#4 History Book v’ahavtah lareiacha camocha. history Romans 28-39 (mistrust among
Jews)
Story of Kamtza and bar Kamtza: how sinat chinam* destroyed the Temple
There was a man who had a friend whose name was Kamtza and an enemy whose
name was bar Kamtza. He once said to his servant, “Go invite Kamtza to my feast.” But
the servant brought the enemy bar Kamtza instead!
When the man saw bar Kamtza, in front of everyone, he ordered him to leave his
house. Bar Kamtza whispered to the man, “Please don’t embarrass me in front of
everyone. I’ll pay for the entire feast if you let me stay.” But, the man refused and threw
him out in front of everyone.
Bar Kamtza thought to himself, “There were sages and rabbis present who didn’t
stand up for me. What hypocrites! I’ll denounce all of them to the emperor.”
So, Bar Kamtza went to the Roman emperor and slandered the Jews, saying that
they were being disloyal to Rome. The emperor became enraged and ordered his troops
to attack and destroy Jerusalem and the Temple.
*senseless hatred
If you were at the party, what would you have said to the man about how he was
treating bar Kamtza?
What could you say to bar Kamtza to keep him from going to the emperor?
What Jewish values were ignored by the characters in this story?
Pgs. 28-30
1. Who were the Hasmoneans?
2. Tell one good thing and one bad thing done by the Hasmoneans.
3. What did the Hasmonean king Alexander Yannai do that made the people angry?
What did they do to him on Sukkot in 90 BCE? What terrible punishment did Yannai
inflict on his enemies?
4. What was the reaction of the Essenes to what Alexander Yannai did? (p. 31 green box:
how do we know about life in the Essene community?)
5. Who were the Sadducees and the Pharisees?
6. How and when was the fighting between them ended?
Pgs. 30-33
1. Who was the leader appointed by Rome to be “King of the Jews” in 37 BCE?
2. What did he do that was wonderful to see?
3. What did he do that was horrible?
4. What fortress did he build that still stands today?
5. Why did the Romans have to take over ruling Judaea by themselves after the death of
that king? What parts of governing were the responsibilities of the procurators? What
parts did Jews play? What was the problem with this arrangement?
6. What did the people want?
7. What does the word “messiah” mean in Hebrew? What is a messiah?
8. Look at the picture of the wall on p. 33. Do you see the outline of the entrance gate?
What happened to the gateway? Why?
p. 32. Famous Figures. Why did Shammai chase the man away? What was Hillel’s
answer? The caption on the picture says that greeting people with a smile is a teaching of
Hillel. It is actually part of a teaching of Shammai. Does this surprise you? How can you
explain this?
Pgs. 34-38
1. Who were the Sicarii?
2. Why was the situation in Israel so bad in the middle of the 1st century CE?
3. Why did the procurator Florus want war?
4. Where did the Sicarii go when their leader was killed?
5. What caused the defeat of the Jewish war effort against Vespasian in 67 CE?
6. Where do we get a lot of information about “The Jewish War”?
7. Who were the Zealots? What did they do to bring about the destruction of Jerusalem?
Why do you think they did this?
8. What finally caused Jerusalem to fall? When did this happen?
Read the yellow box on p. 37. What are three customs for the commemoration of Tisha
b’Av?
9. What happened to the people who were trapped in Jerusalem after the fall of the
Temple? What do you see in the picture below? Can you guess where it came from?
10. What is the connection between the history that you’ve just read and the story of
Kamtza and bar Kamtza?
11. What are two views of the defenders of Masada?
Pg. 39 Read and discuss with your family or members of the class.
). History Book: Rabbinic Judaism
When the Northern Kingdom of Israel was destroyed in 722 BCE and the people were
forced to leave, they basically disappeared. We call those people the 10 Lost Tribes.
When the Babylonian Exile of 586 BCE drove the remaining people out, they managed to
keep their special Jewish identity alive because of the work of prophets and scribes. After
the destruction of the Second temple by the Romans, it was up to the rabbis and sages of
Israel and Babylon to save Judaism from destruction.
1. What was so important about the Temple in Jerusalem?
2. How did some Jews explain the destruction of the temple?
3. Who were the ascetics? What was their response to the loss of the Temple?
4. How did the rabbis respond to the loss of the Temple?
5. Who were the Pharisees? (hint: check chapter 3)
6. What was revolutionary about Yochanan ben Zakkai’s response to the loss of the
Temple? What did he focus on?
7. Do you know of any individuals who made a difference? Who were they and what did
they do? When have you made a difference? How would you like to make a difference?
8. What kinds of activities went on at the school in Yavneh?
9. What is halachah?
10. What did Rabban Gamaliel and the Religious court add to Judaism?
11. After the destruction of the Temple, people began to build synagogues. What kinds of
things went on in those ancient synagogues? What is similar and what is different
between our modern synagogue and the ancient ones?
12. What did Hadrian do that angered the Jews? When else did something like this
happen?
13. Who was simon ben Kozeva? Why did rabbi Akiva think he was important? What
name did Akiva give him?
14. How was Simon like the Zealots and Sicarii (hint: see chapter 3). How were his
methods like those of Hamas today?
15. How did the Romans stop the bar Kochba revolt? On what sad holiday did Beitar (the
last safe town for the rebels) fall?
16. What were some of the things that the Emperor Hadrian did that disrupted jewish
life? Where did the Jews go?
Answer the questions on p. 49
Use the Key Words and places in sentences
If something happened to all the synagogues in the world, how would you continue to be
Jewish? What are some things that you would make sure to teach your children no matter
what? If you could only choose 3 Jewish items to save, what would they be? Why? What
would you miss?
One of the earliest books that the rabbis composed is the Mishnah. There are 6 sections in
the Mishnah. In one of those sections is a special collection of important sayings and
values on which the rabbis based a lot of their teachings. It’s called Pirkei Avot. There are
songs based on these important sayings. Here are the words. We’ll learn them in class.
Pirkei Avot 1.2 A Saying of Shimon ha-Tzaddik (Simon the Righteous)
and 1.18 A Saying of Shimon ben Gamaliel
1.2] Al She-lo-sha de-va-rim (2x)
Al She-lo-sha, she-lo-sha de-va-rim
Ha-o-lam, ha-o-lam o-meid: [2x]
Al ha-Torah, v’al ha-a-vo-dah, v’al ge-mi-lut cha-sa-dim
Al ha-Torah, v’al ha-a-vo-dah, v’al ge-mi-lut cha-sa-dim
1.18] Al She-lo-sha de-va-rim (2x)
Al She-lo-sha, she-lo-sha de-va-rim
Ha-o-lam, ha-o-lam ka-yam: [2x]
Al ha-e-met, v’al ha-din, v’al ha-shalom
Al ha-e-met, v’al ha-din, v’al ha-shalom
Al She-lo-sha de-va-rim (2x)
Al She-lo-sha, she-lo-sha de-va-rim
Ha-o-lam, ha-o-lam o-meid.
1.2: On three things the world stands: on Torah, on worship/sacrifice/service, on acts of
lovingkindness
1.18: On three things the world is sustained: on truth, on justice, on peace
Pirkei Avot 1.14 A Saying of Hillel:
Im ein a-ni li, mi li?
Uche-she-an-i le’ats’mi ma a-ni?
Ve-im lo ach-shav, ei-ma-tai (ei-ma-tai)?
If I am not for myself, who will be for me? But if I am for myself alone, what am I? And if
not now, when?
Pirkei Avot 2.21 A Saying of Rabbi Tarphon
Lo a-le-cha ha-me-la-cha lig-mor, Lo a-le-cha lig-mor (2x)
Ve-lo a-ta ben cho-rin le-hi-ba-teil mi-me-na Ve-lo a-ta ben cho-rin
It is not your duty to complete the task; neither are you free to abstain from it.