Blog #6

Hello, my name is Joseph and I am here to speak on behalf of my sect, the Pharisees and to tell you my opinion on our current leader, "Herod the Great". Overall, we have been very disappointed with the reign of Herod. Herod is an impressive builder who has made many new cities, highways, and stadiums so when we heard that he was going to help rebuild our temple we thought it would be a good idea. However, when he was done building the Holy Temple, he erected a golden eagle over the gate to symbolize his allegiance to Rome. This shows how Herod has no respect for Jewish culture or the Torah. We also have seen in other occasions that he does not follow the written or oral laws of the Torah which we strongly believe in.

We have also noticed that Herod is a very cruel man and deals harshly with his opponents and family alike. An example would be when he invited his brother in law, Aristobulus III, to a banquet and had him drowned. He has started killing people that stand in his way of achieving ultimate power, this members of his immediate family. He also taxes people harshly then uses the money for his own purposes instead of using it to benefit his kingdom.

In conclusion, the Pharisees and I both are looking forward to the end of Herod's reign. His actions have shown that he does not care about the Jewish people or their traditions as much as he cares about his allegiance with Rome. His cruel nature is not consistent with the values that we Pharisees cherish the most. We cannot wait until Herod's reign of power comes to an end and we can have a new leader that can understand the core values that we believe in.