While the law of Moses stipulated cleansing in specific circumstances, the scribes distorted the essence of the law, asserting that one could not eat or drink in good faith unless certain ritual purifications were observed. They believed that neglecting their invented protocols could render a person or object impure, which then tainted the food, the body, and ultimately the soul. Strict scribes maintained that not only hands but also utensils, beds, and tables had to undergo thorough cleansing before every meal. According to their beliefs, failing to wash hands was as grievous an offense as consuming pork. They contended that a person who neglected handwashing could be socially ostracized, as the practice was deemed fundamental to obeying the Ten Commandments, equating such negligence with a death penalty. The Mishnah noted that neglecting handwashing led to poverty, and Rabbi Josiah equated eating without washing to engaging with a harlot. Some scribes went so far as to formulate up to 26 specific regulations for this ritual within a single morning. The Talmud proclaimed it preferable to fetch water from four miles away than risk guilt by omitting handwashing. Continuing this line of reasoning, spiritual leaders declared anyone who did not wash after eating as vile as a murderer. To them, unwashed hands and bread were believed to harbor the devil Shibta. The hallmark of the Pharisees was their careful purification rituals before consuming their daily bread, and they regarded anyone neglecting such practices as unclean.
Legalism had reached its peak at that time, partly due to the profound influence of renowned teachers such as Hillel and Shammai, who had lived just before this period. Their discussions on fine points of the law frequently escalated into fierce debates, leading to a saying that even Elijah could not reconcile them if he returned. However, they unanimously agreed on issues of servitude, as the Talmud stated that anyone residing in Israel, consuming food in cleanliness, speaking Hebrew, and praying properly, could be assured a place in God's kingdom. Regarding purification practices, the first step was washing hands; one would hold fingertips up so water poured down to the elbows and then lower their hands to let water run to the ground. After raising hands, fresh water was poured on them twice more when lowered. The washing involved rubbing one hand against the palm of another. Hands were to be held aloft when washed before eating and lowered afterward to allow water to spill off. The washing vessel was first held in the right hand and then in the left, with water poured consecutively on each while reciting, “Blessed are You, Who gave us the commandment to wash our hands.” Disputes arose regarding whether the blessing should precede the washing or whether a towel should be placed on the table or bed, and whether to cleanse the table before or after the final washing. Yet, these disputes represented only a fragment of the broader legalistic framework. For those in the Pharisaic tradition, washing hands with mere water sufficed for consuming ordinary food, but a complete immersion was required prior to partaking of sacred offerings.
Furthermore, rigor was demanded for washing hands before prayer or touching anything in the morning, as the Rabbis believed nighttime allowed evil spirits to defile them. Even the most trivial actions, like cutting nails or crushing a flea, necessitated purification. The more water used for washing hands was viewed as a sign of greater piety. Rabbi Hazda stated that one who used abundant water for cleansing would find wealth. Even individuals who remained indoors needed only to pour water over their hands, yet anyone entering from outside had to immerse their hands in water, to cleanse them of the potential uncleanness they might have encountered, ideally in a location containing at least sixty gallons of water. This obsessive legalism extended to all household items, resulting in a continuous cycle of purification for varied materials and utensils to avoid ceremonial defilement from any unclean person. Such triviality stemmed from a rivalry between the egalitarian Pharisees and the elitist Sadducees, the latter emphasizing the priestly actions to elevate their status among the laity. In response, the Pharisees exaggerated the significance of vessels and the precision of rituals. Their extensive washing requirements extended even into the temple itself, where all utensils were required to be cleansed post-meal.
This meticulousness led to derision from opponents; when a Pharisee washed a golden lampstand, a Sadducee mockingly quipped that they would soon wash even the sun. The authority for these meticulous and endless practices derived from what they referred to as "fathers' traditions," claimed to have originated in the time of the great synagogue, but were exaggeratedly attributed to divine revelation to Moses on Mount Sinai. Every detail of the law was scrutinized to formulate new edicts, leading to an ever-growing oral tradition which ultimately resulted in distinct schools of thought such as those of Hillel and Shammai. During Christ's life, it was deemed a basic principle that writing these traditions was to be avoided. Rabbi Judah, known as the “Holy One,” later compiled and unified these fragmentary texts into a comprehensive collection, leading to the formation of the Talmud. Remarkably, this self-fashioned corpus of laws, shaped by the stringent legalism of the Pharisees, came to supersede the true weight of the Mosaic law over time. When there was a conflict between scripture and tradition, tradition often prevailed, as the Pharisees themselves acknowledged. They claimed the authority of Moses, as stated in Matthew 23:2, prioritizing their traditions over the Scriptures. Instruction contrary to the scribes’ teachings was considered more sinful than contradicting the Scriptures themselves. The Mishnah asserts that a person who interprets scripture against the established rabbinical tradition forfeits their share in the world to come.
Legalistic commands, rather than the Holy Scriptures, became the foundation of religious practice. The Rabbis believed that God's covenant was established based on the oral law, as seen in Exodus 34:27. This oral law was supposedly a safeguard, ensuring that God's will was practiced amidst impending captivity from foreign nations. Students of these traditions claimed to "see a great light" (Isaiah 9:2), believing that God illuminated their understanding of permissible and impermissible practices that were insufficiently clarified within the written Scriptures. While reading Scripture was commendable, diligent study of the fathers’ traditions was deemed to bring divine reward, with interpretations of these traditions offering the greatest reward. The Talmud declared, “The Bible is like water; the traditions are like wine, and the interpretations of them are like fine wine.” The admonition was clear: focus more on the scribes' teachings than on the law itself.
This illustrates the burdensome legalism imposed by the Jewish legalists, which stifled the spirit of the Mosaic law. Such legalistic rigidity sharply contrasted with the kingdom that Christ preached—a kingdom centered on heart purity and loving sonship to the Heavenly Father, where mere external rituals bore no intrinsic value apart from expressing that loving relationship. The Pharisees reduced the law to a complex array of rules governing every action while Christ elevated it to a living principle guiding the conscience. He emphasized that external mandates could be disregarded if the profound ideals behind them were honored. A lifetime would be insufficient to grasp all the rabbinical decrees regarding purity and sacrifice, yet Christ nullified them, declaring that "mercy is better than sacrifice" (Hosea 6:6, Matthew 9:13, Matthew 12:7). While rabbinical schools proliferated exhaustive explanations on clean and unclean animals, Christ presented a straightforward principle: "Not that which enters into the mouth defiles a man: but that which comes out of the mouth defiles a man" (Matthew 15:11, Mark 7:15). Amid the scribes' debates over the sanitation of vessels, Christ redirected focus toward inner purity: "Ye Pharisees, purify the outward appearance of the cup and the dish, but your inward parts are full of plunder and deceit" (Luke 11:39). Even the Sabbath laws received a spiritualized and succinct interpretation from Him: "It is lawful to do good on the Sabbath. The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath" (Mark 2:27). This revolutionary teaching astonished the rabbis, provoking their ire.
THEOSIS