Roberto Diego Remembers the 20th Century

The Dead Sea Scrolls

In my opinion, from a purely historical standpoint, the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in the Judean desert in 1947 was the most significant event of the century. As scholars sift through the library, we are learning that the real history of the Jewish people during this period was buried and obscured by the victors in the struggle to dominate the world--The Romans. Many books have been written about the meaning of the scrolls, the dating, the writers and the historical backdrop under which the Jewish people lived while these documents were being written. Many opinions and differences of opinion revolve around them and I find the discussions and debates extremely interesting and eye-opening.

My view is that the scrolls represent the proto-Christian group, messianic in orientation, that dominated the Jewish landscape during the first revolt against Rome in the first century CE. The best book, and the one that convinced me of this is "James the Brother of Jesus" by Robert Eisenman. Eisenman strips away the many layers of Greek and Christian overlays placed upon the gospels dealing with the original historical events and connects them directly to three people, James, the leader of the revolt and the Teacher of Righteousness from the scrolls, Paul, the "Enemy" from the scrolls and Ananas, the "Wicked Priest" of the scrolls.

By means of careful, logical examination, Mr. Eisenman has opened up the window on just what was happening during this time, details of which have been obscured by writers who sought to blame the Jews for the destruction of Jerusalem which ended this period. What a wonderful age we are living in, to be able to finally discover that much of the "philosophy" we have followed and questioned was in fact, nothing more than an effort to extricate the Romans, Herodians, and Greeks from their roles in the destruction of Jerusalem. If you'd like to comment, send me an email.

Go to Atlantic Avenue Books Judaica Department

The Orion Center for the Study of The Dead Sea Scrolls