The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1880-07-28
JEWISH SECES
Of Lectures Delivered in the Tenn
pie manual
EY RABRI Il. ". nlEN.


the Zsalo,s aud view II the tise bere :
opm H. and Effect OF thu Nazlttess. De'
iiyered IuIy %, 1850
Prominent, conspicuous and rugae as we
have seen the Pharise,s stand out in cir
time and aims, resem bling in many traits Of
character, the Puritsns of modern history,
there is little to be said about the third sect
known AS the Essences. We know of their
existence almost exclusively, from the writ
ings of Josephus. In their religious ten
cts they were but little differing from the
teachings of Hillel. But they livel to them
selves and by themselves, com munity of
husbandmen and hermits. They, too, belong
ed to the people; they, too, opposed any pre-
tense ofnobility and prestcraft, but took an
sctive share in worSing and fighting out the
political aud religious war of opinions, then
agitating the people and the country. Given
to all the ''isms" which in our days reap
pear on the surface of society, Communism,
free love and abstinence, they were soon
known among the common people as proph-
erably Ia numbers, but they had no share and
exercised but little influence on the formation
of the character of their time and nation.
Barely their nameis remembered in history
dreamers and phantastics such is all that is
left of the Essences.
Different from these, aud in fact, from all
other sects, were the Z,.lots, resemb ing
very much the Jacobines of the first French
revolution. As we'll in religious as in politi-
calepinions, they were fanatics, always ready
to risk every thing, or to loose all. Rule or
ruin might have been their motto. Violence
or virulence were their chief weapons
Nothing was too sacred for them in gaining
their purpose; nothing too high or too low
to achieve their ends. w 18th the "THllin"
(phJ lactories) bound around their heads
and wound around their arms, with the
Zzzith on their garments, they hid under
meath their coaks the dagger, and considered
it acts of public merit to stab to death those
that counseled moderation or spoke of sub
mission when the invader knocked at the
gate of the holy city with engines of ire
sis.able conquest. Mostly dwelling in the
country they had their ramidcation all over
the land. The people to large extent
were in sympathy with these revolutionists,
and so the authorities dared not attempt
to modest or suppress them. Treason, they
decried all and everything that was not
strictly Orthodox Jewish. To pay
tribute was crime; to execute
document under authority of the consul was
blasphemy to touch coin with the image
of the Roman emperor on it was idolatry.
Men of education, of foresight and earnest
piety of all sects, warned and acted against
the headlong violence. Soon these differences
broke out 10 open revolt. In one instance
one of the parties had possession Of the tenn
Pile, and was fortified therein the other held
them in sege from without. The latter
brought one Of their piouS men-Oniss,
known in the Talmud by the name Of
'Choni ha Maggel" and demanded Of him to
pray for the destruction of those inside of the
sanctuary. But these are his words: Father
in heaven inside there are thy children
here are also the sons of thy children. Oh
do not listen to the invocations of
one or the other" The people stoned
him to death. Soon the danger
of the final epoch of the Jewish nation
spproache'. Plumber and destruction reigned
supreme. The Roman conqueror held all
Palestine in his iron grip. Idolatry was, by
main force, pressed upon the nation. The
emperor was to be worshipped as Divi (;
his marble statue was to stand in the temple;
the eagle standards ofthe eternal city were to
ornament the gates of the "Mikdosh" and the
hand that touched them TO be hewn from the
body. Can you not imagine how in this
crisis of despair those Zealots intersected
every strata of the people and made them
ready for every desperate act and for any rev.
dictionary belief! A fanatic by the name of
Judsh from Gsulonites in Galilee and
later on Theudas from the same district,
leaders of the Zeslots, were caught and cruel
fed by the invaders and thereby made mar
tyrs among their followers and the sympatyiz-
ine people, who swelled and multiplied the
death.throes. Spite of the ever memorial elo-
duence of Salathiel, also one of the leaders,
burning like fire into the souls of the Jews
arousing them to arms and resistance; with
ering, prophetically booming the Roman, pro-
CiaiuiiuS tual WuooocNoA souSuoa hsioSii
Gods chosen nation, shall perish by decree of
heaven! Spite of the unprecedented heroism
and devotion of the doomed city and land,
Jerusalem fell and the nation Of Pales-
tine was scattered all over the globe. Aud
we'll may we cry, after an era OF two thou
sand years, when the smoke and dust of the
carnage of destruction is scattered and the
light of the time now passed is shed over the
terrible disaster Well may we cry with the
prophet ISAIAH.
"Uonsole ye-Oh usole We IN! peoplew
The land OF Israel was but crysalis.
Gods thought would no longer DIV, II in SO
narrow boundary. Temple and sectarian..
ism had to fall, and the spirit that invaded
both had to GO out on its worldwide mission.
Thus was the blessing given to Abraham,
the first Hebrew, to be fulflled--the blessing
given is these words: Gin thee shall all ma
tons Of the earth be blessed"
But we must retrace our steps from the
destruction of Jerusalem full seventy years
ia order to examine from Jewish standpoint
another phase which by that time had its
origin: the advent, rise and development Of
another sect under the mastery and lea r.
ship of him who in Hebrew is known by ne
name Of Joshua Ha-Nozri," or as later on
named in the Greek language: Jesus of
Nazareth.
While the people of Judea suffered under
the most uncomfortable .tyrany-unheard of