For centuries, Pharisees have been well known but little understood--due at least in part to their outsized role in the Christian imagination arising from select negative stereotypes based in part on the Gospels. Yet historians see Pharisees as respected teachers and forward-thinking innovators who helped make the Jewish tradition more adaptable to changing circumstances and more egalitarian in practice. Seeking to bridge this gap, the contributors to this volume provide a multidisciplinary appraisal of who the Pharisees actually were, what they believed and taught, and how they have been depicted throughout history. The topics explored within this authoritative resource include: * the origins of the Pharisees * the meaning of the name 'Pharisee' * Pharisaic leniency, relative to the temple priesthood, in judicial matters * Pharisaic concerns for the Jewish laity * Pharisaic purity practices and why they became popular * the varying depictions of Pharisaic practices and beliefs in the