Tuesday, November 29, 2011

History Shorts: The Jewish Revolt (66-73 A.D.)

Greek-Jewish tensions over taxation led to a general revolt. Jewish rebels quickly overwhelmed Roman garrisons launching a general war. It took nearly a decade for the Romans to suppress the revolt. In 70, Titus broke resistance in Jerusalem and then moved steadily on other strongholds. The war ended with the fall of Masada.

In the aftermath, Christianity and Judaism split forever. The Christians did not wish to be associated with the unpopular Jewish religion and began playing up the differences between the two groups. At the same time, the Romans inadvertently wiped out Christian leadership in the Holy Land. As a result, Christians in Rome assumed leadership of the religion.

For the Jews, it led to a new Diaspora. Many died, fled, or sold into slavery. Judaism itself went through a reformation. For the first time, Rabbis did not inherit their positions. Lastly, it led to the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. To date, it has not been rebuilt.

The first two links are from a documentary. The final clip is of Massada.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3-jIjrQ1XM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cn9bP06KFs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YKe3pXCjCy0

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