What were the major points of division between the Pharisees and the Sadducees?
Answer to Quora Query:
What were the major points of division between the Pharisees and the Sadducees?
https://www.quora.com/What-were-the-major-points-of-division-between-the-Pharisees-and-the-Sadducees/answer/Yair-Davidiy
The Pharisees are basically the Sages of Jewish Tradition and their followers. They gave rise to the Mishnah and Talmud and related sources. The term "Pharisee" is from the Hebrew "Parush" i.e. "Separated." The Sages who adjudicated over the people held to stricter standards than the common people and therefore in many cases kept themselves separate and were known as "Pharushim" i.e. Pharisees.
When the Torah was given it was put into practice. How exactly different laws were to be carried out is not entirely clear from the simple text. It is obvious that some type of explanation accompanied the Law. They were commanded in case of doubt to direct their doubts and queries to a central authority and to obey it.
Deuteronomy (NKJV) 17:
8 IF A MATTER ARISES WHICH IS TOO HARD FOR YOU TO JUDGE.... THEN YOU SHALL ARISE AND GO UP TO THE PLACE WHICH THE LORD YOUR GOD CHOOSES. 9 AND YOU SHALL COME TO THE PRIESTS, THE LEVITES, AND TO THE JUDGE THERE IN THOSE DAYS, AND INQUIRE OF THEM; THEY SHALL PRONOUNCE UPON YOU THE SENTENCE OF JUDGMENT. 10 YOU SHALL DO ACCORDING TO THE SENTENCE WHICH THEY PRONOUNCE UPON YOU IN THAT PLACE WHICH THE LORD CHOOSES. AND YOU SHALL BE CAREFUL TO DO ACCORDING TO ALL THAT THEY ORDER YOU. 11 ACCORDING TO THE SENTENCE OF THE LAW IN WHICH THEY INSTRUCT YOU, ACCORDING TO THE JUDGMENT WHICH THEY TELL YOU, YOU SHALL DO; YOU SHALL NOT TURN ASIDE TO THE RIGHT HAND OR TO THE LEFT FROM THE SENTENCE WHICH THEY PRONOUNCE UPON YOU. 12 NOW THE MAN WHO ACTS PRESUMPTUOUSLY AND WILL NOT HEED THE PRIEST WHO STANDS TO MINISTER THERE BEFORE THE LORD YOUR GOD, OR THE JUDGE, THAT MAN SHALL DIE. SO YOU SHALL PUT AWAY THE EVIL FROM ISRAEL. 13 AND ALL THE PEOPLE SHALL HEAR AND FEAR, AND NO LONGER ACT PRESUMPTUOUSLY.
Over the years a body of Law developed along with accepted principles for deducing from the Text and Tradition what the Law was. At first all this was transmitted orally to students who met certain standards and had learnt to a sufficient degree. This learning was supplemented with Prophecy. The destruction of the First Temple was followed by Exile of the Jews to Babylon. After 70 years many of the Jews returned from Babylon and, under Ezra and Nehemiah, began to reconstruct their former institutions. The former supreme religious authority had been a Great Sanhedrin of 70 members. After the return from Babylon due to the exceptional circumstances a larger assembly of 120 members was convened known as the Great Assembly. Its membership included the Prophets Malachi, Haggi, and Zechariah. From 120 members its ranks were gradually reduced to 70 as required by the Law (Exodus 24:9, Numbers 11: 24). The Sages continued the Oral tradition. Most of them were Pharisees meaning Sages who were especially strict with themselves. Ultimately the Oral Law was written down.
Meanwhile social divisions developed among the people. There were groups who wished to assimilate to existing pagan practices and adopt Hellenistic culture. This caused a reaction and gave rise to the Maccabees. In later years, Hellenisim and pro-Roman cultural attitudes continued to hold an attraction for some of the people especially the wealthy. The Sadducee sect developed from these elements. They did not dismiss the Torah nor the Oral tradition all together but were liberal in the way they could be interpreted. A parallel may be found in the early days of the Jewish Reform Movement in Germany and America.
Concerning the Pharisees and Sadducees the following sources are of interest.
Josephus "Of the War," Book II 14.
BUT THEN AS TO THE TWO OTHER ORDERS AT FIRST MENTIONED, THE PHARISEES ARE THOSE WHO ARE ESTEEMED MOST SKILLFUL IN THE EXACT EXPLICATION OF THEIR LAWS. THESE ASCRIBE ALL TO FATE [or providence], AND TO GOD, AND YET ALLOW, THAT TO ACT WHAT IS RIGHT, OR THE CONTRARY, IS PRINCIPALLY IN THE POWER OF MEN; ALTHOUGH FATE DOES CO-OPERATE IN EVERY ACTION. BUT THE SADDUCEES ARE THOSE THAT COMPOSE THE SECOND ORDER, AND TAKE AWAY FATE ENTIRELY, AND SUPPOSE THAT GOD IS NOT CONCERNED IN OUR DOING OR NOT DOING WHAT IS EVIL; AND THEY SAY, THAT TO ACT WHAT IS GOOD, OR WHAT IS EVIL, IS AT MENS OWN CHOICE, AND THAT THE ONE OR THE OTHER BELONGS SO TO EVERY ONE, THAT THEY MAY ACT AS THEY PLEASE.
Maimonides (11381204 CE), Rambam on Pirkei Avot 1:2 (Hebrew) Rough translation from the Hebrew Original into English by Yair Davidiy:
... THIS SAGE [Antigonous Ish Soko] HAD TWO DISCIPLES. THE NAME OF ONE WAS TSADOK, OF THE OTHER BEOTHUS. WHEN THEY HEARD THIS STATEMENT EMANATE FROM HIM [that we should worship the almighty without hope for reward] THE ONE SAID TO THE OTHER; "BEHOLD THE RABBI SAID EXPRESSLY THAT A PERSON HAS NO REWARD NOR PUNISHMENT, NOR ANY HOPE WHATSOEVER." THEY HAD NOT UNDERSTOOD THE INTENTION OF THEIR RABBI. THEY REINFORCED EACH OTHER [in their misapprehension], SEPARATED THEMSELVES FROM THE GENERAL COMMUNITY AND ABANDONED THE TORAH. ONE SECT FORMED AROUND ONE OF THEM AND ANOTHER SECT AROUND THE OTHER. THE SAGES TERMED THEM "TSADOKIM" [i.e. "Sadducees"] AND "BEOTHUSIM." THEY WERE UNABLE TO ATTRACT AUDIENCES WITH THE DOCTRINES THAT THEY THEN HAD. SUCH BELIEFS WOULD DRIVE AWAY THEY WHO HAD ALREADY ATTACHED THEMSELVES TO THEM LET ALONE NOT ATTRACT NEW ADHERENTS. THEY COULD NOT PREACH THIS NEW DOCTRINE AGAINST THE TORAH TO THE COMMON PEOPLE FOR IF THEY DID THEIR AUDIENCES WOULD KILL THEM. EACH ONE OF THEM THEREFORE SAID TO HIS OWN GROUP THAT HE BELIEVES IN THE TORAH BUT DISAGREES WITH THE TRADITION WHICH IS FALSE. IN THIS WAY, THEY ABSOLVED THEMSELVES FROM [part of] THE COMMANDMENTS AND DECREES AND REGULATIONS. THEY COULD NOT OPENLY DENY THE WHOLE TORAH AND TRADITION. THEY THEREFORE DENIED WHAT THEY COULD UNTIL THEY SHOULD FIND OPPORTUNITY TO DENY MORE. ONCE THEY HAD BEGUN TO INTERPRET THE SOURCES AS THEY WISHED IT WAS EASIER FOR THEM O BE LENIENT WERE THEY WISHED AND STRICTER WHEN THEY WANTED. IN REALITY THEY NO LONGER BELIEVED IN ANYTHING. IN PRACTICE THEY SOUGHT TEACHINGS THAT WERE ACCEPTABLE TO SOME SECTIONS OF THE POPULACE. SINCE THEN, THESE EVILS SECTS DEVELOPED.
IN OUR REGION (i.e. Egypt), THEY ARE KNOWN AS KARAITES. THE SAGES CALLED THEM TSADOKIM AND BEOTHUSIM. THESE ARE THE ONES WHO BEGAN TO CONTEST TRADITION AND TO INTERPRET BIBLICAL VERSES AS THEY LIKED WITHOUT LISTENING TO ANY OF THE SAGES WHATSOEVER. BY DOING THIS THEY TRANSGRESSED THE COMMANDMENT, "YOU SHALL DO ACCORDING TO THE SENTENCE WHICH THEY PRONOUNCE UPON YOU IN THAT PLACE WHICH THE LORD CHOOSES. AND YOU SHALL BE CAREFUL TO DO ACCORDING TO ALL THAT THEY ORDER YOU" (Deuteronomy [NKJV] 17:10).
See Also:
Yair Davidiy's answer to Are there still Pharisees and Sadducees in modern-day Israel?
https://www.quora.com/Are-there-still-Pharisees-and-Sadducees-in-modern-day-Israel/answer/Yair-Davidiy