Which statement accurately describes the Pharisees in relation to the Sadducees?

• A. The Pharisees emphasized oral tradition and belief in the resurrection, whereas the Sadducees followed only the written Torah and denied resurrection.
• B. Pharisees were primarily priests who ran the temple service.
• C. Sadducees believed in the afterlife more strongly than Pharisees.
• D. Pharisees rejected all forms of ritual purity.

Answer: (A)

The distinction being tested is how these two groups viewed authority and life after death. The Pharisees emphasized both written Scripture and an extensive oral tradition, and they held to belief in the resurrection of the dead and in angels. The Sadducees, by contrast, accepted the Written Torah as authoritative and denied the resurrection and belief in angels. Because of that, the statement captures the real difference: Pharisees emphasize oral tradition and resurrection, while Sadducees adhere to the written law and deny resurrection. The other descriptions don’t fit: Pharisees were not primarily temple priests (that was more characteristic of the Sadducees), the Sadducees did not believe in the afterlife as a strong doctrine, and Pharisees did not reject ritual purity.