They probably found the Pharisees’ preoccupations stifling and petty, and they may also have been offended by the commercial exploitation of pilgrims in the Holy City.9 So when they heard the Twelve talking about Jesus, they would have been drawn to some of his teachings. For instance, he was said to have been critical of the Pharisees: “You pay tithes of mint and rue and every garden herb but neglect justice and the love of God. It is these you should have practiced, without overlooking the other.”
