Part one of term paper
BEYOND THE DEAD SEA: THE ESSENES AND THE QUMRAN COMMUNITY To paraphrase the Bobby Darin pop hit, "Somewhere, beyond the Dead Sea, there’s a religion waiting for me." There was a serious lack of documentation on Judaism practices prior to the birth of Christ, which made understanding the reasons behind the emergence of Christianity even ...

Part two of term paper
... attributed to the Essene monastic sect, which had lived in the Qumran region. The actual origin of the Essenes is unknown, but it is believed that they evolved from the Hasidim of pre-Hasmonean times, approximately 170 B.C. They were first written about by Josephus, who was impressed by their seemingly innate ability to forecast the future. Josephus described how Judas, perhaps the most famous Essene, successfully predicted that the ruler of Judea, Aristobulus, would kill his brother. It is believ ...