Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83 based; site homxa.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxl!houxm!homxa!dcs From: dcs@homxa.UUCP (D.SIMEN) Newsgroups: net.religion.jewish Subject: Re: Pharisees and Marriage Message-ID: <313@homxa.UUCP> Date: Thu, 2-Aug-84 12:46:06 EDT Article-I.D.: homxa.313 Posted: Thu Aug 2 12:46:06 1984 Date-Received: Sat, 4-Aug-84 00:04:09 EDT Organization: AT&T Bell Labs, Holmdel NJ Lines: 17 Paul Dubois writes: > My understanding is that, to be a Pharisee, you had to have been > married... Is my information incorrect? Yes, it is. Although marriage is mandated in Jewish law (the very first commandment is "P'ru ur'bu," reasonably well translated as "Be fruitful and multiply") the Pharisees constituted a philosophico-religio-political group, and did not have tests for "membership" such as whether the individual was married. To understand the meaning of "Pharisee", try 1. Forgetting everything the Gospels say about the Pharisees, as those books were written with many axes to grind, and 2. Roughly equating "Pharisee" with "follower of the Rabbinic tradition," which by Roman times was already well established in Jewish national life. Most of the poorer people followed the Rabbinic teachings. David Y'hezqel ben Mord'kai Simen ...!houxm!homxa!dcs