Saducees and Pharisies
Great Controversies in Jewish History

"Some controversies have a life of their own," says Rabbi Wein in his half-joking introduction to his series on the great controversies in Judaism. Dissent and even rebellion have always existed in Jewish history, but in the case of the Saducees and Pharisees, the dispute raged to the point of civil war. The power struggle between the fearsome King Alexander Yannai and the rabbis who opposed him teaches an eternal lesson about the dangers of absolute rule.