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TEACHER OF RIGHTEOUSNESS*
A designation of the founder of the Essene community at Qumran. The commentaries on biblical books found at Qumran provide us with some insight into the importance of the Teacher. He was a priest and as such was expected to officiate in the temple of Jerusalem. He separated himself with his followers from the established religion in Jerusalem when he began to teach an interpretation of the Law and the Prophets that differed from the established religious practices in Jerusalem. It is claimed that he received a special revelation from God: “to whom [the Teacher of Righteousness] God made known all the mysteries of the words of his servants the Prophets” (1QpHab 2:7-9). Based on the revelation he received, the Teacher taught another way of life and worship. Those who joined with him were discipled so that they might be saved from the day of judgment (1Qpap Micah 1:5).
The claims of the Teacher of Righteousness were exclusive. Only those who followed him by living in separation from corrupt Judaism in the desert were the elect. He felt himself called by God to establish a faithful remnant who would inherit the Abrahamic covenant. As the Teacher knew by revelation the mysteries of the future, he would assume that salvation was possible by faith in him: “This concerns all those who observe the Law in the House of Judah, whom he will deliver from the House of Judgment, because of their suffering and because of their faith in the Teacher of Righteousness” (1QpHab 8:1-3).
The priesthood of Jerusalem was upset with his teachings and exclusive claims. The Teacher was persecuted by one such person, known as the Wicked Priest. On the Day of Atonement, observed at Qumran according to a different calendar from that followed by the establishment, the Wicked Priest appeared at Qumran to force the devotees to defend themselves on their solemn day of rest (1QpHab 11:4-8). It is uncertain what happened to the Teacher of Righteousness. After his death, the Essene community continued to observe his teachings and to draw people dissatisfied with the established religion to its wilderness monastery at Qumran.