Ancient Rome: The Hellenization Of Rome

The process of Hellenization refers to when the Romans imposed their culture and language onto all of the Roman Empire, or the lands once conquered by the Romans. Interestingly enough, there wasn't too much evidence of anything "Roman" about hellenization and that is due to the fact that when Rome took over Greece, they adopted a lot of their cultural practices including, but not limited to religion and philosophy. Truly, the Romans were imposing their version of Greek culture onto everyone they took over.

There were four Jewish sects that arose from the Hellenization that took place during this time. These sects were formed according to how the Jewish people reacted to the hellenization that took place.

First, there were the Pharisees. They had the most influence in the within the Jewish sects, so much to the point that they are still the most referred to in modern day. They were the more peaceful group compared to the rest. They practiced somewhat of a pacifist defense towards the hellenization. They followed the law so closely it pushed the line of legalism. They took it upon themselves to be somewhat of “purity priests” and they basically set the standard for purity by their interpretation of the law.

The Saducees had a very literal interpretation of the Torah. They did not believe that any writings out side of the Torah were the inspired word of God. They are considered the major conservatives of the day. The theological views were almost completely opposite of those of Jesus. They didn't believe in angels or demons, the resurrection, or the possibility of living holy in a mortal body on