Sadducees

Sadducees, a sect existing among the Jews in the time of Christ. The name has been variously derived from the word signifying "the righteous;" or from one Zadok, head of the Sanhedrin in the 3rd century B.C.; or from one Zadok the priest, who crowned Solomon, and whose descendents and adherents may have enjoyed special privileges and adopted special tenets. From the New Testament we learn that they disputed the pharisaic traditions, did not believe in the resurrection, and in some degree, as to which there is much dispute, did not believe in angels or spirits. Josephus, the only non-scriptural authority on them, was a Pharisee.