In Modiin: Hometown of the Maccabees, they describe what their excavations reveal about the Jewish village that the Maccabees called home. Knights of Maccabee In 1926 they established their headquarters at the, In 1941 the group gained control of the Michigan Union Life Association, furthering its transformation from a, In 1962 the group changed its name again, this time to the. Art by Rivka Korf Studio 1. Second, both 1 and 2 Maccabees highlight something that traditional Jewish retellings (informal and formal) leave out: The rise of the Maccabees was also in response to Jewish efforts to accommodate to Greek rule by challenging traditional Jewish practices. Please review their Privacy Policy as it may differ from ours. With the Khashmonaeans on the throne the Davidic descendants lost their kingship and thus the balance of power was wiped out and the Tzokeans (Saducees) had both kingship and priestly control. Jonathan, and later Simeon [Maccabee], were recognized by the Seleucids as high priests and even as governors. Well, you won't find that account in any of the Books of Maccabees. At that very moment, God strikes Antiochus with a terrible poop disease that makes him fall out of the chariot and break all of his bones. the name Iduma [Edom] disappeared from history. (The New Funk & Wagnalls Encyclopedia, 1952, Vol. The book of 1 Maccabees is the most thorough account of the deeds of the sons of Mattathias and the Maccabean revolt against the Seleucid Empire; 2 Maccabees is a more sensationalized account that focuses on a briefer period of time and adds cool stuff like flying ghost armies; 4 Maccabees is a homily rather than a narrative, focusing on the lessons we can learn from the faithfulness of the Maccabean martyrs; 5 Maccabees is a wide survey of events from this period of history. Certain classes of railway employees, expressmen, miners (excluding coal miners) and firemen had to pay an additional 25 cents assessment per each $1,000. And unworthy of a truly educated person. Then he and his family took to the hills. Though the story of the woman and her seven sons is recounted in the Babylonian Talmud, it has been transposed from the period of Seleucid persecution to a later period of Roman persecution, with the evil king generically named Caesar rather than Antiochus. After the manner of his time and also of his enemies, he was ready to exterminate all the males of a conquered city. The placement of Israel in between Egypt and Syria meant that it was smack in the middle of two rival empires for over a century, and the Seleucids and the Ptolemies battled over it for about 125 years. Have excavations uncovered the hometown of the Maccabees, heroes of Hanukkahs Maccabean revolt? The_Patriot21 Posted May 30, 2016 because its message is contradicting to Biblical texts. According to 1 Maccabees, there were some early groups of Jewish rebels who refused to fight on the Sabbath, and perished accordingly (1 Maccabees 2:2938) until the Maccabean patriarch Mattathias decided to change the law and permit defensive warfare on the Sabbath (2:3941). His body is subsequently plagued with worms, and the smell of his rotting flesh repulses his entire army. The Ladies of the Maccabees were the group's female auxiliary. . Judas sent a delegation to Rome at one point to seek for help. But even the Talmud stops short of telling the full story: Who was Syrian Greek Antiochus? This process of forced assimilation only became worse for the Jews with the accession in 176 BCE of Antiochus IV, who refused to allow any religious exemptions for the Jews as his father had. While this Early Hellenistic building influenced the location and shape of the two synagogues built atop it in subsequent centuries, the excavators believe that there is not enough information at the time to conclude that the Early Hellenistic building was also a synagogue. These are the books of 1, 2, and 3 Meqabyan, also known as the Ethiopian Maccabees. Remember how our fathers were saved at the Red Sea, he told his men, when Pharaoh with his forces pursued them (I Maccabees 4:9). Sign up to receive our email newsletter and never miss an update. According to the Jewish Virtual Library, Jonathan switched up tactics from the way his brother had done things, gaining great success by making clever alliances and bargains with his enemy's enemies. The Apocrypha is available, for the first time, in an English language edition with an emphasis on Jewish tradition. No one responded to the first comment, except in flippancy. Figure 3: Image of the Maccabees from the Knesset (Israeli Parliament) Menorah, Jerusalem. In those days Mattathias, son of John, son of Simeon, a priest of the family of Joarib left Jerusalem and settled in Modein. Jews continue to celebrate the Hasmoneans victory every year on Hanukkah, despite the absence of the books of Maccabees from the Jewish Bible. Also, no one who was involved in the liquor trade or an alcoholic was admitted. 1 and 2 Maccabees are considered canon for Catholic and Orthodox churches; 3 Maccabees is only Orthodox; 4 Maccabees only Ethiopian Orthodox; anything else is fully apocryphal. That disaproval was because it marked the change of kingship in Israel. . From this title comes the name Hasmonean that was applied to the dynasty that descended from the Maccabees in the following century. In some instances, the books are separated out from both the Old Testament and the New Testament into an appendixthe Apocrypha. This Bible History Daily feature was originally published on March 22, 2014. In 37 B.C. Calling people names or clowns is disrespectful . The oil lasts, however, for a total of eight days until more can be produced. Hanukkah celebrates this rededication, including the cruse of oil that miraculously lasted for eight days. Still there are a few generalities we can offer that are, more or less, true of both accounts. This doesn't even get into the guy in 2 Maccabees chapter 14, who, rather than be taken captive by the Seleucids, stabbed himself with his own sword, jumped out of a window, ripped out his own intestines and threw them at his enemies until he died. John in spirit had become a Sadducee, an upper-class conservative who accepted only the Written Law as divinely revealed and authoritative. Who Were the Maccabees? - Christianity Rare DSS Text Mentions King Jonathan., From the time of Alexander the Great to the end of the Roman Empire, Greek culture permeated much of the ancient world. In this collection of Biblical Archaeology Review and Bible History Daily articles, learn more about the Maccabees. 1:48), following the orders of these radical Jews who opposed Jewish traditional practices (cf. He would pause in his guerrilla tactics to assemble his men to watch and pray and to read the Torah (the divinely revealed Law of Moses) together. Mattathias then insisted that all groups of resisters should fight if required on the holy Sabbath. The Roman Senate, in 40 B.C., declares Herod the Great the new "King of the Jews" over Judea. That is how the Idumaean king Herod of Jesus day was a Jew by religion. The finds discovered at the site of Umm el-'Umdan in modern Modi'in are described in "Modi'in: Hometown of the Maccabees" by Shlomit Weksler-Bdolah and Alexander Onn in the March/April 2014 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review. Why did he crack down on Jerusalems Temple? The MaccabeesMattathias and his five sons, John, Simon, Judas, Eleazar, and Jonathancertainly left their mark on history. In 160 B.C., Judas Maccabee dies in battle. Moreover, Judas could be as cruel as Joshua was. Antigonus claimed control of Greece, while Seleucus took Syria and Asia Minor, and Ptolemy took Egypt and Israel. Required fields are marked *. Additionally, even though Judah had no sons, the term is also used for the descendants of his brother Simon Thassi (Maccabeus). The family of Joarib (or Jehoiarib) goes all the way back to Davids reign. Knights of the Maccabees - Wikipedia Judas then had blameless priests cleanse the Holy Place and erect a new altar of unhewn stones. A version of this post first appeared in Bible History Daily in December, 2020, Not a BAS Library or All-Access Member yet? In various Christian churches, August 1 is a feast day for a group of saints known as the Holy Maccabees, or sometimes the Maccabean martyrs. They decreed by public edict, ratified by vote, that the whole nation of the Jews should observe these days every year (2 Maccabess 10:6-8). After Judah and his brothers had defeated all of Antiochus' generals, 1 Maccabees chapter 5 records victories in neighboring areas by not only Judah, but also his brothers Simon and Jonathan. Sign up to receive our email newsletter and never miss an update. Maccabean Revolt | My Jewish Learning The entire period of the influence of the Maccabees, on Judea and the Jews, lasts roughly 130 years (167 to 37 B.C.). Lucas van Leyden, Joshua, David, Judas Maccabees, 1515/1517, woodcut, Rosenwald Collection, 1943.3.5706. Not only did he ban Sabbath observance, but he also desecrated the Temple. 2 Maccabees - Wikipedia The etymology of the nickname Maccabee is uncertain, though some trace it to the Hebrew word for hammer. However, in popular Jewish tradition today, the entire group of rebels is known by Judahs nickname, the Maccabees.. The History Of The Maccabees Explained - Grunge He saw himself as a charismatic, divinely appointed leader, like Gideon of old. For one thing, there aren't even any Maccabees in it. The history of the Maccabean Revolt is found in 1 and 2 Maccabees and in the writings of Josephus. As death claims began piling up, the organizations expenses began to outweigh its income. Jacobs sons were warned against intermarriage (e.g., chapter 29), and Levi is told explicitly that he will be the ancestor of Israels future priests (chapter 30). As My Jewish Learning explains, the story of the miracle of the oil, so central to the modern celebration of Hanukkah with its 9-branched menorah and abundance of oily fried foods, didn't arise until centuries after the institution of the celebration. Posted May 30, 2016 So, I have been reading the book of Maccabees and for the life of me, I cannot understand why it isn't included in our Bible. Modiin was the hometown of the Maccabees, the heroes of the Maccabean revolt against the Seleucid king who ruled over Judea. Traditionally-informed Jewish readers may know of other ways that Hanukkah recalls Sukkot, including the daily recitation of the unabbreviated Hallel (Psalms 113118), read in entirety on Sukkot and Hanukkah only (the recitation is abbreviated for the other holiday of that rough length, Passover). When Antiochus Epiphanes died in 164 bce, others administered the kingdom because his son, Antiochus Eupator, was still a minor. Hanukkah celebrates the success of the revolt led by the priestly family of Mattathias and his sons, including Judah Maccabee, against Antiochus. The Syrians, in the war against him, fastened wooden towers on elephants backs, and each beast then charged into battle with a thousand armoured warriors surrounding it. . After Alexander the Great's life cut off short, four generals divided his land into four territories. This approach may help us understand the related fact that the books of the Maccabees are not in the canon. Desecration of the temple Phillip Medhurst/Wikimedia Commons As My Jewish Learning explains, the Seleucid emperor Antiochus IV had the official epithet of Epiphanes ("God manifest"), but he was unofficially known by his subjects as Epimanes ("the madman"). John Hyrcanus II is restored in 63 B.C., by the Romans, to the office of High Priest. Monumental Tombs from Maussollos to the Maccabees,, Inscription Reveals Roots of Maccabean Revolt,, Jerusalem Archaeology: Exposing the Biblical City, The Palace of the Kings of Israelin the Bible and Archaeology, http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/s/r1/lp-e?q=maccabaeus, http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/biblical-archaeology-sites/modiin-whe…, The Dead Sea Scrolls and the New Testament. Jonathan Apphus, one of Judas' brothers, is the first of the Maccabees to assume the office of High Priest when he is elevated to this position during the Feast of Tabernacles in 153. Nevertheless, these texts, which until extremely recently were only available in the ancient Ethiopic language of Ge'ez, do tell the stories of various Judean revolts against tyrannical foreign kings in the Maccabean tradition. First, both 1 and 2 Maccabees remind us that the emergence of the Maccabeesand their eventual successis played out on a world stage marked by internecine warfare among eastern Mediterranean Greek powers and the lurking rise of Roman power beyond. By Martin Goodman. Art by Yitzchok Schmukler At the heart of the Chanukah story is the heroism of the Maccabees. The Maccabees were most definitely fighting for religious freedom. Knights of the Maccabees was a fraternal organization formed in 1878 in London, Ontario, Canada. And theres much more beyond the books of the Maccabees. He began by replacing the Jewish high priest with one loyal to him and sympathetic to his assimilationist campaign. They founded the Hasmonean dynasty and ruled Judea for more than a century. The Maccabees were one of the more successful of fraternal benefit societies, which sprang up after the Civil War. Who were the Maccabees? The books of 2 Meqabyan and 3 Meqabyan are weirder, but also shorter. The Maccabees were not of a high priestly family. -??? . [8] By the 1970s the local groups were called "Subordinate Units". When did they live? In his first battle he seized the sword of Apollonius, governor of Samaria, the general leading the opposing army. Seleucus grabbed Syria and Asia Minor, and Antigonus took Greece. Whether you are Jewish or not, whether you celebrate Hanukkah or not, if you choose to explore the Apocrypha around Hanukkah time, 1 and 2 Maccabees is a perfect place to start. BAR, March/April 2014 (1 Macc 2:1-3). [9] In the 1930s the Maccabees began absorbing some smaller fraternal benefit societies, including the Brotherhood of America in 1935, the Slavic Progressive Beneficial Union in 1937 and the Michigan Union Life Association in 1941. Not a BAS Library member yet? Maccabees | Meaning, History, Significance, Revolt, & Facts A group of business men in Michigan, where the order had a number of members, endeavored to put the Maccabees on a sound financial basis. The link you clicked is provided as a courtesy. After the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 A.D. . Where is Modiin, hometown of the Maccabees? 153035. Only a local official named Apollonius bothered to even go out to face the Maccabean army; Judah's forces destroyed them and Judah carried Apollonius' sword for the rest of his life. Join the BAS Library today. Roman expansion swept away the last vestige of Edomitic independence . As My Jewish Learning explains, the Seleucid emperor Antiochus IV had the official epithet of Epiphanes ("God manifest"), but he was unofficially known by his subjects as Epimanes ("the madman"). Judah Maccabee's greatest victory, however, the one at the very heart of the Festival of Hanukkah, came in the autumn of 165 BCE, when he and his forces defeated Antiochus' lieutenant Lysias in a battle south of Jerusalem. But the book was preserved in Ethiopicby Ethiopian Christians, and it is that circumstance that justifies its inclusion in the Apocrypha. To begin their story with Mattityahu's killing the idol-worshipper is akin to starting the story of the Six-Day War with Israel's attack in June 1967. In other words, the Maccabean revolt was also, as is often the case with rebellions, a civil war. By Jonathan Klawans, BAR, January/February 1994 Scroll down to read a summary of these articles. A "Supreme Review" conducted in 1958, the Macabees became a mutual life insurance company effective 1961, though still kept some fraternal features. The Supreme Tent was then revived, again, in September 1883. However, the will and the strategy of the Jews was not to be underestimated, and the Greeks were routed, with Judah alone reportedly killing 9,000 Seleucid men. On the other hand, counterbalancing this arrangement, a king had to be a descendant of David but had no priestly control. [14] By 1915 membership had reached 331,756. Fulfillment: They [the Edomites] were driven from Palestine in the 2nd century B.C. Who Were the Maccabees? - Christian Publishing House Blog In 167 B.C. So were the Maccabees of the Levite family and eligible for priestly family? . Jonathan Klawans is Professor of Religion at Boston University. While we will never know for sure why Jews excluded these books and why Christians preserved them, the good news is that we have these books today. Simon is considered the founding ruler of the Hasmonean dynasty that will govern Israel until 37 B.C. Additionally, the candidate was reintroduced to the ghost of Eleazar and finally sees the end of the rebellion. His name was greatly honoured in all Israel and among the Gentiles (I Maccabees 5:63). As the Jewish Encyclopedia explains, the family is more rightly known as the Hasmoneans, but they and their descendants are popularly remembered as the Maccabees due to the prominence of Judah as a leading figure. Prohibition of Jewish religious practices, Hanukkah: reconsecration of the sanctuary, The War of the Sons of Light Against the Sons of Darkness. The Book of Tobit tells a charming tale of a long-suffering righteous man securing, at long last, a happy marriage for his son to a woman too-often promised to the wrong man. But what about earlier? The newly discovered synagogue is not where the Maccabees prayed. While excluded and forgotten by Jews, these booksalong with many otherswere preserved, thankfully, by Christians. Who Were the Maccabees? Learn more about this nefarious character in John Gregory Drummonds article Antiochus EpiphanesThe Bibles Most Notoriously Forgotten Villain., Antiochus IV Epiphanes profaned the Jerusalem Temple by setting up idols within it and offering a pig on its altar. By Eyal Regev, Bible History Daily, May 9, 2021 Many joined them there, especially the Hasideans, a pious and strict group deeply concerned for the Law of Moses. For the Jewish community, Hanukkah just ended. Now you may be asking, Remove the marks of circumcision? That may be possiblelook up epispasm and try not to wince. When the report is brought to him that his general (and guardian of his young son) Lysias had been forced to flee by the Jewish army, Antiochus is shaken to his core. [] #1. http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/biblical-archaeology-sites/modiin-whe… []. As 1 Maccabees chapter 9 records, Judah was succeeded by his younger brother Jonathan Apphus, who took the roles of both military leadership and high priest. Inscription Reveals Roots of Maccabean Revolt This marked the first step toward the eventual takeover by Rome. The Maccabees: The Jewish Freedom Fighters - Chabad.org No wonder the ritual is so popular. Answer The books of 1 and 2 Maccabees are early Jewish writings detailing the history of the Jews in the first century BC. The candidate learned the history of Maccabee household and how it protected Judea from King Antiochus during the war of independence. [5], In 1914 the organization changed its name from the Knights of the Maccabees to simply The Maccabees. Why must people always want to prove the other guy wrong and maintain they are right? While the Greeks had sophisticated weapons of war, along with lightning-fast chariots, the Jews operated almost entirely on foot. She then dies last of all, though the cause of death is not specified. John Hyrcanuss reign marked a turning point in the history of the Maccabees. The finds discovered at the site of Umm el-Umdan in modern Modiin are described in Modiin: Hometown of the Maccabees by Shlomit Weksler-Bdolah and Alexander Onn in the March/April 2014 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review. For the church fathers, the Maccabees became significant as a paradigm for Christian martyrdom. After all no one can ever PROVE the truth.we were not there and to say more is just hopeful speculation. See the varied Jewish responses to Hellenism in Martin Goodmans article Under the Influence: Hellenism in Ancient Jewish Life.. The Maccabees played a significant role in this. [14], On December 1, 1896 the Knights had 182,000 members in 40 states and provinces, though a third of the membership was in Michigan. The word Maccabee is an acronym for the Hebrew words that mean "Who is like You among all powers, Gd ." It is only after this that Antiochus enters the scene, taking the side of the Jews who have, according to 1 Maccabees, abandoned the covenant. Also included is the Wisdom of Sirach, an extended collection of wise sayings (longer than Proverbs and Ecclesiastes combined), which concludes with a particularly rich poetic praise of biblical heroes: a readable, teachable 12-chapter tour of Israelite valor. Thus, Hanukkah is celebrated for eight days. Photo: Skyview. Worst of all, however, Antiochus desecrated the holy Jewish temple in Jerusalem by placing a statue of Zeus on the altar and sacrificing a pigthe prototypical unclean animalthere before despoiling it of all its sacred vessels, gold and silver, and the seven-branched golden menorah that was the symbol of the temple. Have excavations conducted within the modern Israeli city of Modiin20 miles northwest of Jerusalemfinally exposed the Jewish village that the Maccabees called home? On the one hand Israel had priests who were important but could not be kings. According to the first book of Maccabees, one of the Hellenistic kings defiled the temple, forbade circumcision, and even set up . 1 Maccabees later narrates that the situation was rectified by the rising Maccabees, who ensure that all such boys were duly circumcised (2:46). Each of these books holds interest for Christians, but each holds interest for Jewish readers as well. And what is to be learned by looking at the Apocrypha in generaland the books of Maccabees in particular? But in a number of Christian traditions, the Maccabees frequently refers to a particular woman and her seven sons, whose martyrdom in the face of Antiochuss persecution appears in 2 Maccabees 7. In the 1st century B.C. Prophecy: Jer. 13 Facts About the Maccabees Every Jew Should Know It will take Herod three years, however, to conquer Judea and Jerusalem. On the morning of the 25th day of the Jewish month of Kislev, a proper sacrifice was offered at the temple for the first time in years. 1 Maccabees, THE FIRST BOOK OF MACCABEES | USCCB A brief passage in 2 Maccabees provides a meaningful explanation for why the festival lasts eight days per se: They celebrated it for eight days with rejoicing, in the manner of the festival of booths, remembering how not long before, during the festival of booths, they had been wandering in the mountains and caves like wild animals. and has the pagan altar erected by the Seleucids removed from the temple. Judaism - Hellenistic Age, Maccabees, Hasmoneans, Pharisees/Sadducees At this point, Antiochus IV's general Lysias and the new nine-year-old king Antiochus V marched a large army complete with war elephants to end Judah's siege. In his article, The Genesis of Judaism, Yonatan Adler explores when Judeans began to observe these laws.
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