Sadducee-ism
Sadducee-ism
Both a party and a belief so named after the Zadokites, sons of Zadok, the family and temple hierarchy, advocates of the written Torah (teaching) in Judaism, the partv and attitude opposite to the Pharisees and scribes, who prized oral and developing thought as well as the Torah. In general, Sadducee-ism, holding the Law (Pentateuch) to be explicit and its language straight-forward, rejected the Messianic doctrine as regards the House of David, but not as regards a priestly source, and also that of resurrection of the body, but not that of the soul. On the whole, however, Jesus and Paul both proved to be the enemies of Pharisee-ism and in effect sided with the Sadduccees against traditional law. — F.K.