Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Date of Graduation
Spring 2017
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts (BA)
Department
Department of Philosophy and Religion
Advisor(s)
Alan Kirk
Frances Flannery
Stephen Chappell
Abstract
This paper examines the development of various theories about the afterlife – and even beyond theories that deal with post-mortem – in the early Jewish period. There is an emphasis placed on the development of the theory of predestination within the Qumran Yachad – the Dead Sea Scrolls Community. The main text utilized for arguing the development of predestination thought in the literature of the Qumranites is the Rule of the Community. Other various texts from the Hebrew Bible and from the early Jewish period are examined in order to explain the development of other theories such as resurrection, immortality of the soul, and no further vindication beyond Sheol. Several of the main Jewish sects from the time period, such as the Pharisees, Sadducees, and Essenes are also discussed in the paper.
Recommended Citation
Graham, Robert E. III, "An examination of early Jewish thought on the afterlife" (2017). Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019. 280.
https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/honors201019/280
