PhariseesThe Pharisees (ˈfærəsiːz; Pərūšīm) were a Jewish social movement and a school of thought in the Levant during the time of Second Temple Judaism. After the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE, Pharisaic beliefs became the foundational, liturgical, and ritualistic basis for Rabbinic Judaism. Conflicts between Pharisees and Sadducees took place in the context of much broader and longstanding social and religious conflicts among Jews, made worse by the Roman conquest.
Second TempleThe Second Temple (, Bēṯ hamMīqdāš hašŠēnī, ), later known as Herod's Temple, was the reconstructed Temple in Jerusalem between 516 BCE and 70 CE. It replaced Solomon's Temple, which is presumed to have been built at the same location before its destruction by the Neo-Babylonian Empire during the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem 587 BCE. Construction of the Second Temple began some time after the Neo-Babylonian Empire was conquered by the Achaemenid Persian Empire; it followed a proclamation by Persian king Cyrus the Great through his edict that ended the Babylonian captivity and initiated the return to Zion.
HanukkahHanukkah (ˈhɑːnəkə; ) is a Jewish festival commemorating the recovery of Jerusalem and subsequent rededication of the Second Temple at the beginning of the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire in the 2nd century BCE. Hanukkah is observed for eight nights and days, starting on the 25th day of Kislev according to the Hebrew calendar, which may occur at any time from late November to late December in the Gregorian calendar. The festival is observed by lighting the candles of a candelabrum with nine branches, commonly called a menorah or hanukkiah.
Hasmonean dynastyThe Hasmonean dynasty (ˌhæzməˈniːən; Ḥašmōnaʾīm) was a ruling dynasty of Judea and surrounding regions during classical antiquity, from 140 BCE to 37 BCE. Between 140 and 116 BCE the dynasty ruled Judea semi-autonomously in the Seleucid Empire, and from roughly 110 BCE, with the empire disintegrating, Judea gained further autonomy and expanded into the neighboring regions of Perea, Samaria, Idumea, Galilee, and Iturea. The Hasmonean rulers took the Greek title basileus ("king") as the kingdom became a regional power for several decades.
EzraEzra or Esdras (ˈɛzrə; עֶזְרָא, ; fl. 480–440 BCE), also called Ezra the Scribe ( ) in Chazalic literature, and Ezra the Priest was an important Jewish scribe (sofer) and priest (kohen) in the early Second Temple period. In Greco-Latin Ezra is called Esdras (Ἔσδρας). His name is probably a shortened Aramaic translation of the Hebrew name , "Yah helps". In the Greek Septuagint the name is rendered (), from which the Latin name Esdras comes.
