Kalya, West Bank, Palestinian Territories — The Middle East (West Asia)

The Community Rule

Photographed By Darren Jefferson Clay, March 10, 2023

1. The Community Rule Marker

Inscription. "The time to [guide] them in knowledge and to enlighten them in the wondrous secrets and and the truth among the men of the community to go innocently a man and [his neighbor in all] which is revealed to them. Is the time when the way leads to the wilderness[and] to enlighten them in all which there is to do at the time..."-an excerpt from "the community rule", beginning of the first century CE.

Seven scrolls were discovered in Cave 1 on the cliff in front of you. Among them was the community rule which served as the rulebook of the Qumran sectarians. The community rule included instructions for a yearly ceremony renewing the covenant between the sectarians and God. It describes the world view of the Qumran community, its laws and regulations. It’s penal code, religious and judicial principles and the proper behavior for a sectarian. It also contains a song of praise to God. The laws mentioned in this scroll resemble those of the Essene sect. Some scholars therefore maintain that the Qumran sectarians were one of the groups affiliated with the Essenes.

(Hebrew not transcribed)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Churches & Religion.

Location. 31° 44.498′ N, 35° 27.539′ E. Marker is in Kalya, West

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Bank. Marker can be reached from National Route 90. Touch for map. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Qumran / קומראן (here, next to this marker); Cave 1 / מערת 1 (here, next to this marker); Ritual Bath (within shouting distance of this marker); Kiln (within shouting distance of this marker); The Bursar of the Congregation (within shouting distance of this marker); The Refectory (within shouting distance of this marker); Pottery Storeroom (within shouting distance of this marker); Kitchen (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Kalya.

Also see . . . Dead Sea Scrolls (Wikipedia).

Overview: The Dead Sea Scrolls (also the Qumran Caves Scrolls) are ancient Jewish and Hebrew religious manuscripts discovered between 1946 and 1956 at the Qumran Caves in what was then Mandatory Palestine, near Ein Feshkha in the West Bank, on the northern shore of the Dead Sea. Dating from the 3rd century BCE to the 1st century CE, the Dead Sea Scrolls are considered to be a keystone in the history of archaeology with great historical, religious, and linguistic significance because they include the oldest surviving manuscripts of entire books
Photographed By Darren Jefferson Clay, March 10, 2023

2. The Community Rule Marker
later included in the biblical canons, along with deuterocanonical and extra-biblical manuscripts which preserve evidence of the diversity of religious thought in late Second Temple Judaism...

(Submitted on April 22, 2023.)

Credits. This page was last revised on April 22, 2023. It was originally submitted on April 13, 2023, by Darren Jefferson Clay of Duluth, Georgia. This page has been viewed 47 times since then and 8 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on April 13, 2023, by Darren Jefferson Clay of Duluth, Georgia. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.