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- Herausgeber: WS
- Sprache: Englisch
Yeshua with his father and brother go to Magdala as hired carpenters to repair boats. He is caught in the middle of a bloody massacre and is traumatised. It is a baptism of fire for him. He goes to a breakaway community in Qumran to reflect. The community’s main function is to collect the fragile fragments of scripture and copy them onto fresh parchments. He acquires an in-depth knowledge of the scriptures. He spends seven years there and is elected as leader, the Teacher of Righteousness.
Yeshua visits a similar group in Alexandria, Egypt, called the Assayya. They specialise in healing. King Ashoka of India had sent emissaries to Egypt with Hindus and Buddhist monks who assimilate with the Assayyas. Yeshua learns a new way of meditating and the art of healing.
Realizing that this idyllic hermitic way of life is but an escape from reality, Yeshua leaves to be among the common people. He walks among people living between poverty and destitution besieged by malnutrition, physical impairment, disease and sickness from which they know no medical remedy. They are also overburdened by taxation and debt while the rich and powerful live a different life.
Yeshua addresses these issues with practical solutions. He urges the people to protest unjust taxation and not to listen blindly to all the teachings of the Temple incurring the wrath of the elite. People come to listen to him.
Ten men and six women become his close followers. They set up a base camp on the shore of the Sea of Galilee and move around Galilee. King Herod who beheaded John the Baptist is after Yeshua. With his followers he leaves his territory and travels beyond Galilee to foreign lands where they meet people who worship different gods and practise religions condemned by Judaism. They meet merchants who have travelled the Silk Route and the Incense Route and dialogue with them on their beliefs. It is a religious and cultural shock for him and his followers.
On returning to base camp Yeshua teaches his followers of the medicinal use of herbs and sends them on mission. Finally, they join a caravan to Jerusalem.
They confront Caiaphas, the High Priest and Pontius Pilate who have conspired to steal money from the Temple treasury, the Qorban. Together with the Zealots they protest corruption and religious misguidance of the Temple.
Yeshua is arrested, tried by the Sanhedrin and condemned to death. Since the Romans had withdrawn the use of capital punishment by the Sanhedrin, they take him to Pilate and accuse Yeshua of stirring up trouble against Roman control.
Pilate says Ecce Homo and orders his crucifixion.
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Seitenzahl: 687
Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022
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Dave Anthony
Yeshua
Ecce Homo
First published by Dave Anthony 2022
Copyright © 2022 by Dave Anthony
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise without written permission from the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other means without permission.
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.
Dave Anthony asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
Published by:
Dave Anthony
No. 77, Jalan SS 2/75
47300 Petaling Jaya
Selangor Darul Ehsan
Malaysia
First edition
ISBN: 9789672652519
Proofreading by Wan Kum Keong Editing by tan beng hui Cover art by Daniel Anthony
This book was professionally typeset on Reedsy Find out more at reedsy.com
To those seeking healing
from blindness in belief
Contents
Introduction
Main Characters
I. PART ONE - BAPTISM OF FIRE
Map 1 - Yam Cinneroth
Scenario 1 - Massacre
Scenario 2 - I take leave
Map 2 - Qumran Settlement
Scenario 3 - Qumran
Map 3 - Mitzrayim
Scenario 4 - Assayya
II. PART TWO - FOLLOWERS
Map 4 - Qumran to Nasrath
Scenario 5 - Y’hochanan ha-mmatbil
Scenario 6 - My Objective
Scenario 7 - Tax Collectors
Scenario 8 - Word spreads about me
Scenario 9 - Talitha koum
Scenario 10 - The Followers
Scenario 11 - Clean and Unclean
III. PART THREE - TRAVELS
Scenario 12 - Meeting with Elders
Scenario 13 - Bastard
Scenario 14 - History
Scenario 15 - Elahh
Scenario 16 - Toqeph
Scenario 17 - Illusion
Scenario 18 - Satana
Scenario 19 - Good and Evil
Scenario 20 - Tsedek
Scenario 21 - Group disbands
Scenario 22 - Family Tension
Scenario 23 - Orechah
Scenario 24 - Paskha
Scenario 25 - Shomron woman
Scenario 26 - Family approval
Scenario 27 - Petition to reduce taxes
Scenario 28 - Aseret Ha-d’Varîm
Scenario 29 - The Wise Perushim
Scenario 30 - Death of Y’hochanan ha-mmatbil
Scenario 31 - Journey out of HaGalil
IV. PART FOUR - TRAVELS BEYOND
Map 5 - Beyond Ha Galil
Scenario 32 - ShAbat
Scenario 33 - Power of Shalama
Scenario 34 - Mixed Marriage
Scenario 35 - Ha’Aretz HaMuvtahat
Scenario 36 - Olam HaEmet
Scenatio 37 - Mother Goddess
Scenario 38 - Yamm
Map 6 - Silk Route
Scenario 39 - Silk Route
Scenario 40 - Incense Route
Scenario 41 - Followers of the Enlightened One
Scenario 42 - Arrogance of the Yehudim
Scenario 43 - Mazdayasana
Scenario 44 - Nature of woman
Scenario 45 - Message on the Mount
Scenario 46 - Hassidim challenged
Scenario 47 - Experiences shared
Scenario 48 - Mshikha
Scenario 49 - Owrah
V. PART FIVE - MISSION
Scenario 50 - Disturbing factors
Scenario 51 - Challenging the law
Scenario 52 - Path of Tsedek
Scenario 53 - Hypocrisy
Scenario 54 - Asclepius
Scenario 55 - Taxes reduced
Scenario 56 - Tenants on own land
Scenario 57 - Son snatched away
Scenario 58 - Sha’ul, a kanai, a Parush and a Moreh
Scenario 59 - Overcome enmity with tsedek
Scenario 60 - The Final Supper
Scenario 61 - Yôsēp̄ stays back
VI. PART SIX - YERUSHALAYIM
Map 7 - Yerushalayim
Scenario 62 - Qorban
Scenario 63 - Diversion
Scenario 64 - The widow’s mite
Scenario 65 - The instigator
Scenario 66 - Aqueduct
Scenario 67 - Action Plan
Scenario 68 - The illness in society
Scenario 69 - People’s money
Scenario 70 - Blood
Scenario 71 - The Arrest
Scenario 72 - Hiding in the olive grove
Scenario 73 - Send word to Naṣrath
Scenario 74 - Witnesses and charges
Scenario 75 - Eerie Silence
Scenario 76 - Word to Qumran
Scenario 77 - Troublemaker in custody
Scenario 78 - The Sanhedrin
Scenario 79 - Condemned to death
Scenario 80 - You should let him go
Scenario 81 - Face covered
Scenario 82 - Mixing of bloods
Scenario 83 - Out of jurisdiction
Scenario 84 - You will be safe in HaGalil
Scenario 85 - Treason against Roma
Scenario 86 - A cruel way to die
Scenario 87 - Struggle for Tsedek
Scenario 88 - Crucifixion
Scenario 89 - Death
Scenario 90 - Burial
Scenario 91 - Too late now
Scenario 92 - Rest and mourn
Scenario 93 - Devastated
Scenario 94 - Heart-rending cries
Scenario 95 - Death not in vain
Scenario 96 - Fresh linen and spices
Scenario 97 - Emptiness
Scenario 98 - Lonely stump on the hilltop
Scenario 99 - Disperse
Scenario 100 - One month later
Author’s note
Glossary
Also by Dave Anthony
Introduction
From the beginning, everything was handed down by ‘word of mouth’, which in Greek means mythos, stories describing the origins of the world with gods and heroes and all the creatures in it. When stories about the universe, humanity and natural events are explained and interpreted in terms of the supernatural, a religion is born.
Faith is something not necessarily based on evidence. It is a conviction of things not seen. Is the portrayal of Jesus in the Gospels a factual narrative? Did Jesus do all the things that he was said to have done and say all the things that were attributed to him? From the messages in the Gospels, we can sum up what kind of a person he could have been, and what doings and sayings are consistent with his personality.
In this book the readers are invited to immerse themselves in this fictional oral tradition, a parallel gospel story and to transport themselves to walk among the followers in the footsteps of Yeshua, re-creating images of different scenarios. The narrative is developed seamlessly in a series of 100 scenarios of Yeshua’s movements. To enter the context of this narrative I have incorporated the spoken language of the time by referring to proper names and places and significant terms of reference in Aramaic and Greek and some others. When first introduced they are italicized and explained in footnotes and for subsequent references a glossary is provided at the back.
Yeshua was a man who had an extraordinary understanding of the social realities of his time. He walked among people living between poverty and destitution, besieged by malnutrition, physical impairment, disease and illness for which they knew no remedy. They were also overburdened by taxation and debt. Yeshua addressed these issues with very practical solutions.
This story about Yeshua is in the genre of religio-historical fiction. It portrays the life of Yeshua from a different approach, a story yet to be told. It is narrated by Yeshua himself in the present tense.
Main Characters
For other names of people, things, and places, please refer to the Glossary.
I
Part One - Baptism of Fire
Map 1 - Yam Cinneroth
Scenario 1 - Massacre
Magdala
Looking up at the back of an attractive young woman leading the way, I climb the steps of a high tower. Once on top, cool easterly breeze blows in our faces from Yam Chinneroth1. The plains below are rich with olive, walnut, and fig trees.
Mariam, who I know only a short time ago, points to the land, “That is Har Arbel2 with high rugged cliffs. The shoreline running south leads to Tiberias.”
Oh! what a beautiful day! The sun shimmering on the lake with white sails of boats plying to and from this port city of Magdala.
“Yeshua, Magdala means ‘Tower of Fish.’ Magdala is a centre of trade and commerce, exporting salted fish, figs and nuts to markets far and wide reaching the lands of the East and the cities of Europe. Merchants and princes come from the northern cities of Tyre and Dimashqu3 bringing merchandise of jewels and perfumes, silks and embroideries, tapping the silk and incense routes,” says Mariam.
The ground below is filled with an array of colourful mats with fish drying in the sun. Mariam’s family owns the dried fish processing business. She is wearing an ankle-length tunic and sandals and a headscarf around her neck. She seldom covers her head and is wearing a hairnet.
I am wearing a short knee-length tunic without sleeves with a cincture, a strip of leather. My sandals have wooden soles fastened with straps of leather. I normally wear a long ankle-length tunic and a head covering, but I am dressed like this because I have taken a break from work.
I have come to Magdala with my father Yôsēp̃ and my brother Ya’aqov as contract labourers to mend broken boats. We are engaged to do the work by Mariam’s family. The boats are used for exporting the dried fish.
Mariam was supervising the loading of fish onto boats. That’s when we met and became friends.
Mariam begins, “There is trouble brewing below. Malka Hordos Antipas, rules HaGalil4 with an iron fist. He is envious of Magdala’s prosperity. The people here have shown their dislike for him by rebelling. His tax collectors harass the fisherfolk, the toll collectors, impose the harbour tax on fish and goods. Antipas has also given contracts to his official tax farmers who threaten the people to pay up.
“The fisherfolk, have to apply for fishing rights and we have become indebted to the middlemen. If we don’t pay, they send the fishing police after us. This collection makes up most of the annual revenue of Antipas. He loves to live in luxury. Do you know that he collects 200 talents or 1.2 million denarii in taxes every year?
“On top of that, we must pay other taxes like the salt tax, crown tax, grain tax, tax on fruit and nut trees, poll tax, tithes, rents, tribute. If not, our goods will be confiscated. The people are so heavily burdened that they are pushed to the level of resistance.”
“That must be hard on the people. I have heard of such talk in the boat shed and even about a rebellion.” say I.
Mariam goes on, “Everybody in Magdala has been talking about a rebellion. Magdala has always been a gathering place for rebels who defy the Kittim.5 The rebels are not all citizens but people who come from the surrounding regions. They come to Magdala to trade and are equally affected by the taxes. They are encouraging the locals to support the rebellion.”
Mariam is leaning against the parapet facing me. I move towards her, and we both turn and lean on the parapet facing the sea. We are almost touching each other. I feel drawn to her by some magnetic emotional force. She must feel the same by the blush on her face. The memory of this momentary flash of attraction is to play in our hearts and minds in the years to come.
“It has been wonderful meeting and talking to you. I have to go down to the boat shed and help my father and brother with the work.”
“I too have to help my family and workers to fortify the factory because we are expecting violence,” says Mariam.
Together we walk down the street paved with stone along water canals leading to a thermal bath displaying ceramic crockery, perfume jars, hairbrushes and combs cut out of horns. The walls of villas are decorated in mosaic art works. Before we part at the marketplace, Mariam says, “Why don’t you ask your father and brother to join us in the evening meal. We cook a lot for the workers.”
“That would be great,” I say walking away when Mariam shouts after me, “Be careful.”
Aba and Ya’aqov are already back at work patching up a hole in one of the boats when I say, “The rumours about the rebellion are more serious than we thought. The anti-Kittim faction is joining forces with the fishermen to protest the taxes. People are expecting trouble.”
“Yes, we know,” says Aba. “When people refuse to pay taxes, Antipas will send his troops and the Kittim soldiers will also be standing by to trap the people.”
I become apprehensive, “Don’t you think we should pack up and go home? We should not get involved in this. It is not our problem.”
“Yeshua, we are workers and high taxes impact us too. We should stand with those who are fighting and not run away. Besides, we’ve got to complete the contract work, or we will not get paid,” explains my father particularly.
Having lived a quiet and sheltered life in Naṣrath I dislike violence.
Ya’aqov interjects, “Whether we like it or not, we are caught up in this struggle.”
As we are finishing the day’s work, I tell them of Mariam’s invitation. We wash up and go over to her house which is next to the pickling shed. Over a simple meal of fish and pickles and taboon6 bread we discuss what can happen the next day and what precautions we should take.
Protest and Devastation
The next day, as we are about to begin work, a crowd has gathered on the streets rallying to protest. From bitter experience they know that a protest like this could end up in a blood bath. The people were armed with sticks and forks, knives and axes to defend themselves.
My Aba knows more about this, “Antipas has rebuilt and fortified Zippori7 after it was attacked and destroyed previously. Now he is developing Tiberias with impressive constructions to make it the capital of HaGalil. Progressive and rebellious Magdala is a rival to his plans. He aims to cripple its trade and divert it to Tiberias. His army consists of Yehudim8 as well as goyim9 mercenaries who he always sends to the front line.”
Antipas has amassed his troops at the city gates. He has conferred with the Kittim centurion saying that the protesters are also against Roma and manages to get the Kittim soldiers deployed. The mounted Kittim soldiers are men with light body armour carrying small shields and swords, wearing greaves on their legs.
I huddle between Aba and Ya’aqov as the people march towards the beit k’nesset,10 Antipas’ mercenaries move in formation. These mercenaries are carrying heavy shields and long spears. The peasants quickly move to the sides and converge on them laterally. Long spears were useless in close combat, and they only use their heavy shield to protect themselves while the peasants attack them with knives and axes.
Seeing the fight, the mounted Kittim soldiers bear down on the crowd. They don’t distinguish between Antipas’ forces or the peasants. They charge in and cut everyone in their path. Antipas’ forces move out of their way and rioters are ploughed to the ground by the horses. The fishermen are no match against trained and well-armed soldiers. Many of those cut down are trampled by the horses. Seeing this, the remaining peasants run to seek shelter. We too run into the boat shed. The soldiers pursue and set fire to the boat shed. They also set fire to the dried fish storehouse. Mariam and her family have locked themselves up in the house. We run out the back and I am the first to reach the olive grove with the others. Women and children are killed ruthlessly. Many men are caught and taken away. It is indeed a bloodbath, typical of Antipas. He wants to teach the people a lesson that he would tolerate no rebellion.
A commander of Antipas’ army goes up to the beit k’nesset and nails a notice on the door. “All taxes and dues must be paid by sundown the next day. Failure to pay will be met with severe punishment or death,” words are written in big bold letters.
After the armies have retreated beyond the city the people slowly emerge from hiding. There is wailing and moaning as the dead and wounded are carried away. We find Mariam and her family surveying the damage to their workers and property.
Mariam approaches us, “It is good they didn’t harm you. I was worried.”
“It will take you a very long time to recover your loss,” says Aba.
“You know we cannot pay you for your work now, but I will speak to my Aba and see if we can make some compensation,” says Mariam close to tears.
“We can help to rebuild the boat shed and the storehouse,” Aba adds.
I am devastated looking at the dead and wounded. The dead are buried outside the city, and I visit the wounded and try to be of help with remedies I have learnt from my Ama. This dreadful scenario makes me ashamed of my cowardice in trying to run away from the soldiers.
As the dust settles, we move into the workers’ quarters. Aba, seeing how distraught I am, says, “Son, we ran because we were overpowered. We live to resist again. Simply to run away from oppression is to be on the side of the oppressors.” I take note of these words. We join the other survivors to rebuild the place.
“Yehudah, why have you come?” asks Aba. Yehudah’s my second brother.
“Ama and the family are so worried. We heard what happened here and feared the worst. I am sent to find out if you are safe.”
Aba assures him, “Yes, we are very lucky to be able to escape into the olive grove. We are staying back for a few more days to help restore the place. You go back and tell them we are alright.”
Mariam says, “Yehudah, stay and have something to eat before you go back.”
The next day me and Mariam meet again on the tower.
I am disturbed and tell her, “I am shocked. This is my first such experience. I did not expect such a ferocious attack.”
“This is not the first time. Antipas has been steadily increasing the toll rates on the boats and taxes on the harbour and fishing licenses. He is constructing a big harbour in Tiberias and wants to make Tiberias the new capital of HaGalil. He sees Magdala as a rival. We will survive, we will carry on,” declares Mariam.
“I am lost. I am traumatized, I do not know how people should respond to a situation like this. I need to reflect and think this out.”
“We need a good, strong leader who will wake the people up and show us a way out of this servitude, a way to seek justice for all the oppressed,” declares Mariam.
“You are right. Perhaps you can lead the way.”
“A woman leader? No; the people will not accept that.”
“Mariam, soon we will have to get back to Naṣrath. Hopefully Magdala will recover, and your salted fish business will pick up again. It has been nice knowing you,” say I, feeling sad to leave her.
Once again, I feel drawn to her. Hopefully she feels the same.
After working for another week, we are paid but only half of what was agreed on. The three of us make our way home to Naṣrath. I am silent all the way home, deeply disturbed by what has happened, pondering on my own reaction and my feelings for Mariam.
1 The sea of Galilee
2 Mount Arbel
3 Damascus
4 Galilee
5 Romans
6 Flat bread baked in a taboon oven (a clay oven with an opening at the bottom)
7 Sepphoris
8 Jews
9 Gentiles (singular goy)
10 synagogue
Scenario 2 - I take leave
Nasrath
Carrying our tools and bundles of spare clothes, we turn off the main road, walk along a dirt track cutting through green grass with tiny white and yellow flowers of Narcissus between outcrops of rock on a hill slope.
“Shalama aleikhem11”, we are greeted by some young boys watching over their sheep and goats. There are hardly any strangers, for Naṣrath is a small village of not more than 400 people. As farmers they are physically strong, practical and respectful of tradition. They grudgingly pay their taxes and try to live peacefully.
We draw spring water from the only well. Home is a small house with stone and mud walls. The framework of the doors and windows are of carved wood. On seeing us, Maryam, my Ama, and sisters, Bethanna and Tabby, come running out. Bethanna means the house of God’s grace and Tabby, a gazelle.
“Oh, praised be Elahh!12 exclaims Ama. We were so relieved when Yehudah told us that you three are alive and well. We heard what happened in Magdala.” My other brothers, Yehudah, Yôsēp̄ and Shemayon who are busy in the workshop also come out.
All of us who are naggarim13, soon settle back into our normal work. Aba has trained us in the skills of woodwork and stonework. We build furniture and household wooden structures, and stone cisterns for holding water.
Although I throw himself into the work, my mind and heart are not in it. I am very disturbed by the violence I have witnessed in Magdala and ashamed of my own reaction to it. The other perplexing thing is my feelings for Mariam. Her image keeps lingering in my mind. I am somewhat lost in the search for meaning in my life.
My thoughts fly back to the time when my parents took me to Yerushalayim14 for the Paskha15. I was 12 years old.
Yerushalayim
The Beit HaMikdash16 is crowded and noisy with people haggling with money changers and squealing animals being slaughtered for sacrifice. The place is bloody and messy with flies buzzing around attracted by the stench. The Perushim17 stand by watching to ensure that the laws and traditional ordinances are strictly observed, although they are not the kohanim18. The Ṣĕdûqîm19 kohanim are also there all dressed up in their rich robes and supervising the prayers and offerings. I can’t wait to get out of the place.
I find out that there is a group of Hasidim20that broke away from the Beit HaMikdash and set up their own community in the desert, in the caves near the Yām HamMā́weṯ.21 I want to visit them.
“There is an orechah22 moving east. Can I go with them to visit the desert community? It is boring here. I will come back before we leave for home.” I ask my parents.
“Son, you are only twelve and you have never gone away on your own before. We are worried that it may not be safe,” says Ama. “Many young men and boys often disappear and are sold off as slaves,” adds Aba.
“My cousin Elisheva23 and Zachariah are also here for the feast. Let’s consult them,” says Ama.
My cousin Y’hochanan is also with them.
Elisheva immediately says, “Why don’t Y’hochanan and Yeshua go together? You can come and stay with us until they come back.”
Zachariah and Elisheva live close by in Ain Karim, east of Yerushalayim. My parents reluctantly accept the idea and let us go on our own. They give us some money for meals.
“Don’t stay too long, come back within a week,” instructs Aba gently.
We join an orechah heading towards the Yām HamMā́weṯ. We want to taste the water of the lake which is extremely salty. We get off the orechah at a place called Qumran, a short distance before the Yām HamMā́weṯ and climb the desert cliffs of mudstone to the settlement. The Hassidim live amid nature, away from the cities. They are very hospitable, even invite us to join them for the evening meal.
They live a simple, austere and pious life under a community rule. We immediately take a liking to them.
After staying five days, we thank them for their hospitality and catch another orechah to Yerushalayim. There are always orechahs on the move.
Now at this moment of time I feel a calling to revisit Qumran. As we are finishing the evening meal, I ask, “Aba, Ama,” I want to go away for a while and think of what I want to do with my life.”
“Aren’t you happy here working with me and your brothers?” replies Aba.
“I am, Aba, but…”
“Yôsēp̄, can’t you see that Yeshua has been very disturbed by what happened in Magdala? Son, what do you plan to do?” asks Ama.
“Do you remember the time, many years ago when we visited Yerushalayim? Y’hochanan and I went to visit the community in Qumran. I’d like to go and stay with them for some time and do some soul searching.”
“Will they accept you?” asks Ya’aqov.
“Yes, they told Y’hochanan and me that we are always welcome back.”
“If you are so attracted, then you should go,” chimed in Ya’aqov.
Maryam and Yôsēp̄ look at each other.
11 Peace be with you
12 God in Aramaic; El is the ancient word for God
13 Carpenters/craftsmen (singular- naggara)
14 Jerusalem
15 Passover
16 Jewish Holy Temple
17 Pharisees
18 Priests (singular -kohana)
19 Sadducees
20 Hasidians (holy ones) members of a Jewish sect that observes a form of strict Orthodox Judaism
21 The Dead Sea
22 caravan
23 Elizabeth
Map 2 - Qumran Settlement
Scenario 3 - Qumran
Yehuda
I travel to Yerushalayim and from there to Qumran. I scale the mud cliff, enter a cave, climb out onto a plateau on which lay the Qumran community. Seeing some men collecting rocks I introduce myself saying I want to meet the elder.
One of them points toward to a tower, “You go there and ask them.”
There again I repeat myself. A young man offers me an earthen jar of water and a mug and asks me to wash my feet, have a drink and wait.
An older man appears, “Welcome to Qumran. Who are you and what is it you seek?’
“My name is Yeshua. About twelve years ago I visited this place, and I was impressed with your way of life. I wish to join your community.”
The elder introduces himself as Tadeo, and enquires about my family background, then he says, “Are you willing to live by a strict community rule?” I nod. Tadeo takes me inside the settlement to a courtyard to meet some others. While talking to them I hear my name being called. I turn towards the voice and see my cousin Y’hochanan.
“Y’hochanan!” I exclaim in surprise. Y’hochanan comes over and slaps me on the back.
“Ah, you both know each other,” comments Tadeo.
“Y’hochanan is my cousin. We came together to visit. I had no idea he was here,” I explain excitedly.
“In that case, Y’hochanan, why don’t you take Yeshua and show him around the place,” instructs Tadeo and leaves us.
Y’hochanan says, “Come with me.” He leads me along the paths between stone buildings then through a long hall. “This is the place where we gather for our meals.”
They climb some steps and come out on a ledge. I shield my eyes because of the sunlight reflected from the sand hills. At an open-air workplace beside a pool some women are working a potters’ wheel while others were tending to kilns for firing the clay pots. Y’hochanan points to a pool, “The sediment in that pool produces very fine clay. We make all kinds of clay vessels for our use as well as for trade. In the tall pots like those we store our manuscripts.”
While walking along the ledge, Y’hochanan points to the cemetery where the graves were in north-south oriented rows. I ask, “When did you join the group?”
“Five years ago. I started as a postulant, then became a novice, now I am a full member.”
We walk past some cisterns and skirt the kitchen. I was wondering, “I see a pool and cisterns of water. Where do you get your water from?”
“Let me show you,” says Y’hochanan, leading me up the steps inside a tower with thick stone walls. “This tower was built as a lookout post to warn the settlers of raids by desert tribes.”
At the top we have a bird’s eye view of the complex.
“When the settlers first came here, they had to live in the wilderness. They built their settlement on the desert plateau by the cliffs of mudstone, but they didn’t have water. The
Yām HamMā́weṯ was so salty they had to harvest rainwater, which they tapped from the slopes of the rock.” Pointing to an aqueduct he continues, “They also built that complex system to bring water from Wadi24 Qumran down to the settlement into a reservoir. The water then winds its way to eight internal cisterns in different locations. These cisterns provide water for all purposes including two baths. They even serve as miqva’ot25 just like those near the Yerushalayim Har ha-Báyith26. With this vast water system, we are self-sufficient.”
“I am interested in that aqueduct.”
“Right on top of those cliffs is the source of Wadi Qumran. When there is water, it comes cascading down the cliffs to the wadi floor.”
“But it is dry!” exclaim I.
“Yes, it is only filled by the winter floodwaters. At the foot of the cliff there is a dam that collects flood water and rainwater. The aqueduct begins there. It is a narrow channel built with stone.”
Although Qumran is built on a plateau the whole place is mudstone. This mud is marl or marlstone27 with variable amounts of sand, clay and silt used to build the aqueduct.
“Water is vital to us because the summer is dry and very hot. That large round cistern is deep and contains plenty of water. The other small cisterns have steps used for ritual baths,” explains Y’hochanan.
“Some very skillful naggarim must have built this massive aqueduct,” I comment.
“We have people of various skills here.”
Then we enter a large room with benches built along its walls. “Here we assemble to study the Torah28. The community has always lived by a strict community rule which is the correct interpretation of the Torah.”
We climb to an upper level. “Come, I’ll show you where the main work is done.”
We enter a long room with benches and low tables of plastered mud with small clay inkwells. “We spend long hours here copying and rewriting from very old scripture manuscripts in papyrus. We use leather parchments.”
“Very interesting,” is my reaction.
“Are you sure you want to dedicate your life to a strict and austere rule?”
“That’s why I am here. I went to Magdala to repair boats with Aba Yôsēp̄ and my brother Ya’aqov. It was there that I experienced the brutal attack of Antipas’ forces with the Kittim soldiers on horseback and witnessed how they massacred the people who were protesting the heavy taxation. I was a coward and I wanted to run away from that conflict. Aba told me that running away was like being on the side of the oppressor. I was confused and wanted time to think. This is the best place I could think of to gather my thoughts.”
We pass another cistern on the way to the refectory where the elder asks me what I thought of the place.
I say, “This is an ideal place for me.”
“Before you make up your mind,” says Tadeo, “you should meet our Moreh ha-Tsedek29. He is the one who will decide if you can join the community. Come, I will take you to him.”
Leaving Y’hochanan to his chores, Tadeo leads me past a pantry stocked with hundreds of tall pottery jars about two feet high, an oven, and a flour mill. Entering another section, we come to some rooms and approach a large room. Tadeo tells me to wait outside while he goes in. After a while he comes out and ushers me into the room with a fireplace, a sleeping platform and a table made with mud bricks. Seated on a wooden chair behind the table was the Moreh ha-Tsedek whose name was Jethro.
“Welcome to Qumran, Yeshua.” I bow. Indicating a couple of chairs by the fireplace, he says, “Come, sit.” Tadeo takes his leave.
“Why have you chosen to come to Qumran?”
“I remember this place I visited when I was twelve years old. I like it. It’s a good place to reflect on my life.”
“What you have to reflect on is the life we live here and see if you can adapt to the austerity of our lifestyle.”
“I am willing to learn.”
“Good. We live by a Community Rule which is the correct interpretation of the Torah.”
“Do you mean to say that there are incorrect interpretations of the Torah?” ask I.
“Indeed. Let me tell you how it all began.30
“In Mamlekhet Yisra’el31 there is an upper-class elite group known as the Ṣĕdûqîm claiming priestly privileges. Within the group of the Hasidim there is also a lay group distinct from the priestly group. They are the Perushim. They believe themselves to be the custodians of the Scriptures and the Law, claiming the authority of Aba Moshe32 for their interpretation of the Yehudi Laws, adding more rules and regulations to the Law, calling it the oral Torah claiming their ideas are implied in the Law. The Ṣĕdûqîm refuse to accept the oral Torah and follow the strict letter of the Law claiming priestly privileges and prerogatives as the authority derived from Malka Sh’lomoh33. This is nothing new. Their struggle involved the malke34 and became very political.
“Both the groups were aligning themselves as tools of the kings and foreign power and the Yehudim became very confused and divided.
“During the confusion there was a teacher who served as a priest. He became dissatisfied with the politics of the religious sects in Yerushalayim. He wanted the true interpretation of the Law. The rulers set up a wicked priest to challenge him and usurped the priesthood making it exclusive. This teacher had the following of several Hasidim who disagreed with the different interpretations of the Perushim and Ṣĕdûqîm who had profaned the Yerushalayim Beit HaMikdash.
“The Perushim had strong influence over the common people, the Ṣĕdûqîm were the elite. They were all part of the power structure of Yerushalayim and the Hasidim felt that they will never achieve the proper ordering of society.”
“Following the leadership of this religious teacher, a group of Hasidim who the Yavan35 call Essenoi36, quietly withdrew to the outskirts to create a new society that would achieve the proper ordering of society. We are this breakaway community in the wilderness.”
I interrupt him, “Why didn’t they stay and fight the misinterpretations and bring about a change instead of withdrawing, and what is the proper ordering of society?”
“We believe in the proper ordering of society where Yerushalayim is established as the religious capital of the world according to Nebi37Yeshayahu38. Yisra’el would be free of foreign oppressors, having just ownership of land in society, and finally, practicing the Beit HaMikdash worship correctly. The way the Perushim, the Ṣĕdûqîm and the high priests of the Beit HaMikdash are carrying on, compromising with the Yavan culture and civilisation, and playing politics with the Kittim imperial powers, would not bring about this vision.
“Scripture, Tradition and Revelation are the fundamentals of faith for the Hasidim. We believe that the true Law, containing the true Berith39 was revealed to our founder, the Moreh ha-Tsedek, the true interpreter of the Law. For us, the true Elahh is not necessarily in the Beit HaMikdash. Our strict observance appeals to the tsedek of Elahh. In his infinite compassion he will not let the ignorant be lost. Hence there is salvation for those who surrender themselves to the tsedek of Elahh. All this began over 170 years ago. We today remain faithful to this teaching.
“About 70 years ago, there was war that caused a big fire. The Qumran settlement was destroyed. Before the settlers could recover from it, an earthquake brought ruin to the place. This left the community devastated for about 20 years. Many of the community members went to other places and started their own communities with the same purpose. The members here rebuilt this place and elected another Moreh ha-Tsedek who was not a priest. This tradition has been continued and now I am the Moreh ha-Tsedek. Formerly this place was only for men, but now we have opened it up to women and have a separate place for married couples and their families.
“We live a simple, austere and pious life. We live by a Community Rule which we consider to be the correct interpretation of the Torah. We devote our time to study the Scriptures, worship, and prayer and do manual labour to maintain the place. The members have their meals in common in the community dining hall. The upper level contains a large room with benches and inkwells. That is where we spend long hours writing and rewriting from very old scripture manuscripts in papyrus. This is our main task. Are you prepared to accept our belief and lifestyle?”
“I am prepared to give it a try and learn more.”
“Do your parents and family depend on you for their living and do they have any objections to your joining our community?
“I have discussed this with them, and I am free to make up my mind.”
“Alright, we will accept you as a postulant for one year, at the end of which you may leave or decide to continue. If you stay on you will become a novice for a further two years. If we find you acceptable you may continue with us as a permanent member. You will also be allowed to get married.”
“Thank you, Moreh ha-Tsedek.”
“Elder Tadeo will brief you on other details. You may go.”
I begin my life in Qumran.
Tadeo briefs me on the routine followed in the community after showing me a cubicle which has a bunk bed and table made of mud bricks and a wooden chair and an oil lamp.
I fall in line with the routine of prayer, meditation, study of the Mikra40, copying and writing of manuscripts and time for manual labour and maintenance all carried out by the sound of the bell even for mealtime and bedtime. The common prayers contain minimal rituals and there is no animal sacrifice. We are forbidden from swearing and must control our tempers. All chores and maintenance, cooking, cleaning, gardening, are done in rotation. We are to serve each other. We do not believe in having slaves. Ownership is communal.
I enthusiastically throw myself into this peaceful and sheltered life, especially in the study of the Scriptures. I become so absorbed in it that I forget about Magdala and Mariam.
We work on manuscripts that are 400 years old, torn and disfigured. They were found in 11 caves around Qumran. We faithfully copy the manuscripts on new parchments and bind them with leather made from the skin of sheep, goats and ibex. The parchments are meticulously prepared in the tannery, smoothed and cut into even pieces. We often take the liberty to replace the illegible parts with our own writings as we see fit.
One day while working on the manuscripts, I stretch himself. “Oh, this is no good,” I say, “we’ve been standing and leaning over the desk to for hours. I will construct a long wide table with chairs. We can spread the manuscripts and look at them together.” I get the approval from the authority to do it. Wood is scarce and we source it from the orechah merchants. I am also assigned to repair furniture and broken cisterns. Many are engaged in pottery and tannery work.
Every hour of the day is so fully occupied that a whole year has passed quickly. I remain to become a novice. I am committed to practise piety towards Elahh and tsedek towards humanity, to maintain a pure lifestyle, to abstain from criminal and immoral activities, to preserve our books and to transmit the rules uncorrupted.
Often when we have time for recreation, Y’hochanan and I would take a walk into the desert to an oasis, sit under a date palm and talk.
“Yeshua, you seem to be enjoying your stay in Qumran,” says Y’hochanan.
“I like Qumran because it is quiet and peaceful, and I am so absorbed in the literature of the manuscripts. We are kept so busy that I did not even notice one year has gone by,” I respond.
“How do you find our Moreh ha-Tsedek?”
“He is a very learned man and strict on the observances.”
“He is quite different from the previous morehs.”
“How so?”
“The first Moreh ha-Tsedek was a priest. He was a High priest in the Beit HaMikdash and a descendent from Zadok, a royal priest. The Zadokites were a priestly family. Their descendants are the Ṣĕdûqîm. The subsequent morehs were not priests and neither is the current moreh but he believes he belongs to the lineage of the Zadokites. He is sympathetic to the Ṣĕdûqîm even though we differ in our ideology. He has also cultivated good relations with Hordos Antipas.”
“How could he do that with such a cruel and evil person!”
“I also do not approve of that, and because of that loyalty Hordos leaves us alone. The Kana’im41 often clash with the Beit authorities and the royalty. In the past the Kana’im would seek refuge in Qumran when they were pursued. Our present moreh refuses to accept them.”
“He is quite old and looks poorly.”
“Quite so. How is your family?”
“They’re alright. My brothers were not happy when I left. They wanted me to help with the family. How’s your family?”
“Aba is still very much involved with the Beit HaMikdash and disapproves my association with this cult, as he calls us.”
The hot dry wind is slowing down. It gets very hot here during the day and very chilly soon after sunset, so we walk back to the community.
After two more years, I must go through a baptism of water for which repentance is a prerequisite according to the Community Rules. The theology includes belief in the immortality of the soul which we will receive back after death. I accept all this teaching without question, believing it to be the right way.
As the years go by, the reading of the scriptures make me wonder about how they were being interpreted. The Yerushalayim authorities are interpreting the scriptures in one way and we in another way. Is there only one way of interpreting? The scriptures themselves contain a lot of contradictions.
On my fifth year in Qumran the Moreh ha -Tsedek gets sick and dies. I am elected as the new Moreh ha-Tsedek. I accepted it reluctantly. It becomes my responsibility to give the proper interpretation of the Law and enforce the observance of the Community Rule. I am in a bit of a dilemma.
With this new responsibility on my shoulders, I begin to search the scriptures again on the true interpretation of tsedek. It makes me more confused. I also discover that there are more than 800 manuscripts and not all of them are scripture. Apart from the parchments on the Mikra and commentaries, and the Community Rule, there are non-religious material from the time of Tre-Qarnayia42 which are in the Yavan language. I polish up my Yavan and read Yavan philosophy and mythology. It is so different from Yahadut43 which happens to have a rather narrow vision of reality.
Every year during the Paskah festival in Yerushalayim there would be trouble usually agitated by the Kana’im. When harassed by the Beith authorities or attacked by the Kittim soldiers, the Kana’im would flee under hot pursuit and seek refuge in Qumran. The previous Moreh had put an end to this refuge and forbade them from entering Qumran. I come to know of their struggle and entertain them because most of the time they take a legitimate stance against the abuses of the Beith. I come to know them, especially Yehûdâh Ish-Kerayot and Shimon Qanʾanaya.
24 A dry riverbed that fills with rainwater in winter
25 Jewish ritual bath
26 Temple Mount
27 Marlstone contains calcium carbonate. When the calcium-containing inorganic material, which is lime, is mixed with silicate materials a hydraulic plaster is obtained. This thick grey hydraulic plaster is spread on the floor of the aqueduct, sealing it, making it waterproof.
28 Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible
29 Teacher of Righteousness
30 When Alexander the Great, the Seleucid Emperor died the Greek Empire was divided yet controlled Israel. Judas the Maccabaean led a revolt and took control of Judea reinstating the Jewish religion by removing the Greek statues from the Temple. The Hasmonian dynasty under the Maccabees ruled Judea as priests and kings for over a hundred years.
31 Kingdom of Isreal
32 Moses
33 King Solsomon
34 kings
35 Greeks
36 Essenes, Essaioi (Greek)
37 Prophet, nebim (plural)
38 Isaiah
39 Covenant
40 The Hebrew Bible – used in preference to the Tanakh in Jesus’ time
41 Zealots
42 Alexander the Great
43 Judaism
Map 3 - Mitzrayim
Scenario 4 - Assayya
Mitzrayim
My function as the Moreh ha-Tsedek is also to oversee other Hasidim communities.
In finding these communities, I discover the existence of another such independent community called the Assayya44. The main centre for them is in Mitzrayim45, near the port city of Alexandria along the shores of Lake Mareotis. They are Yahudi who settled in Mitzrayim and live in communities like the Qumran community. They have invited me to visit them. But first I want to visit an active Hasidim community in Ein Gedi. It is on the west bank of the Yām HamMā́weṯ.
With the help of a local guide, I negotiate the difficult terrain reaching a ravine 18 milin46 south called Nahal Darga with the Wadi Murabba’at that runs from the Judean desert into the Yām HamMā́weṯ. Here the guide points out several small caves where manuscripts were found.
We approached Ein Gedi, 34 milin from Qumran, an oasis named “Spring of the kid” referring to a young goat. The houses of the small village are built close together on terraces; each consists of two rooms and a courtyard. In them are large clay vats for the storage of precious drinking water. There are some wealthy people buying goods at the bazaar where I also notice beggars, the disabled and some with tsara’ath47 and other diseases.
The Yehudi community is well established with a fortified citadel called Tel Goren to protect the village and its agricultural products against raiding nomads. Northwest of Tel Goren into the wilderness of Ein Gedi, clustered around a small spring, are thirty small buildings made of stone. This is the Hasidim community, very much like that of Qumran.
They welcome me as the Moreh ha-Tsedek with great reverence. I hold sessions with them speaking about tsedek and encourage them in their endeavours.
After I returned to Qumran, I begin to probe more deeply on the true interpretation of tsedek searching the scriptures where tsedek is used and abused.
On my sixth year I begin to consider seriously the invitation of the Assayya.
I consult Y’ochanan on the best way to make my journey to Mitzrayim.
He tells me, “The best way would be to take the Derech Ha-Shur, Way of Shur and then from Hebron cut west and take the Way of the Sea, the Via Maris. That will take you to the Nile Delta of Mitzrayim.”
“Y’hochanan, in my absence I put you in charge of affairs here,” I tell him and prepare myself with spare clothing, water, dried food and money.
I set off in the direction of Bethlehem in the hill country of Jehudah. It is the city where Dawidh was crowned Makla of Yisrael. The Derech Ha-Shur runs through Yerushalayim and Bethlehem where I join an orechah that takes me to Hebron, the traditional burial place of
Abba Avraham. Enquiring at one of the settlements in the outskirts of the city on how to get across the mountainous terrain to Gaza, I am told to go to Lachish a village between Hebron and the Ha-yam Ha-Gadol48, Great Sea. Lachish was once a prosperous Yehudi kingdom city with a báyith49 on a mound. It is now a ruin with only a small group of farmers. I spend the night with them.
I travel down the rugged hillslopes to reach Gaza. I read in the Mikra that Gaza was the place where Shimshōn50 had died. After the city was destroyed it was rebuilt by the Kittim and given to Hordos the Great. It is a cosmopolitan city with Yavan, Kittim, Yehudi, Maṣreyyīn51,Pares52 and Nabateans. Amid prosperity there are many poor and sick beggars on the streets. Seeing them disturbs me.
I join another orechah on the Derech HaYam, the Via Maris or Way of the Sea to Mitzrayim. It is a very long way along the coast of the Ha-yam Ha-Gadol. It takes one day to reach Rafah about 30 milin south. It is a border town that crosses into Mitzrayim. At Arish, the orechah crosses the Wadi el Arish that originates on the highlands of the Shur desert. The landscape changes from desert to cultivated land. On reaching Pelusium we cut into the delta of the river Nile that spreads out into three major tributaries and lakes before flowing into the Ha-yam Ha-Gadol. The orechah then cuts into the delta to Tehpanhes. The Derech HaYam proceeds in a southerly direction. I get off here to cut across the delta reaching Meniet and Samanud. I must go through many towns crossing rivers by boat. It takes several days to cross the delta to the west side to Alexandria and Lake Mariotis. It is marsh land interspersed with date palms, shiqmah53 and eucalyptus trees. Alexandria, founded by its namesake about 300 years earlier, is the capital of Mitzrayim.
From Samanud I travel in a westerly direction and reach the shores of Lake Mareotis. After enquiring from the local people, who speak Yavan even if they are Yehudi, about the Assayya, I cross the lake by boat towards Alexandria. On a hillock by the lake, I find the community of Assayya. The journey is very long getting here.
There are small houses built of mud bricks plastered with mud and straw with small round holes for windows and flat roofs surrounded by shiqmah and eucalyptus trees and date palms. An unpaved dirt road leads to the colony. I enter a courtyard that also serves as an enclosure for farm animals. There are people around an oven of plastered mud built into the wall. I approach them and introduce himself. I am taken to meet the elders, for there are more than one.
“You have accepted our invitation and it is an honour for us to welcome the Moreh ha-Tsedek of Qumran,” says one of them speaking Yavan. We sit on mud benches around a low table. Someone brings a jug of hot drink. While pouring the drink the elder says, “Please accept this beverage that we have learnt to drink. It is called tea.”
There is also a woman among the elders. She says, “We have both men and women in our community. We meet but stay in separate quarters. Our life is simple, like yours in Qumran. We embrace poverty by renouncing ownership of property.”
“I am very interested to learn all about you,” say I.
“I hope you can stay with us for some time. We would like to hear you speak of life in Qumran,” another elder invites.
“I am sure I will learn a lot from you, the Assayya,” I respond.
“We are healers. The Yavan call us the Therapeutae. We have developed healing as a religious art.”
“Our spiritual lifestyle is based on temperance, and through this severe discipline we develop other virtues. We spend six days of the week fasting and in solitary prayers, studying the scriptures and meditating on them in our enclosed cells, in silence. We read the Torah, the books of the Nebim54 and the Tehilim55. In addition, we also possess writings of our own tradition like using numbers for interpretation. We take words as symbols, and search for the inner or hidden meaning behind them. We don’t literally accept the words of scripture or give different interpretations as the Perushim and the Ṣĕdûqîm do.”
Another adds, “For example, we see the history of Yisra’el as the grapevine taking root in different soil. We have drunk of the wisdom from faraway lands. Twice a day we pray at dawn and at eventide. I hope you will join us.”
“I would like that,” I nod.
“Let me show you where you can stay,” says one elder and leads me through narrow footpaths winding between the cubicles. From the hilltop I admire the scenery. I can see the cluster of buildings.
“What are the things on the flat roofs?” I enquire.
“They are corn and cotton stalks and dried dung cakes used for fuel. Those cone-shaped structures of plastered mud are silos for grain storage. We are in between fresh water and salt water,” pointing to a promontory he continues, “There is the port of Alexandria. We have people coming from all over the place for healing. We also have travelers over the sea who arrive in Alexandria to visit us. They also come overland from the far East. Please rest. You have travelled a very long journey. There is a jar of water on your table. Please let me know if you need anything else. The next sound of the bell will be mealtime. I will come and fetch you. Shalama aleikhem.”
We all gather for the meal at the central building which is very spacious with high walls with palm-wood rafters supporting a flat roof built of layers of dried date-palm leaves. There are fireplaces built into the walls that also serve as ovens, keeping the place warm in winter.
The members are all assembled in rows where men and women are separated with a section for the children. The senior elder rings a hand bell for silence and introduces me, “Today we have a very distinguished guest. He is Yeshua, the Moreh ha-Tsedek of Qumran. He will share our life for some time, and we will listen to him talk to us.”
The meal was simple, matzo56 bread and tahina57, braised lamb, diluted wine and fruits and nuts.
One of them tells me, “Tomorrow is the seventh day of the week, and we will all gather in this place just like this for scripture reading, prayer and meditation.”
Noticing some strange people, I ask, “Who are those people?”
“They have come from a very faraway land called Hodu58. More than 700 years ago when our people were exiled to Athura59 and Bavel60, the Yehudim were already engaged in trade with people who came from Hodu bringing teakwood, sandal, rice and other merchandise.”
“About 327 years ago when Tre-Qarnayia crossed over into Hodu, trade routes were opened up. Besides trade, other values related to religious beliefs and traditions also travelled along what is known as the Silk Route, which stretches as far as Seen61,where they produce very fine silk and tea. One Malka, Ashoka of Hodu, sent emissaries to Ptolemy II, Malka of Mitzrayim, about 250 years ago. The wise men from Hodu came among them and some of them settled in with us here. They have integrated with the Assayya and have become part of us. They taught us, the Assayya, a new way of meditating and the art of healing, especially inner healing.”
“You will hear them speak. Once in seven weeks we meet for a banquet where we serve one another because we do not believe in the idea of having servants or slaves, which we consider to be contrary to nature. After the banquet, we spend the whole night in a vigil singing hymns until dawn. During the general assemblies, we sit together to hear discourses on the topics of healing and different belief systems. Some of them will speak.”
In one of the general assemblies, I am asked to speak. I speak about tsedek emphasising that tsedek should not be self-centred, but rather outgoing. Our acts of tsedek should reach out to those who have been deprived of their rights.
During other assemblies I get to know some of the wise men from the east. I am curious, “Did your people follow some leader in your land?”
“Yes, our leader was born more than 500 years ago in the land of Hodu in the foothills of very high mountains called ‘the abode of the snow,’ in a small kingdom of Shakya. He was a prince, son of Malka Suddhodana and his mother was a princess. His name was Siddhartha. Although his father ensured that Siddhartha was provided with everything he could want or need, the prince felt that material wealth was not life’s ultimate goal. He was disturbed by the sight of people suffering from all kinds of illness. He lost all interest in the pleasures and privileges of becoming a king.
“One night, in his 29th year, he left home and became a hasya62
