Jesus and the Essenes

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The theory that God interacts with humans through an angel aligning with Essene beliefs, as well as Philo's concept of the Logos; Legge, Francis (1964). Forerunners and rivals of Christianity, from 330 B.C. to 330 A.D.. New Hyde Park, New York: University Books. LCCN 64024125. OCLC 381558. a b Pliny the Elder. Historia Naturalis. Ab occidente litora Esseni fugiunt usque qua nocent, gens sola et in toto orbe praeter ceteras mira, sine ulla femina, omni venere abdicata, sine pecunia, socia palmarum. in diem ex aequo convenarum turba renascitur, large frequentantibus quos vita fessos ad mores eorum fortuna fluctibus agit. ita per saeculorum milia—incredibile dictu—gens aeterna est, in qua nemo nascitur. tam fecunda illis aliorum vitae paenitentia est! infra hos Engada oppidum fuit, secundum ab Hierosolymis fertilitate palmetorumque nemoribus, nunc alterum bustum. inde Masada castellum in rupe, et ipsum haut procul Asphaltite. et hactenus Iudaea est. {{ cite book}}: |work= ignored ( help) cf. English translation. Populous citieslike Jerusalemwere controlled by Sadducees and Pharisees and their scribes of the law. Their version of recorded history and their dominant religious narrative often survived as the only arbiter of what has been passed down to later generations. That narrative is now being challenged by what we are learning about the Essene way of life today.

In 2020, Meru University offered an exciting course on the relationship between Jesus and a little-known Jewish community called the Essenes. For many Meru University students who had never heard of the Essenes, the course proved to be an eye-opening education. Schonfield, Hugh J. (1984). The Essene Odyssey: The Mystery of the True Teacher and the Essene Impact on the Shaping of Human Destiny. Tisbury: Element Books. ISBN 0-906540-49-6. OCLC 12223220. Harkavy, Abraham. "Le-Ḳorot ha-Kittot be-Yisrael". In Grätz, Heinrich (ed.). Geschichte der Juden (in Hebrew). Vol.iii. p.496.

I have read a few books regarding ancient philosophy, theology, Egyptian History/Mythology, Hebrew scriptures, etc. I find in my research information on the Jesus question mysterious. The article above has inspired me to dig even deeper in my quest for answers and truth. A lie and misinformation can only exist when the truth is not present. Different groups of Christians battled with the same basic problems of self-definition: what should one believe, and how should one live, to be a proper Christian? Tools and services JPost Premium Ulpan Online JPost Newsletter Our Magazines Learn Hebrew RSS feed JPost.com Archive Digital Library Lists of Jewish holidays Law

Szekely’s The Essene Gospel of Peace might have remained in relative obscurity if orthodoxy had had its way. With the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls a few decades later , this new evidence of a thriving Essene Community at Qumranin the centuries leading up to the birth of a prophesied Messiah, gives us irrefutable proof that this sect was focused on preparing to welcome, nurture and protect the son of manand his globally transformational and timely mission. The main sources for the Essenes come from the Jewish philosopher, Philo of Alexandria (20 BCE to c. 50 CE), Pliny the Elder (23-79 CE) in his Natural History, and the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus (36-100 CE). They are described as a separate community north of the oasis of Ein Gedi on the shores of the Dead Sea (Qumran). All the writers claim that these Essenes were celibate. Like the historical Jesus, “the Essenes” can easily become a screen upon which one projects one’s own interests and ideological location(s), whether that be Jesus’ “hidden years,” a window into the “secret history” of early Christianity, or an historically non-existent fabrication by Philo, Josephus, and Pliny.The Teacher of Righteousness of the Scrolls would seem to be a prototype of Jesus, for both spoke of the New Covenant; they preached a similar gospel; each was regarded as a Savior or Redeemer; and each was condemned and put to death by reactionary factions... We do not know whether Jesus was an Essene, but some scholars feel that he was at least influenced by them. [67] Alexander, David; Alexander, Pat (1983). The Lion handbook to the Bible. Tring: Lion Hudson. ISBN 0-86760-271-6. Although the work of The Enoch Seminar challenges and expands the definition of the “Essenic/Enochic” movement, it seems that today, with few notable exceptions, the “Essenes” continue to be marginalized in biblical scholarship – often demoted from being a powerful socio-political force within first-century Judaism to being the isolated, misanthropic, and ultra-legalistic recluses of “the Qumran community” or the literary-ideological fantasies of Josephus, Philo, and Pliny. As Susannah Heschel points out, the Essene hypothesis seemed to heighten a Christian “anxiety of influence” – an anxiety based on the fact that Christianity originated within Judaism. Consequently, the Essene hypothesis served several historical and ideological purposes for Jewish scholars: it boosted Jewish self-esteem in light of Christianity’s success, de-stabilized normative definitions of Judaism and Christianity, and supported revisionist readings of Jesus in a Jewish context. One answer could be that the Essene leaders had determined long ago to build their communities far from urban centers. They purposefully separated themselves out, choosing wilderness areas to pursue theirmission—the preservation of Yahweh’sLaw as the Torah, all its many adjunct rabbinical writings, and more. 5.

Cyprus), Saint Epiphanius (Bishop of Constantia in (2009). The Panarion of Epiphanius of Salamis: Book I (sects 1-46). BRILL. p.32. ISBN 978-90-04-17017-9. Josephus ( c. 75). The Wars of the Jews. 2.137–138. Josephus' mention of the three-year duration of the Essene probation may be compared with the phased character of the entrance procedure in the Qumran Rule of the Community [1QS; at least two years plus an indeterminate initial catechetical phase, 1QS VI]. The provisional surrender of property required at the beginning of the last year of the novitiate derives from actual social experience of the difficulties of sharing property in a fully communitarian setting, cf. Brian J. Capper, 'The Interpretation of Acts 5.4', Journal for the Study of the New Testament 19 (1983) pp. 117–131; idem, '"In der Hand des Ananias." Erwägungen zu 1QS VI,20 und der urchristlichen Gütergemeinschaft', Revue de Qumran 12(1986) 223–236; Eyal Regev, "Comparing Sectarian Practice and Organization: The Qumran Sect in Light of the Regulations of the Shakers, Hutterites, Mennonites and Amish", Numen 51 (2004), pp. 146–181.

In several places, however, Josephus has Essaios, which is usually assumed to mean Essene ("Judas of the Essaios race"; [17] "Simon of the Essaios race"; [18] "John the Essaios"; [19] "those who are called by us Essaioi"; [20] "Simon a man of the Essaios race"). [21] Josephus identified the Essenes as one of the three major Jewish sects of that period. [22] Josephus, Flavius. Jewish War, Book II. Chapter 8, Paragraph 13. {{ cite book}}: CS1 maint: location ( link) Alvar Ellegård; Jesus—One Hundred Years Before Christ: A Study In Creative Mythology, London (1999). ISBN 0-87951-720-4 The Essenes are described as a separate community north of the oasis of Ein Gedi on the shores of the Dead Sea (Qumran).

And when I was about sixteen years old, I had a mind to make trial of the several sects that were among us. These sects are three: The first is that of the Pharisees, the second that Sadducees, and the third that of the Essenes, as we have frequently told you The Life of Josephus Flavius, 2.The Gnostics believed themselves to be chosen ones, with particles of the divinity trapped in the matter of their bodies. These divine sparks could, with special knowledge and practices, be freed to rejoin their celestial home. Drower, Ethel Stefana (1953). The Haran Gawaita and the Baptism of Hibil-Ziwa. Biblioteca Apostolica Vatican. It is a cliché that history is written by the winners, but in the case of early Christian history it is particularly true. The 'losers' were commemorated by their contemporaries only as heretics and sinners. Deutsch, Nathaniel (6 October 2007). "Save the Gnostics". The New York Times . Retrieved 13 May 2022.