Beliefs

BEFORE THE COMMON ERA (BCE)

*Date*	*Location*	*Community*	*Description*
2000	Egypt	Egyptian	Proverbs. Earliest collection of Egyptian proverbs written.
400	Babylon	Exiled Judeans	Concept of Scripture introduced by the canonization of writings that become the first five books of the Hebrew Bible by exiled Judeans. The motivation behind the decision to create a canon may have been Darius' decree.
180			Wisdom of Ben Sira & Ecclesiasticus. Jesus ben Sira wrote The Wisdom of Ben Sira and Ecclesiasticus. [The First Messiah - p. 50] He calls himself a "scribe," which in this period meant a wise man [58].
94	Jerusalem	Elite priestly families, Sadducees and Pharisees	Conflict over different versions of Religious Law. Civil war erupted over dispute between the reigning king Alexander Jannaeus (103-76), supported by the elite priestly families and Sadducees, and the Pharisees. The central issue was -- Whose version of religious law would control the Temple activities? No one in Judea would have thought to make a distinction religious and political matters - religion was political; poitics, religious. The specific issue that ignited the conflict was the question of where to pour a certain libation while celebrating the autumn harvest Festival of Tabernacles. Alexander made a show of pouring the water on his feet, following the protocol - according to the Sadducean position. The Pharisees held that the libation must be poured instead on the altar. Alexander won, but the conflict would continue. [The First Messiah - p. 38-39]
76	Jerusalem	Pharisees	Pharisees come to dominate the Jerusalem city council. The council dealt with the affairs of Jerusalem, including taxation and the Temple. [The First Messiah - p. 64]
76	Jerusalem	Teacher of Righteousness	The Man of Lies. The Teacher of Righteousness refers to Shimeon ben Shetah as the Man of Lies in the Damascus Document. [The First Messiah - p. 72]
76	Jerusalem	Teacher of Righteousness	"In the Latter Days." The Teacher of Righteousness adds a new twist to his reading of the scriptures by adding the phrase "in the Latter Days" to his copying of Deuteronomy 30:1-2: "It is written that `If you [stray] from the Way, then calamity will befall you' And it is written that "It shall come to pass, when all these things [be]fall you' -- in the Latter Days, namely, the blessing and the curses -- [`then you will take not]ice and return to Him with all your heart and with all [your] soul.'" [4QMMT C 12-16] [The First Messiah - p. 74]
74	Jerusalem	Pharisees	Death of Teacher of Righteousness. [The First Messiah - p. 216]
72	Jerusalem	Essenes	Only 15 families of the Teacher of Righteousness' movement remain. Their leader is dead, none of his prophecies have come to pass, and the remaining families are scattered. [The First Messiah - p. 219]

COMMON ERA (CE)

26	Judea & Galilee	Judeans & Galileans	"Kingdom of God." The glorius but earthly Jewish kingdom of the Latter Days was what most people in Jesus' day thought of when they heard the phrase "kingdom of God." (see 76 BCE) [The First Messiah - p. 75]
70	Jerusalem	Judeans	End of Sadducees and Priestly power. The Temple in Jerusalem is destroyed by the Romans. [The First Messiah - p. 68]
90	Yavneh	Rabbinic Judaism	Birth of Rabbinic Judaism. The rabbis and rabbinic Judaism were heirs to the Pharisee sect. [The First Messiah - p. 68]
1676			Sabbatai Sevi died in the fall. [The First Messiah - p. 218]