Second part of the series about Schisms within Second Temple Judaism.
When the Judeans returned to rebuild the Temple in about 520 B.C.E., the Samaritans, identifying with the Judeans, offered to help in the endeavor. The Judeans rejected the Samaritans, because of their questionable Jewish descent and their syncretistic cult. As a result, long centuries of hostility began. The Samaritans constantly attempted to block the rebuilding of Jerusalem by appealing to Persian authorities.
Read the rest of the entry here.
