Who Were the sCribes and the Pharisees?
Scribes were Jews who had studied the Bible and were experts in the Law of Moses. After some years of study they were recognized as being the true interpreters of the Law. Pharisees were people whom sought to maintain the fervor and the fidelity to the law. Saint Paul, declares himself to be a Pharisee before the Sanhedrin. Brothers, I am a Pharisee, son of Pharisees (Ac 23:6). The Pharisees were not bad people. They were pious, observant of the Law of God, and sought to please Him. But they were so observant of the Law that they became legalists. They made an absolute of outer forms and rites, carried out meticulously to the minimum detail. This led them to leave aside more important things, like the charity and mercy. Jesus does not question their authority to teach, nor their legitimacy; he does not call to disobedience. He only warns that their conduct is not to be imitated: Do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you, but do not follow their example. For they preach but the
