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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 ....

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... 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 believed that the Essenes were one of the first all-male monastic orders, and it is uncertain whether they were exclusively Jewish in origin, or if the group had roots in Greek philosophy as well. Organizationally speaking, the Essenes were a singular entity, presided over by a president, who was obeyed unconditionally. There were four ...