Sadducees administrated the Temple so they set up their own community The Essenes followed a strict code. They shared all things in common, they prayed regularly, wore simple clothes and ritual cleanliness was important.

rabbis In many Jewish villages in first-century Palestine, groups of men, called haberim, came together to read from the Torah and talk about how the Law applied to their daily lives.Young J wish men joined a haberim and then became a student of the rabbis The title of rabbi was used to show respect for a scholar or teacher Rabbis across first-century Palestine had groups that followed their ‘way’ and the greater the number of followers, or disciples, the more honour and respect was given to the rabbi. One role of the rabbi was to interpret and make sense of the Torah for everyday life