This series will survey the history of the DSS discovery, and what scholars have learned about the identity of the authors and their origins within the context of the history of Judaism in the Second Temple Period. Some of the original texts will be studied to learn about the DSS community and their beliefs. The relationship of the DSS to Christianity and Rabbinic Judaism will also be discussed.
This second lecture looks the evidence for the Essene theory of the DSS by examining texts from Josephus and The Community Rule one of the most important scrolls to be discovered.