Hellenistic Culture and its Spread to Judea

• Hellenistic culture includes beliefs, practices, buildings, and institutions, and its spread was driven by Alexander the Great's conquests.
• Alexander the Great wanted his kingdom to be unified culturally.

Elements of Hellenistic Culture

• Greek gods and temples
• Greek education and philosophy
• Gymnasiums
• Theater
• Language
• Figural Art
• Architecture

Hellenization in Judea

• Evident in Greek architecture and pottery.
• Greek cities (Polis) with independent governance.
• Burial tombs in Marisa blended Jewish traditions with Greek pottery, painting, loculi niches, and Greek writings.
• Coins featured Alexander the Great.
• Olive oil presses were present.
• Straton's Tower exemplified Greek architecture via a cylindrical stone tower.

Jerusalem in the Hellenistic Period

• The Temple Mount and Akra Fortress marked this time.
• Divisions arose as conservative Jews considered Greek gods profane, while others embraced Greek education and customs.
• The Akra Fortress was built and Gentile soldiers would patrol the temple grounds.

Antiochus IV Epiphanes and the Maccabean Revolt

• Antiochus IV made practicing Judaism punishable by death
• The Maccabean Revolt was carried out by a family of conservative Jews in response.
• The Maccabean revolt involved a civil war between conservative and Hellenized Jews in addition to fighting against Seleucid troops.
• Judah Maccabee led his army to victory and reconsecrated the Temple, celebrated as Hanukkah.

The Hasmonean Dynasty

• The Hasmonean Dynasty expanded into surrounding regions, with their ideology reflected in coinage.
• Coinage was produced without human or animal figures, only religious symbols
• Coins featured a menorah.
• Jerusalem became an independent nation, seeking to conquer neighboring lands.
• A goal existed to create one culture by forcing conversion to Judaism.

Development of the Ancient Jewish Diaspora

• Diaspora means "to spread" in Greek, referring to Jews outside Judea.
• Terminology shifted from "Judeans" to "Jews" as people migrated.
• Ethnicity and beliefs were no longer tied to geography.
• Challenges included intermarriage, limited access to the Temple, cultural assimilation, isolation, and persecution.
• Adaptation involved emphasizing prayer, almsgiving, community, scripture, and Sabbath observance.

Jewish Literature from the Diaspora

• Writings of Philo and Tobit.
• Tobit emphasizes burial treatment, sins, honoring the Sabbath, and almsgiving
• Tobit uses morals to characterize Jews in the diaspora
• This was a means of communicating God through just living, following commandments, and loving God.

Diversity in Judaism in the Hellenistic Period

• The Pharisees, Sadducees, and Essenes
• Pharisees were upper class but lower than Sadducees
• Pharisees believed in an immortal soul, predestination, an austere lifestyle and had more public support
• Sadducees did not believe in an immortal soul
• Sadducees interpreted literally as opposed to the biblical law
• Sadducees believed in free will and were elite, harsh and strict
• Essenes had austere lifestyle and despised wealth
• Essenes were excluded from the Jerusalem Temple and lived in Qumran.
• Essenes maintained religious observance of 4000 celibate men
• Essenes believed in immortality of the soul
• Essenes were highly concerned with ritual impurity
• Essenes wrote the Dead Sea Scrolls

The Dead Sea Scrolls

• 25% of the books were found in the Hebrew Bible, 900 documents of religious texts
• Revealed Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, Pesherim, and sectarian texts.
• The Essenes lived simply, dedicated to God, and believed in ritual cleansing.
• The Essenes desired to be in God's presence, viewed themselves as God's temple
• The Essenes were absolute in their moral beliefs and considered themselves the chosen people, with others as enemies.

Discoveries from Qumran

• Evidenced a simple settlement with pottery workshops.
• A script copying room was used to write the Dead Sea Scrolls.
• There may have been Jewish ritual baths.

Key Historical Events

• Conquests of Alexander the Great encompassing Asia Minor, Egypt, and the Levant, leading to cities named Alexandria
• Division of Alexander's kingdom among his generals, creating Ptolemaic Egypt and Seleucid Asia Minor
• The Maccabean Revolt in 167 BC, led by the Maccabee family, resulting in the Temple's recapture in 164 BC
• Judah Maccabee gathered troops of Jews, and with the hand of God defeated the army of Seleucid.