On My Mind: What the Maccabees Really Accomplished

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December 18, 1992 - When we teach our children about Chanukah, we usually tell them about the wickedness of Antiochus, the martyrdom of Mattityahu, the heroism of Judah Maccabee, and the miracle of the oil burning for eight days. But there is much, much more to the story.

Let us first contemplate the story’s setting: The great ancient empires from the beginning of history – Egypt, Assyria, Babylonia and Persia – had already vanished. When Alexander the Great conquered what was then the known world, in approximately 330 B.C.E., all those ancient civilizations and their religions disappeared for all practical purposes. It took another two thousand years for man to again be able to read their ancient writings and inscriptions. Alexander’s military victories caused Greek culture, philosophy, religion, art, sports, etc., to sweep over the world. But Rome with its might was already lurking in the wings right behind the Greeks, waiting for its turn to take over.

The Romans first had to destroy the last vestige of Oriental power, that of the Phoenicians, who, centered in Carthage, controlled the western Mediterranean and northern Africa. After the Punic Wars of 149-146 B.C.E., Rome was already to run its attention toward the east. From 60 B.C.E., on, the eminent Romans – Pompey, Caesar, Marc Anthony, Octavian (later Augustus) – appeared on the world’s state; the 200 years from 27 B.C.E on, when Augustus became the first Roman Emperor, are known in history as “Pax Romana,” the Roman Peace. The whole known world, from England to India, was under Roman rule.

Seen against this evolution and transfiguration of cultures, one little sliver of land stood out: Judea, the Jewish State, which withstood all the onslaughts of the times and overcame and survived with its exalted traditions intact. It may seem that what happened to the Jews was only a “sideshow” of history, but it certainly was not. After Alexander’s empire had been divided three ways, and Palestine fell into the sphere of the Macedonian General Seleucus I, the Jews experienced an onslaught against their religion, led by Antiochus IV (Ephiphanes), which led to history’s first revolt based on religious values. And the “Pax Romana” certainly brought no peace to the Jews, for two Jewish revolts broke out during that period, again, to assert Judaism: the revolt against Vespian in 66 C.E., and the revolt against Hadrian in 132 C.E.

The Seleucid, as well as the Roman rulers, saw in that little sliver of land a challenge that they could not stomach. They could not tolerate a people unwilling to give up their old mores and laws for the splendors and riches of the new world powers. Otherwise, it is incomprehensible why the Seleucids and the Romans would repeatedly mobilize their mightiest armies under their most successful generals to crush that miniscule, stubborn and proud nation of Jews. As proof of this, in the year 70 C.E., and for 50 years thereafter during the “Pax Romana,” when Jerusalem had been captured, three Roman Emperors – Vespasian Titus and Domitian – struck commemorative coins with the legend ”Judea Capta.” No other victory meant so much to them. They would, of course, turn in their graves, if they could see how in our times, on the triumphant Arch of Titus in Rome one may always see written in chalk: Am Yisrael Chai.”

The only “Pax” Jews knew was the period from 161 B.C.E., til 37 B.C.E. This peaceful interlude, brought about by the Maccabeans, should perhaps be called “Pax Judaica.” The only ancient civilization and religion that continued to exist and flourish, weathering all the storms and cruel vicissitudes of hundreds of years of history, was that of the Jews, a testimony to the miracle of survival.

So the history and miracle of Chanukah must be viewed as evidence of our ability to swim against every hostile stream, throughout every chapter of our long history, emerging intact and stronger from the experience. Every crisis period also turned into a period of strengthening of Jewish learning and observance: Under the early Seleucids, the Anshei Knesset Hagedolah flourished; under the Maccabees, great Tannaim, such as Shimon ben Shetach, lived; under the Romans, Hillel and Shammai established their schools; and under the nose of Vespasian, the Yeshiva of Yavneh and its scholars was founded, destined to outlive roman rule, and flourish forever.

Mattityahu and His Followers

Luckily, we have important historical sources which relate the history of the fabulous family of Mattityahu and his sons. Among the books of the Apocrypha - Serafim Chitzonim in Hebrew – there are the First and Second Books of the Maccabees, which together with some references in the history books of Flavius Josephus, document almost every twist and turn of that era. I recommend that Jews read these works in time for Chanukah. They tell about the intrigues and “politics” instigated by Hellenized Jews against the authentic priesthood in the Temple, and how these squabbles, as often in Jewish history, brought about intervention from the non-Jewish powers: Antiochus sent his general Apollonius to occupy Jerusalem. He burned parts of the city, tore down it walls, took control of the Temple and stopped the traditional sacrifices.

At this point, many Jews fled Jerusalem. Mattityahu and his sons became the central force among these refugees. Religious oppression grew as observance of Torah and mitzvot was outlawed and pagan worship was introduced. These measures were recommended and encouraged by Hellenized Jews (today we would call them Reform Jews), who collaborated and compiled with the Seleucid powers.

Meanwhile, the Hasmoneans, and Mattityahu and his family are called (probably because they originated in the town of Hasmon, which is mentioned in the Bible), were joined by the Chasidim (Asidaioi in Greek). These pious Jews became the role models for religious piety and strict observance of the mitzvoth and denim, but they were also staunch fighters for Judaism and the Jewish people. When 1000 of them were attacked by the Seleucid army on a Shabbat, they all perished because they would not violate the holiness of the day. After this disaster, defensive fighting on Shabbat was encouraged – which saved countless Jewish fighters throughout history.

The Chasidim of those days are important for our story: We learn about them and their history through the Dead Sea Scrolls, because they existed for a long time after the Maccabees. The Talmud, hundreds of years later, still talks about the Chasidim harishonim and their unbelievable piety.

The militant Jewish rebels grew in number, as the Selecid oppression and the treachery of the Hellenized Jews grew. We know many stories of their personal heroism and martyrdom. The many battles which had to be fought are also generally known. Judah Maccabee stood out as a great military leader, but he was also a good diplomat. Thus, he sent envoys to Rome, which at that time was not yet a “player” in the area, in order to enlist Roman support.

Finally, Jerusalem was recaptured and cleansed of the pagans, and the Temple was rededicated. The first sacrifices were brought again on Kislev 25, in the year 164 B.C.E., starting an eight-day commemoration, similar to the eight-day celebration at the inauguration of the Ohel Moed in the desert under Moshe Rabbeinu, or the eight days of King Solomon’s dedication of his Temple.

But the fighting was far from over. In fact tragically, Judah fell in one of the ongoing battles. Since he left no heir, the mantle of Maccabean leadership fell to his brother Shimon, who then became the founder of the 130 year Maccabean or Hasmonean dynasty. It is important to remember the main member of the dynasty – refer to the accompanying chart.

Of Shimon’s descendants, Alexander Yannai, or Alexander Janneus, and his wife, Queen Salome Alexandra (Shalom-Zion in Hebrew), were the most important. It was during their rule that the purity of our tradition in the hands of the Pharisees (Perushim in Hebrew) was won, over the objections of the more severe Sadducees (Tzedukkim in Hebrew). This, too, is reflected in the Dead Sea Scrolls. Unfortunately, the disunity and infighting among their two sons, Aristobulus and Hyrcanus, led to the intervention of Roman General Pompey, who occupied Palestine in 63 B.C.E., never again to give the Jews back their full freedom and independence. It took 2000 years till we won those back – in 1948, truly a fulfillment of such a long messianic hope…

The Books of the Maccabees contain many interesting pronouncements which have relevance to us today. Let us just quote what is said about Judah and his valiant men: “The man Judah and his brothers were greatly honored among all Israel and among the Gentiles, wherever their name was heard; and people joined them, praising them” (Maccabees I, 6:24; 7:6). That praise has been kept alive by Jews throughout time. Even famous composers and painters have dedicated outstanding works to the valiant Maccabees, such as the opera by George Handel, the opera on the same theme by Russian composer Anton Rubinstein, and a magnificent painting by Rubens.

Therefore, when we kindle the menorah on each of the eight nights of Chanukah, we can relive in our minds the triumphs of the Maccabees and all of our heroes, giving us the fortitude to continue their struggle for the survival and strengthening of Judaism today.

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