Editing Antisemitism in Christianity (section)

===Criticism of the Pharisees===
{{Main|Woes of the Pharisees}}
Many New Testament passages criticise the [[Pharisees]], a Jewish social movement and school of thought that flourished during the [[Second Temple period]] (516 BCE–70 CE). It has been argued that these passages shaped the way in which Christians viewed and continue to view Jews. Like most [[Bible]] passages, however, they can be interpreted in a variety of ways.

Today, mainstream [[Rabbinical Judaism]] is directly descended from the Pharisaical tradition, which Jesus frequently criticized.<ref>Universal Jewish Encyclopedia (1943); Jewish Encyclopedia (1905), Exhibit 264.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/12087-pharisees|title=PHARISEES - JewishEncyclopedia.com}}</ref> During Jesus's life and at the time of his execution, the Pharisees were only one of several Jewish groups, such as the [[Sadducee]]s, [[Zealot]]s, and [[Essene]]s, that mostly died out not long after the period;<ref>Jewish Encyclopedia (1905)</ref> Jewish scholars such as [[Harvey Falk]] and [[Hyam Maccoby]] have suggested that Jesus was himself a Pharisee. In the [[Sermon on the Mount]], for example, Jesus says, "The Pharisees sit in [[Moses]]' seat, therefore do what they say". Arguments by Jesus and his disciples against certain groups of Pharisees and what he saw as their hypocrisy were most likely examples of disputes among Jews and internal to Judaism that were common at the time (see, for example, [[Hillel and Shammai]]).