Samaritans

[[File:Samaritans marking Passover on Mount Gerizim, West Bank - 20060418.jpg|thumb|right|165px|Samaritans marking Passover on Mount Gerizim]]
{{religion}}
'''Samaritans''' are an ethno-religious group from the area of [[Israel]] and [[Palestine]] who have a distinct cultural identity and religion going back around 2500 years. Today there are about 800 Samaritans living in [[Israel]] and [[Palestine]].<ref name=culturetrip/> They claim that they are descended from two tribes of [[Israelite]]s (the Menashe and Ephraim) who stayed behind during the [[Babylon]]ian exile in the 6<sup>th</sup> century BCE and believe that their religion is closer to the one practiced by pre-exile Israelites than modern [[Judaism]].<ref name=culturetrip/> Some people suggest a slightly later origin, perhaps 5<sup>th</sup> century BCE. Their main difference with [[Judaism]] is whether to worship on the Temple Mount in [[Jerusalem]] or {{wpl|Mount Gerizim}} near Nablus.<ref name=wpsamaritans>{{wpl|Samaritans}}</ref>

The [[Good Samaritan]] of the parable was one.

==History==
They appear to have been a significant community in Israel/Palestine for some time. After the Jewish-[[Roman]] wars (66-136 CE) scattered or killed the Jews, the Samaritans gained greater power and influence and were autonomous in the 3<sup>rd</sup> and 4<sup>th</sup> century CE before falling under Byzantine rule. They numbered around one million people in the 5<sup>th</sup> century.<ref name=culturetrip/> This was before the {{wpl|Samaritan revolts}} (in the 5th and 6<sup>th</sup> centuries CE) when they attempted to rise up against the [[Byzantine Empire]] and most were killed. 

In the [[Middle Ages]] and under [[Turkey|Ottoman]] rule, they were at best second-class citizens. Many of those who weren't massacred converted to [[Christianity]] or [[Islam]].

==Today==
Under the {{wpl|British Mandate for Palestine||,}} they were more protected, although they were very few in number: the 1931 census recorded just 182 in Palestine. Their community was concentrated in Nablus until the First Intifada (1987-1990) when most fled to Kiryat Luza on nearby Mount Gerezim. Their other main home is in Israel, at Holon near Tel Aviv.<ref name=culturetrip>[https://theculturetrip.com/middle-east/israel/articles/an-introduction-to-the-samaritans-israels-smallest-religious-minority/ The Last Samaritans, Israel's Smallest Religious Minority], Culture Trip</ref>

Those living in the West Bank at Kiryat Luza speak Arabic and attend Palestinian schools, and many work in Palestinian institutions. Those living in Holon speak modern Hebrew and are required to serve in the Israeli Defence Forces.<ref name=culturetrip/>

In Israel, they are regarded as a stand-alone religious group. Rabbinical authorities view them as a branch of Judaism, but conversion is required for a Samaritan to become a Halakhic Jew.<ref name=wpsamaritans/>

==Religion==
Samaritanism's primary religious text is the Samaritan Pentateuch (or Samaritan Torah), written in a dialect of [[Hebrew]]; their version of the [[Pentateuch]] has approximately 6,000 differences from the Masoretic text used by Jews. They don't consider the rest of the Jewish Torah to be divinely inspired. Most variations from the Masoretic text are minor, connected with grammar, copying errors, textual conventions, etc. However they seem to have edited {{bible|Exodus|20|17}} to have [[God]] tell them to build a temple on Mount Gerezim.<ref>{{wpa|Samaritan Pentateuch}}</ref>  Traditionally, their version of the Pentateuch is written in the {{wpl|Samaritan alphabet}}, which is markedly different from the more familiar Hebrew square script, and is closer to the original Phoenician [[alphabet]].

Like the Jews, they celebrate [[Passover]] and Sukkot. Unlike the Jews, who gave up the practice long ago, they mark Passover with the [[sacrifice]] of large numbers of animals.<ref name=culturetrip/>

Mount Gerezim is still their most sacred place. They believe this is where [[Abraham]] nearly sacrificed [[Isaac]], [[Joshua]] gathered the tribes after the [[Exodus]], and the Israelites built their tabernacle. Jews claim much of this happened elsewhere.<ref name=bbc/>

They are strict about observing the [[Sabbath]]. A [[BBC]] article reported that none were doctors because they didn't want to have to work on the Sabbath, although it's not clear if that's an instance of their reputedly good sense of humor.<ref name=bbc>[http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20180828-the-last-of-the-good-samaritans The Last of the Good Samaritans], BBC Travel</ref>

The religion also has an [[apocalypse|apocalyptic]] element, with a belief in a [[messiah]] (the Taheb) who may be [[Moses]] or a similar [[prophet]] who will return for "the day of vengeance" and resurrection of the dead.<ref>{{wpa|Samaritanism}}</ref>

==Woo==

Some people claim that their religion is closer than Judaism to that of the Israelites before the Babylonian exile. The Samaritans believe they practice the true religion of the Israelites.<ref>[https://en.qantara.de/content/samaritans-in-nablus-the-other-people-of-israel The other "People of Israel"], Quantara</ref>

The traditional Jewish position is that {{bible|2 Kings|17|24}} says the Samaritans were brought by the Babylonians to replace the exiled Jewish population, and aren't native to the region. This may be connected with the more general Jewish position that God gave Palestine to them and them alone and everybody else can sod off.

==Genetics==
Low-level [[genetic]] studies of the uniparental male-only {{wpl|Y chromosome}} indicate Samaritans are broadly similar in patrilineal descent to some Jewish and other Semitic groups.<ref>Oefner, P.J., et al., "Genetics and the history of the Samaritans: Y-chromosomal microsatellites and genetic affinity between Samaritans and Cohanim," ''Human Biology'', Dec. 2013, Vol. 85(6), pp. 825-58, https://doi.org/10.3378/027.085.0601.</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

[[Category:Judaism]]
[[Category:Religion]]

Categories: Judaism, Religion