סודיות וקבוצות סודיות ביהדות הבית השני: בעקבות ספר חדש. Michael E. Stone, Secret Groups in Ancient Judaism, New York 2018

This article is a review of Michael Stone’s Secret Groups in Ancient Judaism. It summarizes Stone’s argument that the ancient Jewish “Essene” group (that is, “allied groups exhibiting great resemblances” known from the (1) Qumran texts, (2) Josephus and other authors, and (3) archaeological data) functioned as a hierarchical group based on the shared possession of secret knowledge. Stone argues that the “Essene” group presents us with a unique opportunity among ancient secret cults in that we have its internal documents. In this, it differs from the followers of the Mysteries of Eleusis or the cult of Mithra, for which there are no extensive internal documents, and for which the secrets were so well kept among the initiates that they remain unknown despite years of research based on much new information.
Referring to the work of Georg Simmel (1858–1918), Stone explains that a group claiming to possess secret knowledge is likely to be organized as a hierarchy, in which that knowledge is graded, with the utmost secrets reserved for the heads of the hierarchy but revealed in stages as the initiates move up the hierarchical ladder. Stone concedes that the process of “Essene” initiation, as set forth in Josephus, does not focus on knowledge but on access to the purities of the group; but he cites War 2.141–142, in which the new member swears to carefully preserve the books of the sect and the names of the angels, as evidence that this new member now has access to knowledge and sources that he did not have before. Stone also finds clearer evidence of a knowledge-based hierarchy in Qumran texts such as 1QS column 9 and 4Q298, the “The Maskil’s Address to All Sons of Dawn,” not by chance written in a secret script in order to guard its special knowledge.
As to the details of that secret knowledge, Stone concedes that he is only able to partially lift the cloud. Some uncertainty remains. This knowledge probably included the “secret” legal teachings revealed exclusively to the Qumran group, as outlined by Shemesh and Werman (A. Shemesh and C. Werman, “Hidden Things and their Revelation,” RQ 18 [1998]: 416). Another possible source of this secret knowledge would be personal experiences, such as those recounted in the Hodayot.
The second part of this review essay takes its cue from Stone’s comment in a footnote, that “Hierarchical seniority is also the foundation of legal provisions for conduct of members in gatherings and in their relationships with one another, as is well known.” Taking my departure from this comment, I explore interpersonal relationships in a hierarchy, with one example based on Josephus’ comments that there are four grades of Essenes; if a senior is touched by a junior, that senior must bathe as if touched by a non-Jew (War 2.150). The hierarchy here is reinforced in daily contact, in which status is stated and confirmed by purity regulations.
Stone’s emphasis on the hierarchical organization of the “Essenes” contrasts with the egalitarian aspects that have been stressed by other scholars. One is entitled to wonder how these two modes of organization coexisted without creating friction or schism. Here, Gerald Mars’s study of the hidden hierarchies in the Israeli kibbutzim of the 1980s can illuminate the ancient evidence (G. Mars, “Hidden Hierarchies in Israeli Kibbutzim,” in J. G. Flanagan and S. Rayner [eds.], Rules, Decisions and Inequality in Egalitarian Societies, Aldershot 1988, 98–112).
For example, Josephus’ comments on the egalitarian dress of Essenes (War 2.140), echoed by Philo’s remarks (Omn. Prob. 86) about the commitment of a new Essene not to lord it over his fellows in dress if ever he should become a leader of the group, emphasize the interchangeable roles in their order. This is much like the kibbutz, where the inevitable elite status of some members is hidden when the kibbutz secretary takes a turn clearing tables or washing dishes. Admittedly, the previous dishwasher has about as much chance of becoming kibbutz secretary as the new member has of leading the “Essenes.” However, the emphasis on this possibility, reinforced in the ancient example by common dress, serves to minimize the potential distinctions between the “Essene” elite and lower orders, even if this distinction is regularly reinforced in cases of physical contact.
This book argues convincingly for a window of insight into the “Essenes” as a hierarchical group based on the possession of secret knowledge. It offers an opportunity for further investigation of the “Essenes” from a social scientific perspective. It is thus a significant achievement for its author.