Today, as part of the new “Abrahamic Traditions” module, the first year students from both Secondary Religious Education + QTS and Education and Religion programmes participated in a roleplaying game reenacting different major religious groups that were current during the Second Temple period (roughly around 0 C.E.).

The students were stunningly dressed in makeshift costumes and props from the RE storage cabinets while delivering short fiery speeches summarising the teachings of Pharisees, Zealots, Gnostics and Messianic Jews, against the Powerpoint backdrop of the old Western wall of the temple. The speakers did splendidly in spite of the presence of a strange heckler.

“Roman authorities and Jewish city elders are said to have been interested in the outcome of these discussions, and rumours have it that there might be arrest warrants for some of the speakers!”

A Pharisee calling for adherence to the Torah and criticising the hypocrisy of the Temple priesthood.

“Zealots” calling for militant rebellion against the Romans.

Mysterious Gnostics propounding radically unusual interpretations of the Torah and the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth.
Messianic Jews cheerfully bringing good news of an “Apocalypse” and the coming of a Messiah
A bemused heckler. Has one of the speaker groups convinced him to join their cause?