Judgment Of Bethlehem: A Sacredness hard earned
(Seat of Rebellion)

A judgment is a decision that is based on incomplete data and/or feelings (there is a difference between a judgment and a decision). A judgment is always final. While an evaluation is a tentative decision based on the available data, it is never final.

When studying anything, it is important not to bring in evaluations or judgments of whether the subject is worth studying. This will impose corruption on the study. It is also important to note the difference between the judgment of an individual and the judgment of time; such as, a judgment of history. This difference becomes important as we seek to understand The Judgment Of Bethlehem.

To truly understand the judgment of Bethlehem, we must consider the sign of the times of the events that are being judged, independently of the facts that are given by any particular sect that was partner to the events of the times. The difficulty lies in that each sect of the times had its own set of truths; and, the truths of each set differed in many ways (in our case, we have before us many truths... the truths of the Essenes of The House of Egypt--truths stemming from various visions of the teachings of Yod eh Yav Eh, the truths of the Essenes of The House of David--Truths of the teachings of Yahweh, the truths of the Sons of Zadok--the belief system guiding the Sadducees, the truths of the Pharisees, and the truths of the ruling power of the times--the Roman Empire).

The area in question is rather large; in that it comprises most of the land around what we now call the Dead Sea--the lands of Ammon, and the lands of Moab on one side of the Jordan river; the lands of Jericho, Jerusalem, Qumran, Ein Fashka, Engedi, Masada and the lands south of Masada on the other side of the Jordan river.

During the period of about 500 B.C.E. (before the common era) to about 72 C. E. was not a very happy time for the residents of the lands in question. It was in that time, during the first Jewish revolt against the occupation of Rome. It was a time that signaled the beginning of the final destruction of the dreams of Jewish home rule. 70 C. E. saw the destruction of the most sacred Jewish Temple at Jerusalem.

To truly understand the affairs of the times, the seeker must first seek to understand the true political structure of the area, with respect to the differences between the area's ruling gods. Firstly, consider the political impact coming from the truths of the Essenes of The House of Egypt--specifically, the isolationist life style of the teachings of Yod eh Yav Eh (The Aten) who resided in the wadi of Qumran from the truths of the Essenes of The House of David--specifically, the teachings of Yahweh. We must remember that while it was the political structure that rules, it was the spiritual/religious structure that sanctified that political rule. If the spiritual/religious structure did not accept the political rule, because of unacceptable differences, then the area knew only a series of uprisings. Again, while the Essenes of The House of Egypt were isolationists (it was not acceptable for the followers of Aten to mix with unbelievers), the Essenes of The House of David were not isolationists.

While the Essenes of The House of Egypt were celibates who numbered and accepted both sexes equally (it was an accepted fact that men and women were equally able to serve God. There was no fear that the mixing of men and women would lead to the breaking of the celibate vows), the Essenes of The House of David demanded a complete separation between the men and the women--women were not accepted by the God of the Essenes of The House of David (as a matter of fact, one of the prayers of the day was "Oh God, thank you for not making me a women!")

The above differences made it difficult, at best, for the two Houses to share the same residence--a change was soon in the making. The Essenes of the House of David opted to remove themselves from the wadi Qumran and transfer to the all male fortress at Masada. There, both Houses lived harmoniously for a time. However, the difficulties between the belief system of the Roman Empire and the different sects of the land of Jordan became increasingly impossible. The political standard of Rome on a daily basis conflicted with the standard of the different sects of the land (during this time, there were many different dialects to the Jewish belief system--all of which refused to bow down to the standards of Rome. Each refused to worship the Emperor of Rome as their God. They very much resented having the image of a Roman placed anywhere near their sacred temples).

The power of Rome, however, could not or would not accept that it was not Rome, itself, that was being attacked when a Standard was torn to the ground (the fact that Roman soldiers were killed in the process made it more difficult, to say the least), it was the presence of a Roman citizen standing next to a God, a sacred place of worship. If Rome would have not attacked the sanctity of the Temple, history might have had a different outcome.

Meanwhile, let us consider another set of differences that contributed greatly to the turmoil of the times. While the Pharisees refused to accept levels of responsibility by blaming some of the occurrences of the time upon the fates' Predestiny, the Sadducees did not believe in the existence of Predestiny. For the Sadducees, everything was ordained by the individual, himself--absolute freewill. Thus, we have the influence of a people (Pharisees) who refused to accept the responsibility for some of its action against a different set of people (Sadducees) who held the Pharisees totally responsible for every interaction that took place between them.

The contention between the belief system of the Pharisees and the Sadducees makes for emotional times, at best; when added to the contention between the two Houses of the Essenes, we now have a boiling pot that sees no hope of lasting peace. Finely, if we add to this boiling pot the status of a conquered people--the ever presence of the Roman Empire, there can be nothing but a low grade war in the region.

Needless to say, the temperature of the region, being mostly a very hot desert climate during the day and a very cold, uncomfortable place to spend the nights, added to the discomfort of the Roman soldiers' willingness to deal with a people they considered to be un-ruleable, to say the least. The isolation of the desert was not to the taste of the Roman soldier who was unfortunate enough to be posted away from the lavishes of Rome. Were they in Rome, the soldiers would have the comfort of the night-houses, the ever flowing wine, and the endless choices of women to ease the daily cares. Being, however, posted in the desert region, the Roman soldier had to remain billeted behind stone walls, away from, and out of sight of the citizenry of the region, for fear of being the cause of an unprovoked disturbance.

Needless to say, the relationship between the representations of Rome and the common citizen of the region was not a happy one. The few night-houses that were established to care for the needs of the Roman soldier were very bitterly resented by the people of the area (the fact that the operating of the night-houses could make a man rich over night was not taken lightly by Jews with an eye on their purse). Indeed, woe unto the woman who served in those houses of ill repute. It was because of the special needs that accompany the billeting of the unwanted, unclean Roman soldier that the places that served as garrisons were few and far between--they were located at or near the hot spot of rebellion.

It is in this atmosphere that we come upon a major player telling the future of our saga--Bethlehem. There are many who would have us believe that Bethlehem was a quiet, sleepy, little town that lay off the beaten path of harm's way. The above could not be further from the truth. Bethlehem was near enough to a major trade rout, and far enough from the political hot spots of the region to experience constant travelers. Even more attractive to the players of the times, Bethlehem was small enough to avoid a major Roman presence. This, however, made Bethlehem a most advantaged crossroad from which to launch unsuspecting attacks upon the soldiers of Jerusalem.

Because of its relative size and position, Bethlehem became known as a seething hotbed of insurrection. But, because of its smallness, because of its flat, unprotective houses and shops, Roman soldiers could be seen approaching from a great distance. The trouble makers would be long gone by the time any soldier reached the small town. As a result, Bethlehem was left unprotected from the area's trouble makers.

Politically, however, Bethlehem was a known hot bed of rebellion. While the area was populated by four different sects of people that were thought to be Jews--two types of Essenes, Pharisees and Sadducees--the overwhelming feelings that refused to sanctify the politics of Rome came from only three of the sects. The Essenes from The House of David, the Pharisees, and the Sadducees. The basic history of those feelings are today known as rabbinic and messianism Judaism.

It is within this atmosphere of hate, in this atmosphere of wishing to make the big, bad Roman influence magically disappear that we now encounter signs of this magic wish fulfillment surface. With the downfall of the most sacred Temple at Jerusalem and the downfall of the fortress of Masada, it is no wonder that the thinking process of the times would turn to the thought that only the might of a God could stand against the might of Rome. The stage was now completely set for the entrance of a Messiah.

Western history seeks to teach us that the Rabbi Yaweh (known to the present-day world by the Greek name of Jesus) was that special spark of Godhood come to Earth on Christmas day, in a quiet sleepy little town called Bethlehem. Some say that the prophecy states that out of the lowest of the low shall come the most high to sit judgment over the creations called Earth, at the right hand of God. It is no wonder the difficulty encountered by such words. Could Bethlehem's history of the times make it unacceptable for the holiness of the task of birthing the son of God?... or is this another example of the area's wish fulfillment of the times? If we were all God's creation, and if God were all pure love... would God have a favorite?... or, are the two thoughts incompatible--can God be all pure love and still have a favorite creation that would force Him to make war against His other creations? A good question, indeed!

It is said that I am only what my limits will allow, for the moment... Still, is it not I who controls my limits?
It is said that I will set my limits where I can easily find them, when I need their protection against my secret thoughts... if I control both, where is the protection?... are there levels to my mind's understandings?
It is said that my thoughts are the mirror that reflects my ways upon the mirror of my mind, and that my eyes are the mirror of my Soul... I cry.