Ritual Purity

The study of ritual purity in the texts from Qumran has proven to be central to Dead Sea Scrolls studies. Current issues which require a knowledge of the subject include, for example, the identification of the sect’s origin and persuasion, the relationship between the Scrolls and the Hebrew Bible, the homogeneity or disparity between various Qumran texts and recensions, the correspondence between the site at Qumran (with its 10 miqva’ot) and the sect, and the question of whether the Scrolls influenced Christian baptism.
In addition to a survey of contemporary scholarship on purity in the Scrolls, I offer my own latest research which addresses the connection of purification by water and spirit in the Scrolls. More than any other ancient Jewish texts, greater spirituality is expressed in the Scrolls through increased attention to ritual. Whereas some may regard these two concepts to be antithetical, the Scroll authors consider them complementary. The crux is resolved when one examines the function and purpose of ritual purification. Strong evidence from the Hebrew Bible and other ancient literature (Jewish and non-Jewish) supports the Qumran notion that purification in water anticipates spiritual renewal.