The Essenes: Their History and Doctrines and the Kabbalah: Its Doctrines, Development and Literature Ginsburg Christian D.Paperback

Every investigation into the causes of the phenomena both of mind and matter was strictly forbidden, because the study of logic and metaphysics was regarded as injurious to devotional life. -from The Essenes The Essenes introduces us to the Judaic sect that contributed greatly to the spread of early Christianity. Drawing upon the Midrashim and the Talmud as well as the accounts of Pliny, Josephus, and other ancient writers, this tribute explores their rise and progress, their relationship to both Judaism and Christianity, and more. The Kabbalah is a guide to those wishing initiation into the mysteries of this esoteric doctrine and its extraordinary if veiled influence on Jewish culture over the centuries. Elementary but also comprehensive, it offers easy-to-understand explanations of matters of Jewish history and literature with which the lay reader may not be familiar. Here, in one