The Essenes
Aside from the Pharisees, the gospels and Book of Acts mention the
Sadducees as the only other major school of Judaic thought. The Sadducees
tended to be rich, nationalist and secularist.
The Jewish historian Josephus, who lived during the time of Jesus, wrote
that the "Pharisees have delivered to the people a great many
observances...which are not written into the laws of Moses and" which "the
Sadducees reject," but they "are able to persuade none but the rich,"
whereas "the Pharisees have the multitude on their side." Thus Jesus never
rejected Mosaic Law (Matthew 5:17-19; Mark 10:17-22; Luke 16:17); only its
Pharisaic excesses.
Obviously, Jesus was neither Pharisee nor Sadducee. No analysis of the
history of Christianity and the teachings of Jesus can ignore the Essenes.
The Jewish historian Josephus, who lived during the time of Jesus, wrote
that there were but three Jewish sects in his day: the Pharisees, the
Sadducees and the Essenes. Josephus actually spent time in an Essene
monastery and compiled a detailed account of their doctrines and way of
life--similar to primitive Christianity.
New Testament scholars such as Bahrdt (1784-1792), Venturini (1800), Gfoerer
(1831-38), Hennel (1840) and von der Alm (1863), have all suggested that
Jesus may have been an Essene. The Pharisees and Sadducees appear in the
gospels and book of Acts as parties inimical to the new church, but no
mention is made of the Essenes. It is quite possible Christianity grew out
of Essenism. Essenism began around 180 BC as a reaction to Hellenistic
influence among the Jewish people. They called themselves the Zadokites or
the Hasidim (pious). In addition to the canonical books of the Old
Testament, they composed and studied their own scriptures, commentaries and
prophecies, written between 170 and 60 BC. These scriptures were uncovered
by modern archaeology in the Essene monastery at Khirbet-Qumran, west of the
Dead Sea. The Essenes flourished until 69 AD, when they were killed by the
Romans.
The Essene community called itself by the same name ("Edah") used by the
early Christians to denote the church. The same term used to designate its
legislative assembly was also used to denote the council of the early
Christian church. There were twelve "men of holiness" serving as general
guides for the community--strikingly similar to the twelve apostles. These
men had three superiors, designated as pillars of the community--exactly the
positions held by John, Peter and James in the early Christian church.
(Galatians 2:9)
Both the Essenes and the earliest Christians referred to themselves as "the
poor in the world," "the sons of light" and "the chosen of God who shall
judge the nations at the end of time." The earliest Christians called
themselves "the saints," "the brethren," "the elect," "the believers,"
"those in Messiah," "those of the Lord," "the sons of peace," "the
disciples" and "the poor." The word most used to refer to Christians in the
New Testament is "brethren." The Manual of Discipline and other Essene
texts, found in the Dead Sea Scrolls, indicate that they spoke of each other
as "brethren."
During the Last Supper, Peter motioned to one of the disciples "to ask who
it was of whom he (Jesus) spoke." (John 13:24) This was consistent with the
practice of the Essenes when they met together in sessions: "Nor shall a man
speak in the midst of the words of his neighbor, before his brother finishes
speaking. Neither shall he speak before his proper order." It appears the
disciple next to Jesus held a higher rank in the group than Peter, and was
the one posing the question to Jesus.
The Essene monastery communal meal resembles the Last Supper of the New
Testament. In both meals, only men participated in a large upper room. (Mark
14:15) In both groups the recognized leader presided over the meal. Lastly,
the leader blessed both the bread and the drink. Because of these close
parallels, the depiction of the Last Supper more closely resembles the
communal meals of the Essenes than it does the Passover meal, which is
traditionally a patriarchal family rite in which the father of a family
presides.
The epistle of James is regarded as one of the earliest epistles in the New
Testament. It is addressed to the twelve Jewish tribes of the Dispersion.
Its writer, James the Just, the brother of Jesus (Matthew 13:55; Mark 6:3;
Galatians 1:19), held a leading position at the Church in Jerusalem. (Acts
12:17, 15:13, 21:13) James (4:5) appears to quote directly from Essene
scripture.
He asks, "Do you think that scripture says in vain, 'The spirit which God
made to dwell in us lusteth to envy?'" The scripture he refers to are not
the canonical books of the Old Testament, because such a statement cannot be
found in them. However, a similar statement can be found in the Manual of
Discipline: "God has made two spirits to dwell in us, each rivaling the
other; the evil one lusteth and envies the good." Jesus' instructions in
Matthew 18:15-17 concern disputes among the brethren. He mentions evidence,
witnesses and an already existing church hierarchy. Jesus was quoting a set
of Essene rules which can also be found in the Manual of Discipline.
John the Baptist is said to have been raised in the desert from childhood.
The Essene monastery was not far from where John supposedly lived. The
Essenes were the only Jewish sect with a celibate priesthood, practicing
baptism. The Manual of Discipline says they followed Isaiah 40:3, "go to the
wilderness to prepare there the way...make level in the desert a path for
the Lord."
This was John's description of himself, as found in the canonical gospels
(John 1:23). "Repent," he preached, "for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
(Matthew 3:2) The Essenes believed they belonged to a "covenant of
repentance." (Zadokite Document) John the Baptist said that one greater than
he would baptize with fire and the Holy Spirit. The Manual of Discipline
declares that the time would come when God would cleanse man through the
Holy Spirit and through His Messiah, God would make His chosen know the Holy
Spirit.
Josephus writes that the Essenes adopted children and brought them up in
God's service. According to the gospels, John the Baptist was in the desert
from boyhood until the day of his showing in Israel. The gospels are also
silent about Jesus' life from the age of twelve to thirty. Both Jesus and
his relative John were about the same age. According to Jewish tradition, a
student must reach his thirtieth birthday before he can qualify as a priest
or rabbi. Both Jesus and John met this requirement. John, a few months older
than Jesus, was the first to preach. Jesus followed shortly thereafter.
The title of "Rabbi" was conferred by the priests of the synagogue or
temple. Neither Jesus nor John received this honor from either the Pharisees
or the Sadducees. Joesphus mentions only three sects: the Pharisees,
Sadducees and the Essenes. (Antiquities G.13,1,2; Antiquities B.13,5,9; Wars
of the Jews B.2,8,2)
"Both Mark and Matthew describe the Baptist as eating 'locusts and wild
honey' (Matthew 3:4; Mark 1:6)," writes Joseph A. Grassi in his 1975 work,
Underground Christians in the Earliest Church. "This is the typical diet of
a vegetarian who took seriously the injunction in Genesis that God had
originally created the plants of the earth as man's food, and had only
reluctantly permitted him later to kill animals for meat. (Genesis 1:29,
9:3) Jesus' first disciples came from John the Baptist (John 1:35-51; Acts
1:21-22). Jesus was influenced enough by John to be baptized by him."
The Essenes were vegetarian. One of their earliest scriptural texts, the
Zadokite Document proclaims: "Let not a man make himself abominable with any
living creature or creeping thing by eating them."
"Thou hast created plants
for the service of man
and all things that spring from the earth
that he may be fed in abundance
and to them that acknowledge Thy truth
Thou has also given insight
to divine Thy wondrous works."
---Hymns of the Initiates
X,14 - XI,2
These verses appear to be based on Genesis 1:26-31 and Daniel 1:9-21.
Epiphanius, a Christian bishop during the fourth century, wrote that "the
Essenes eschewed the flesh of animals." According to Josephus, "they all sit
down together to one sort of food...live the same kind of life as those whom
the Greeks call Pythagoreans."
The French philosopher Voltaire observed, "It is well known that Pythagoras
embraced the humane doctrine of anti-flesh-eating. There was a rivalry as to
who could be the most virtuous--the Essenes or the Pythagoreans." Philo of
Alexandria wrote, "They live the longest lives...about a hundred years,
owing to the simplicity of their diet." The Roman teacher Porphyry, a
vegetarian, also spoke of the Essene meals as a "single simple dish of pure,
clean food." St. Jerome admired the Essenes: "those men who perpetually
abstained from meat and wine and had acquired the habit of everyday
fasting."
According to Philo, "Not a single slave is to be found among them, but all
are free, exchanging services with each other, and they denounce the owners
of slaves...they have shown themselves especially devout in the service to
God, not by offering sacrifices of animals, but by resolving to sanctify
their minds." Josephus writes, "they do not offer sacrifices because they
have more pure lustrations of their own; on which account they are excluded
from the common court of the temple."
The Essenes were pacifists. "As for darts, javelins, daggers, or the helmet,
breastplate or shield," Philo explained, "you could not find a single
manufacturer of them nor, in general, any person making weapons or engines
or plying any industry concerned with war; nor, indeed, any of the peaceful
kind which easily lapse into vice." These descriptions parallel Jesus'
teachings (Matthew 5:9,39,43-44, 26:52) where he blesses the peacemakers,
tells his followers to "turn the other cheek" if attacked, to bless and pray
for their enemies and to refrain from taking up arms.
"They do not hoard gold and silver," continues Philo, "but provide what is
needed for the necessary requirements of life...they have become moneyless
and landless by deliberate action..." Jesus also told his followers to seek
the treasures in heaven, calling for the renunciation of earthly possessions
and family ties. (Matthew 6:19-21, 6:25-34, 10:34-39, 19:20-21,29; Luke
9:57-62, 14:25-26,33)
The Essenes observed the Sabbath in synagogues and shared their homes and
possessions. These were the practices of the apostles and the earliest
Christian communities. (Acts 1:13, 2:44,46, 4:32-37) According to Philo,
"They are trained in piety, holiness, justice, domestic and civil conduct,
knowledge of what is good through the love of God, love of virtue, and love
of men. Their love of God they show by a multitude of proofs: by religious
purity constant and unbroken throughout their lives, by abstinence from
oaths, by veracity...by their freedom from the love of either money or
reputation or pleasure; by self-mastery and endurance; again by frugality,
simple living, contentment, humility, respect for the law; steadiness and
all similar qualities."
Like the Essenes, Jesus taught his followers not to use oaths (Matthew
5:33-37), to serve God rather than Mammon (Matthew 6:24; Luke 16:13), and to
respect both civil and religious authorities. (Matthew 22:21, 23:1-3) Jesus
also emphasized humility and servitude over glory, honor and exaltation.
(Matthew 20:24-28; Mark 10:41-45; Luke 9:46-48, 14:7-11, 17:7-10; John
13:3-17)
Josephus wrote that the Essenes faced death calmly and joyfully at the hands
of the Romans, knowing "their bodies shall decay and become dust...the souls
are immortal, and shall live eternally." The Essenes, said Josephus, taught
that in worldly existence, the soul is chained to the body like a prisoner
to his cell, but when set free from the flesh, then "already tasting
heavenly bliss, it soars up to the bright kingdom of joy and peace."
(Compare Matthew 13:43)
Around 1830, Thomas de Quincey wrote an essay claiming the Essenes never
existed; that Josephus merely mistook early Christians for these godly
people. It would be sacreligious, he argued, to accept the existence of such
large communities of worshippers, with doctrines and practices identical to
those found in Christianity, prior to Jesus' life and ministry!
No historical evidence proving a relationship between the Essenes and early
Christianity has ever been found. The striking similarities between the two
faiths, however, strongly suggests that the earliest Christians were
influenced by the Essenes. No serious student of Christian thought can
ignore the direct influence of Judaism and the possible influence of the
Essenes (and the Dead Sea Scrolls) upon the theological development of early
Christianity.
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