Northwest of the Dead Sea lies the ruins of a community long known to the Bedouins as "Khirbet Qumran". Almost 900 manuscript fragments have been found in caves near this site between 1947 and 1975, adding to the understanding of ancient Judaism. The discoveries at Qumran are documented in this volume. Hartmut Stegemann draws on 1990s research to decipher the meaning of the historical facts regarding the Qumran community and to answer in an understandable way many of the questions that have provoked speculation since the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls. The text analyzes the purpose of the Qumran settlement itself and paint a picture of how daily life may have been carried on there. It probes similarities and differences between Essene baptism, commemorative meals, and eschatology and their early Christian counterparts. Also explored is the relation of the Qumran community to John the Baptist, to Jesus, and to early Christianity.