The Pharisees hold a unique place in the Gospels as critics of Jesus and his teachings. Their name means “separation,” and they held themselves apart as models of perfection in the law. They were ...

In Mark 14, the scene is tense. Jesus stands before an assembly of the high priest, all the chief priests, the elders, and the scribes. False witnesses rise and tell tales meant to condemn Jesus, but ...

I’ve been dormant. More like in hiding. Some articles you don’t want to write. The spirit moves you, but your instincts tell you to lay low. These are the days ...

For the past several weeks, Matthew’s Gospel has been unrelenting in his attacks on the Pharisees. They are presented as faithless husbandmen in a vineyard they try to seize for their own. They are ...

Pharisees were religious zealots who were very legalistic in nature. They would often expound the Scriptures in the synagogues and pray before people. They appeared very pious and in people’s eyes, it ...

No one wants to be like the scribes and Pharisees. When Jesus talks about these people in the Gospels, it’s almost never in a positive light. In fact, they normally serve as a warning, as a teachable ...

Pope Francis is being urged by experts to take greater care when referring to “hypocritical” Pharisees, a stereotype that fueled centuries of bad blood between Catholics and Jews. Catholic-Jewish ...

The real mistake made by Jesus’ classic adversaries might surprise you. You’ve probably heard someone say at some point “Don’t be such a Pharisee.” Typically these words are uttered when someone is ...

Giles Fraser and guests hear from Jonathan Aitken, notoriously labelled a hypocrite, to explore how the Pharisees became a byword for hypocrisy. Show more The word hypocrite gets used with such ...