Maccabees: Difference between revisions

The Holy Maccabees
The Holy Maccabees
	Wojciech Stattler's "Machabeusze" ("The Maccabees"), 1844
Born	2nd century BCE; Judea (modern-day Israel)
Died	167–160 BCE; Judea
Venerated in	Roman Catholic Church; Eastern Orthodox Churches; Oriental Orthodox Churches
Canonized	Pre-Congregation
Feast	August 1

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The Maccabees (/ˈmækəbiːz/), also spelled Machabees (Hebrew: מַכַּבִּים, Makkabbīm or מַקַבִּים, Maqabbīm; Latin: Machabaei or Maccabaei; Ancient Greek: Μακκαβαῖοι, Makkabaioi), were a group of Jewish rebel warriors who took control of Judea, which at the time was part of the Seleucid Empire.^[1]^[2] They founded the Hasmonean dynasty, which ruled from 167 to 37 BCE,^[3] being a fully independent kingdom from 104 to 63 BCE. They reasserted the Jewish religion, expanded the boundaries of Judea by conquest, and reduced the influence of Hellenism and Hellenistic Judaism.

Etymology

The name Maccabee^[4] is often used as a synonym for the entire Hasmonean dynasty, but the Maccabees proper comprised Judas Maccabeus and his four brothers. The name Maccabee was a personal epithet of Judah,^[5] and the later generations were not his direct descendants. One explanation of the name's origins is that it derives from the Aramaic maqqəḇa, "the hammer", in recognition of Judah's ferocity in battle.^[6] The traditional Jewish explanation is that Maccabee (Hebrew: מכבים Machabi) is an acronym for the Torah verse that was the battle-cry of the Maccabees, "Mi chamocha ba'elim YHWH", "Who is like You among the heavenly powers, oh God!",^[7]^[8] as well as an acronym for "Matityahu haKohen ben Yochanan" (Matthias the priest, son of John). The correlating Torah verse Exodus 15:11, The song of Moses and the Children of Israel by the Sea,^[7] makes a reference to elim, with a mundane notion of natural forces, heavenly might, war and governmental powers. The scholar and poet Aaron Kaminka argues that the name is a corruption of Machbanai, a leading commando in the army of King David.^[9]

Background

In the 2nd century BCE, Judea lay between the Ptolemaic Kingdom (based in Egypt) and the Seleucid Empire (based in Syria), monarchies which had formed following the death of Alexander the Great. Judea had initially come under Ptolemaic rule but fell to the Seleucids around 197 BCE, after the Battle of Panium, during the Fifth Syrian War. Judea at that time had been affected by the Hellenization initiated by Alexander the Great. Some Jews, mainly those of the urban upper class, notably the Tobiad family, wished to dispense with Jewish law and to adopt a Greek lifestyle. According to historian Victor Tcherikover, the main motive for the Tobiads' Hellenism was economic and political.^[10] The Hellenizing Jews built a gymnasium in Jerusalem, competed in international Greek games, "removed their marks of circumcision and repudiated the holy covenant".^[11]

When Antiochus IV Epiphanes became ruler of the Seleucid Empire in 175 BCE, Onias III held the office of high priest in Jerusalem. To Antiochus, the high priest was merely a local governor within his realm, a man whom he could appoint or dismiss at will, while orthodox Jews saw the holder of the high priesthood as divinely appointed.^[12] Jason, the brother of Onias, bribed Antiochus to make him high priest instead of Onias. Jason abolished the traditional theocracy and "received from Antiochus permission to convert Jerusalem into a Greek polis called Antioch".^[10]^[13] In turn, Menelaus then bribed Antiochus and was appointed high priest in place of Jason. Menelaus had Onias assassinated. Menelaus' brother Lysimachus stole holy vessels from the Temple; the resulting riots led to the death of Lysimachus. Menelaus was arrested for Onias' murder and was arraigned before Antiochus, but he bribed his way out of trouble. Jason subsequently drove out Menelaus and became high priest again. In 168 Antiochus pillaged the Temple, attacked Jerusalem and "led captive the women and children."^[14] From this point onwards, Antiochus pursued a zealous Hellenizing policy in the Seleucid satrapies of Coele Syria and Phoenicia.^[15]

Now Antiochus was not satisfied either with his unexpected taking the city (Jerusalem), or with its pillage, or with the great slaughter he had made there; but being overcome with his violent passions, and remembering what he had suffered during the siege, he compelled the Jews to dissolve the laws of their country, and to keep their infants uncircumcised, and to sacrifice swine's flesh upon the altar; against which they all opposed themselves, and the most approved among them were put to death. —Flavius Josephus, The War of the Jews, Book 1.1 §2

The author of the First Book of Maccabees regards the Maccabean revolt as a rising of pious Jews against the Seleucid king (who had tried to eradicate their religion) and against the Jews who supported him. The author of the Second Book of Maccabees presents the conflict as a struggle between "Judaism" and "Hellenism", concepts which he coined.^[16] Most modern scholars argue that King Antiochus reacted to a civil war between traditionalist Jews in the Judean countryside and Hellenized Jews in Jerusalem,^[17]^[18] though the king's response of persecuting the religious traditionalists was unusual in antiquity, and was the immediate provocation for the revolt.^[19] According to Joseph P. Schultz, modern scholarship "considers the Maccabean revolt less as an uprising against foreign oppression than as a civil war between the orthodox and reformist parties in the Jewish camp",^[20] but John J. Collins writes that while the civil war between Jewish leaders led to the king's new policies, it is wrong to see the revolt as simply a conflict between Hellenism and Judaism, since "[t]he revolt was not provoked by the introduction of Greek customs (typified by the building of a gymnasium) but by the persecution of people who observed the Torah by having their children circumcised and refusing to eat pork."^[19]

In the conflict over the office of high priest, traditionalists with Hebrew/Aramaic names like Onias contested with Hellenizers with Greek names like Jason and Menelaus.^[21] Some scholars point to social and economic factors in the conflict.^[10]^[22] What began as a civil war took on the character of an invasion when the Hellenistic kingdom of Syria sided with the Hellenizing Jews against the traditionalists.^[23] As the conflict escalated, Antiochus prohibited the practices of the traditionalists, thereby, in a departure from usual Seleucid practice, banning the religion of an entire people.^[10] The motives of Antiochus remain unclear: he may have been incensed at the overthrow of his appointee, Menelaus,^[12] or – encouraged by a group of radical Hellenizers among the Jews,^[16] he may have been responding to an orthodox Jewish revolt that drew on the Temple and the Torah for its strength.^[10] Other scholars argue that, while the rising began as a religious rebellion, it was gradually transformed into a war of national liberation.^[24]

According to 1 Maccabees, Antiochus banned many traditional Jewish and Samaritan^[15] religious practices: he made possession of the Torah a capital offense and burned the copies he could find;^[25]^[26] sabbaths and feasts were banned; circumcision was outlawed, and mothers who circumcised their babies were killed along with their families;^[27] and traditional Jewish ritual sacrifice was forbidden. It was said that an idol of Olympian Zeus was placed on the altar of the Temple and that Israelites set up altars to Greek gods and sacrificed "unclean" animals on them.^[28]

The main objective of Antiochus is explained throughout Chabad Chassidic thought. It says that Antiochus didn't mind that the Jews kept the culture of Judaism, rather all he wanted was to eradicate the laws of the Torah (mitzvos) that weren't logical but rather kept solely because it is God's command. But when he saw that even the logical/rational and cultural commandments of the Torah were being practiced by the Jews in a way higher than logic, he then opposed Judaism in its entirety.^[29]

Revolt

In the narrative of I Maccabees, after Antiochus issued his decrees forbidding Jewish religious practice, a rural Jewish priest from Modi'in, Mattathias the Hasmonean, sparked the revolt against the Seleucid Empire by refusing to worship the Greek gods. Mattathias killed a Hellenistic Jew who stepped forward to offer a sacrifice to an idol in Mattathias' place. He and his five sons fled to the wilderness of Judah. After Mattathias' death about one year later in 166 BCE, his son Judah Maccabee led an army of Jewish dissidents to victory over the Seleucids in guerrilla warfare, which at first was directed against Hellenizing Jews, of whom there were many. The Maccabees destroyed pagan altars in the villages, circumcised boys and forced Jews into outlawry.^[16] As a result, one explanation of the name Maccabees is based on the Aramaic word for "hammer", because they "strike hammer blows against their enemies".^[30]

The revolt involved many battles, in which the Maccabean forces gained notoriety among the Seleucid army for their use of guerrilla tactics. After the victory, the Maccabees entered Jerusalem in triumph and ritually cleansed the Temple, reestablishing traditional Jewish worship there and installing Jonathan Maccabee as high priest. A large Seleucid army was sent to quash the revolt but returned to Syria on the death of Antiochus IV. Its commander Lysias, preoccupied with internal Seleucid affairs, agreed to a political compromise that restored religious freedom.

The Jewish festival of Hanukkah celebrates the re-dedication of the Temple following Judah Maccabee's victory over the Seleucids. According to rabbinic tradition, the victorious Maccabees could only find a small jug of oil that had remained uncontaminated by virtue of a seal, and although it only contained enough oil to sustain the Temple menorah for one day, it miraculously lasted for eight days, by which time further oil could be procured.^[31]

Hasmonean dynasty

Following the re-dedication of the Temple, the supporters of the Maccabees were divided over the question of whether to continue fighting. When the revolt began under the leadership of Mattathias, it was seen as a war for religious freedom to end the oppression of the Seleucids. However, as the Maccabees realized how successful they had been, many wanted to continue the revolt and conquer other lands with Jewish populations or to convert their peoples. This policy exacerbated the divide between the Pharisees and Sadducees under later Hasmonean monarchs such as Alexander Jannaeus.^[32] Those who sought the continuation of the war were led by Judah Maccabee.

On his death in battle in 160 BCE, Judah was succeeded as army commander by his younger brother, Jonathan, who was already high priest. Jonathan made treaties with various foreign states, causing further dissent between those who merely desired religious freedom and those who sought greater power.

In 142 BCE, Jonathan was assassinated by Diodotus Tryphon, a pretender to the Seleucid throne, and was succeeded by Simon Maccabee, the last remaining son of Mattathias. Simon gave support to Demetrius II Nicator, the Seleucid king, and in return Demetrius exempted the Maccabees from tribute. Simon conquered the port of Joppa, where the Gentile population were 'forcibly removed',^[33] and the fortress of Gezer. He expelled the garrison from the Acra in Jerusalem. In 140 BCE, he was recognised by an assembly of the priests, leaders and elders as high priest, military commander and ruler of Israel. Their decree became the basis of the Hasmonean kingdom. Shortly after, the Roman Senate renewed its alliance with the Hasmonean kingdom and commanded its allies in the eastern Mediterranean to do so also.^[34] Although the Maccabees won autonomy, the region remained a province of the Seleucid Empire, and Simon was required to provide troops to Antiochus VII Sidetes, the brother of Demetrius II. When Simon refused to give up the territory he had conquered, Antiochus took them by force.

Simon was murdered in 134 BCE by his son-in-law Ptolemy and was succeeded as high priest and king by his son John Hyrcanus I. Antiochus conquered the entire district of Judea but refrained from attacking the Temple or interfering with Jewish observances. Judea was freed from Seleucid rule on the death of Antiochus in 129 BCE.^[16] Independent Hasmonean rule lasted until 63 BCE, when the Roman general Pompeius intervened in the Hasmonean civil war, making it a client kingdom of Rome. The Hasmonean dynasty ended in 37 BCE when the Idumean Herod the Great became king of Israel,^[12] designated "King of the Jews" by the Roman Senate,^[16]^[35] effectively transforming the Hasmonean kingdom into the Herodian kingdom—a client kingdom of Rome.

Biblical accounts

The Maccabean story is preserved in the books of the First and Second Maccabees, which describe in detail the re-dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem and the lighting of the menorah. These books are not part of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) which came from the Jewish canon; however, they were part of the Alexandrian canon which is also called the Septuagint.^[36] Both books are included in the Old Testament used by the Catholic and Orthodox churches,^[37] since those churches consider the books deuterocanonical. They are not included in the Old Testament books in most Protestant Bibles since most Protestants consider the books apocryphal.

Multiple references to Hanukkah are made in the Mishnah (Bikkurim 1:6, Rosh HaShanah 1:3, Taanit 2:10, Megillah 3:4 and 3:6, Moed Katan 3:9, and Bava Kama 6:6), though specific laws are not described. The miracle of the one-day supply of oil lasting eight days is first described in the Talmud, committed to writing about 600 years after the events described in the books of Maccabees.^[38] The New Testament mentions Jesus visiting the temple during Hanukkah (John 10:22-23).

Christian veneration and possible Jewish preceding tradition

The nine "Holy Maccabean Martyrs" in Christianity

The second and fourth books of the Maccabees recount the martyrdom of seven Jewish brothers, their mother and their teacher. Although these are not said to be of the Maccabee family, they are referred to in Christianity as the "Holy Maccabean Martyrs" or the "Holy Maccabees." According to one tradition, their individual names are Habim, Antonin, Guriah, Eleazar, Eusebon, Hadim (Halim), Marcellus, their mother Solomonia, and their teacher Eleazar.^[39]

The three Ethiopian books of Meqabyan (quite distinct works from the other four books of Maccabees), which are canonical in the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, also refer to the Maccabee martyrs. The first of these books states that their father was a Benjamite named Maccabeus and that three of the brothers, who are called Abya, Seela, and Fentos, were captured and martyred for leading a guerrilla war against Antiochus Epiphanes.

From before the time of the Tridentine calendar, the Holy Maccabees had a commemoration in the Roman Rite liturgy within the feast of Saint Peter in Chains. This commemoration remained within the weekday liturgy when in 1960 Pope John XXIII suppressed this particular feast of Saint Peter. Nine years later, 1 August became the feast of Saint Alphonsus Maria de' Liguori, and the mention of the Maccabee martyrs was omitted from the General Roman Calendar, since in its 1969 revision it no longer admitted commemorations.^[40] The feast day of these saints^[which?] is 1 August in both the Eastern Orthodox Church (for which 1 August is also the first day of the Dormition Fast) and the Catholic Church.^{[dubious – discuss]}^{[citation needed]}

Theory: Jewish ancient veneration

While studying a floor mosaic discovered during the 2012-2016 campaigns at the Huqoq synagogue near the Sea of Galilee and dating to the 4th–5th centuries, Russian researcher Nina V. Braginskaya comes to a different conclusion from that of the dig director, Jodi Magness.^[41] Braginskaya puts forward that the mosaic reflects the ancient Jewish veneration of the nine Maccabee martyrs from the books of the Maccabees, which is later perpetuated just in Christianity, while Jewish tradition preserves only the rite of lighting a nine-branched candelabrum during Hanukkah.^[41] In her opinion, there is a direct relationship between the Jewish symbolic object and the Christian symbolic story, with the Hanukkah menorah undergoing a one-and-a-half-millennium long secondary symbolic interpretation in Judaism, while the Christian tradition kept the original meaning, that of a martyrdom-for-the-faith tradition.^[41] This interpretation would help to explain the unique iconography of this particular mosaic carpet, which is the only one found so far in synagogues of its period depicting scenes not found in the Hebrew Bible.^[41] Only due to the discovery of the Huqoq mosaic could the connection between the Jewish and Christian traditions be noticed and proposed for discussion, so Braginskaya.^[41]

Hasmonean rulers

References

^ Cohn, Marc (2007). The Mathematics of the Calendar. Lulu.com. p. 60. ISBN 978-1430324966.
^ Fischer-Lichte, Erika (2005). Theatre, Sacrifice, Ritual: Exploring Forms of Political Theatre. Routledge. pp. 195. ISBN 978-0415276757.
^ Wessels, Anton; Jansen, Henry; Hofland, Lucy (2020). The Grand Finale: The Apocalypse in the Tanakh, the Gospel, and the Qur'an. Wipf and Stock Publishers. p. 150. ISBN 978-1-7252-7601-7. The Hasmonean dynasty ruled Judea from the Maccabean revolt in 167 BC until 37 BC.
^ Latin: Maccabaeus; Greek: Μακκαβαῖος Makkabaios; from Hebrew maqqeb et, "hammer" (Oxford English Dictionary).
^ See 1 Maccabees 2:4
^ Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "The Machabees" . Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
^ ^a ^b Scherman, Nosson, ed. (1998). Tanakh = Tanach : Torah, Neviʼim, Ketuvim : the Torah, Prophets, Writings : the twenty-four books of the Bible, newly translated and annotated (1st student size ed., Stone ed.). Brooklyn, N.Y.: Mesorah Publications. pp. 171–172. ISBN 1578191092.
^ Exodus 15:11
^ "What does "Maccabee" mean? – Ask the Rabbi". Oztorah.com. Retrieved 2013-07-29.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Tcherikover, Victor Hellenistic Civilization and the Jews, New York: Atheneum, 1975
^ I Maccabees, i, 15
^ ^a ^b ^c Oesterley, W.O.E., A History of Israel, Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1939.
^ De Lange, Nicholas, Atlas of the Jewish World, Oxford: Andromeda, 1992
^ I Maccabees, i, 30–32
^ ^a ^b "Maccabean Revolt". Oxford Bibliographies.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Nicholas de Lange (ed.), The Illustrated History of the Jewish People, London, Aurum Press, 1997, ISBN 1-85410-530-2
^ Telushkin, Joseph (1991). Jewish Literacy: The Most Important Things to Know about the Jewish Religion, Its People, and Its History. W. Morrow. p. 114. ISBN 0-688-08506-7.
^ Greenberg, Irving (1993). The Jewish Way: Living the Holidays. Simon & Schuster. p. 29. ISBN 0-671-87303-2.
^ ^a ^b Johnston, Sarah Iles (2004). Religions of the Ancient World: A Guide. Harvard University Press. p. 186. ISBN 0-674-01517-7.
^ Schultz, Joseph P. (1981). Judaism and the Gentile Faiths: Comparative Studies in Religion. Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press. p. 155. ISBN 0-8386-1707-7. Modern scholarship on the other hand considers the Maccabean revolt less as an uprising against foreign oppression than as a civil war between the orthodox and reformist parties in the Jewish camp
^ Gundry, Robert H. (2003). A Survey of the New Testament. Zondervan. p. 9. ISBN 0-310-23825-0.
^ Freedman, David Noel; Allen C. Myers; Astrid B. Beck (2000). Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. p. 837. ISBN 0-8028-2400-5.
^ Wood, Leon James (1986). A Survey of Israel's History. Zondervan. p. 357. ISBN 0-310-34770-X.
^ Jewish Life and Thought Among Greeks and Romans: Primary Readings, By Louis H. Feldman, Meyer Reinhold, Fortress Press, 1996, p. 147
^ I Macccabees. 1:57
^ Bourgel, Jonathan (2019). "The Samaritans during the Hasmonean Period: The Affirmation of a Discrete Identity?". Religions. 10 (11): 628. doi:10.3390/rel10110628.
^ "1 Maccabees 1:60–61 (New Revised Standard w/ Apocrypha)". biblestudytools.com.
^ I Maccabees, 1, 41–50
^ Toras Menachem Melukat volume 2 pg. 162
^ "Jewish Virtual Library". Jewish Virtual Library. Retrieved 2013-07-29.
^ "Talmud, Tractate Shabbat". Jewishvirtuallibrary.org. Retrieved 2013-07-29.
^ Cohen, Shaye J.D., From the Maccabees to the Mishnah (Second Edition. Westminster John Knox Press, 2006)
^ Jews in the Mediterranean diaspora: from Alexander to Trajan (323 BCE – 117 CE) John M Barclay University of California press pg 247
^ Livy, Ab Urbe Condita, xlv.12. Archived 2017-08-19 at the Wayback Machine
^ Josephus' Jewish War 1.14.4: Mark Antony " …then resolved to get him made king of the Jews… told them that it was for their advantage in the Parthian war that Herod should be king; so they all gave their votes for it. And when the senate was separated, Antony and Caesar went out, with Herod between them; while the consul and the rest of the magistrates went before them, in order to offer sacrifices [to the Roman gods], and to lay the decree in the Capitol. Antony also made a feast for Herod on the first day of his reign;"
^ Carson, D. A. (2005). Hermeneutics, Authority, and Canon. Wipf and Stock Publishers. p. 307. ISBN 9781597521185. E. AN ALEXANDRIAN CANON? Some assert that the Greek translation of the Old Testament (called the Septuagint or LXX) offers evidence that the canon of diaspora Judaism
^ Stergiou, R. (1997), "The Old Testament in the Orthodox Church"., accessed 10 December 2020
^ Dolanksy, Shawna (23 December 2011). "The Truth(s) About Hanukkah". Huffington Post.
^ "The Seven Holy Maccabean Martyrs". Holytrinityorthodox.com. 2007-05-20. Retrieved 2013-07-29.
^ "Calendarium Romanum" (Libreria Editrice Vatican, 1969), p. 132
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Braginskaya, Nina V. (19 December 2017). "Нина Брагинская о загадочной мозаике из библейской деревни" [Nina Braginskaya about the mysterious mosaic from the biblical village] (in Russian). Moscow: Higher School of Economics (HSE), Institute of Classical Orient and Antiquity. Retrieved 2 February 2024.

External links

Library resources about
Maccabees

Jewish Encyclopedia: Maccabees, The
Meistermann, Barnabas (1910). "Jerusalem (Before A.D. 71)" . Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 8.
Fairweather, William (1911). "Maccabees" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 17 (11th ed.). pp. 197–198.

[1] Cohn, Marc (2007). The Mathematics of the Calendar. Lulu.com. p. 60. ISBN 978-1430324966.

[2] Fischer-Lichte, Erika (2005). Theatre, Sacrifice, Ritual: Exploring Forms of Political Theatre. Routledge. pp. 195. ISBN 978-0415276757.

[Wessels_Jansen_Hofland_2020_p._150-3] Wessels, Anton; Jansen, Henry; Hofland, Lucy (2020). The Grand Finale: The Apocalypse in the Tanakh, the Gospel, and the Qur'an. Wipf and Stock Publishers. p. 150. ISBN 978-1-7252-7601-7. The Hasmonean dynasty ruled Judea from the Maccabean revolt in 167 BC until 37 BC.

[4] Latin: Maccabaeus; Greek: Μακκαβαῖος Makkabaios; from Hebrew maqqeb et, "hammer" (Oxford English Dictionary).

[5] See 1 Maccabees 2:4

[6] Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "The Machabees" . Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.

[SET-Ex-7] Scherman, Nosson, ed. (1998). Tanakh = Tanach : Torah, Neviʼim, Ketuvim : the Torah, Prophets, Writings : the twenty-four books of the Bible, newly translated and annotated (1st student size ed., Stone ed.). Brooklyn, N.Y.: Mesorah Publications. pp. 171–172. ISBN 1578191092.

[8] Exodus 15:11

[9] "What does "Maccabee" mean? – Ask the Rabbi". Oztorah.com. Retrieved 2013-07-29.

[tcherikover-10] Tcherikover, Victor Hellenistic Civilization and the Jews, New York: Atheneum, 1975

[11] I Maccabees, i, 15

[Oesterley-12] Oesterley, W.O.E., A History of Israel, Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1939.

[delangeatlas-13] De Lange, Nicholas, Atlas of the Jewish World, Oxford: Andromeda, 1992

[14] I Maccabees, i, 30–32

[oxfordbibliographies.com-15] "Maccabean Revolt". Oxford Bibliographies.

[deLange-16] Nicholas de Lange (ed.), The Illustrated History of the Jewish People, London, Aurum Press, 1997, ISBN 1-85410-530-2

[17] Telushkin, Joseph (1991). Jewish Literacy: The Most Important Things to Know about the Jewish Religion, Its People, and Its History. W. Morrow. p. 114. ISBN 0-688-08506-7.

[18] Greenberg, Irving (1993). The Jewish Way: Living the Holidays. Simon & Schuster. p. 29. ISBN 0-671-87303-2.

[ReligionsofAncientWorld-19] Johnston, Sarah Iles (2004). Religions of the Ancient World: A Guide. Harvard University Press. p. 186. ISBN 0-674-01517-7.

[20] Schultz, Joseph P. (1981). Judaism and the Gentile Faiths: Comparative Studies in Religion. Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press. p. 155. ISBN 0-8386-1707-7. Modern scholarship on the other hand considers the Maccabean revolt less as an uprising against foreign oppression than as a civil war between the orthodox and reformist parties in the Jewish camp

[21] Gundry, Robert H. (2003). A Survey of the New Testament. Zondervan. p. 9. ISBN 0-310-23825-0.

[22] Freedman, David Noel; Allen C. Myers; Astrid B. Beck (2000). Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. p. 837. ISBN 0-8028-2400-5.

[23] Wood, Leon James (1986). A Survey of Israel's History. Zondervan. p. 357. ISBN 0-310-34770-X.

[24] Jewish Life and Thought Among Greeks and Romans: Primary Readings, By Louis H. Feldman, Meyer Reinhold, Fortress Press, 1996, p. 147

[25] I Macccabees. 1:57

[26] Bourgel, Jonathan (2019). "The Samaritans during the Hasmonean Period: The Affirmation of a Discrete Identity?". Religions. 10 (11): 628. doi:10.3390/rel10110628.

[27] "1 Maccabees 1:60–61 (New Revised Standard w/ Apocrypha)". biblestudytools.com.

[28] I Maccabees, 1, 41–50

[29] Toras Menachem Melukat volume 2 pg. 162

[30] "Jewish Virtual Library". Jewish Virtual Library. Retrieved 2013-07-29.

[31] "Talmud, Tractate Shabbat". Jewishvirtuallibrary.org. Retrieved 2013-07-29.

[32] Cohen, Shaye J.D., From the Maccabees to the Mishnah (Second Edition. Westminster John Knox Press, 2006)

[33] Jews in the Mediterranean diaspora: from Alexander to Trajan (323 BCE – 117 CE) John M Barclay University of California press pg 247

[34] Livy, Ab Urbe Condita, xlv.12. Archived 2017-08-19 at the Wayback Machine

[35] Josephus' Jewish War 1.14.4: Mark Antony " …then resolved to get him made king of the Jews… told them that it was for their advantage in the Parthian war that Herod should be king; so they all gave their votes for it. And when the senate was separated, Antony and Caesar went out, with Herod between them; while the consul and the rest of the magistrates went before them, in order to offer sacrifices [to the Roman gods], and to lay the decree in the Capitol. Antony also made a feast for Herod on the first day of his reign;"

[Carson_2005-36] Carson, D. A. (2005). Hermeneutics, Authority, and Canon. Wipf and Stock Publishers. p. 307. ISBN 9781597521185. E. AN ALEXANDRIAN CANON? Some assert that the Greek translation of the Old Testament (called the Septuagint or LXX) offers evidence that the canon of diaspora Judaism

[37] Stergiou, R. (1997), "The Old Testament in the Orthodox Church"., accessed 10 December 2020

[38] Dolanksy, Shawna (23 December 2011). "The Truth(s) About Hanukkah". Huffington Post.

[39] "The Seven Holy Maccabean Martyrs". Holytrinityorthodox.com. 2007-05-20. Retrieved 2013-07-29.

[40] "Calendarium Romanum" (Libreria Editrice Vatican, 1969), p. 132

[NVB-41] Braginskaya, Nina V. (19 December 2017). "Нина Брагинская о загадочной мозаике из библейской деревни" [Nina Braginskaya about the mysterious mosaic from the biblical village] (in Russian). Moscow: Higher School of Economics (HSE), Institute of Classical Orient and Antiquity. Retrieved 2 February 2024.

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-[[File:Maccabean dynasty.PNG|right|420px|thumb|The descendants of Mattathias]]
+[[File:Hasmonean dynasty family tree.svg|thumb|The descendants of Mattathias]]
-The '''Maccabees''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|æ|k|ə|b|iː|z}}), also spelled '''Machabees''' ({{lang-he|מַכַּבִּים}}, {{transliteration|he|Makkabbīm}} or {{lang|he|מַקַבִּים}}, {{transliteration|he|Maqabbīm}}; {{lang-la|Machabaei}} or {{lang|la|Maccabaei}}; {{lang-grc|Μακκαβαῖοι}}, {{transliteration|grc|Makkabaioi}}), were a group of [[Jews|Jewish]] rebel warriors who took control of [[Judea]], which at the time was part of the [[Seleucid Empire]].<ref>{{Cite book |title=The Mathematics of the Calendar |last=Cohn |first=Marc  |year=2007 |isbn=978-1430324966 |pages=60}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=Theatre, Sacrifice, Ritual: Exploring Forms of Political Theatre |url=https://archive.org/details/theatresacrifice00fisc |url-access=limited |last=Fischer-Lichte  |first=Erika  |publisher=Routledge |year=2005 |isbn= 978-0415276757 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/theatresacrifice00fisc/page/n205 195]}}</ref> They founded the [[Hasmonean dynasty]], which ruled from 167 to 37&nbsp;BCE,<ref name="Wessels Jansen Hofland 2020 p. 150">{{cite book | last1=Wessels | first1=Anton | last2=Jansen | first2=Henry | last3=Hofland | first3=Lucy | title=The Grand Finale: The Apocalypse in the Tanakh, the Gospel, and the Qur'an | publisher=Wipf and Stock Publishers | year=2020 | isbn=978-1-7252-7601-7 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7Cv4DwAAQBAJ&pg=PT150| page=150 | quote=The Hasmonean dynasty ruled Judea from the Maccabean revolt in 167 BC until 37 BC.}}</ref> being a fully independent kingdom from 104 to 63 BCE. They reasserted the [[Judaism|Jewish religion]], expanded the boundaries of Judea by conquest, and reduced the influence of [[Hellenization|Hellenism]] and [[Hellenistic Judaism]].
+The '''Maccabees''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|æ|k|ə|b|iː|z}}), also spelled '''Machabees''' ({{lang-he|מַכַּבִּים}}, {{transliteration|he|Makkabbīm}} or {{lang|he|מַקַבִּים}}, {{transliteration|he|Maqabbīm}}; {{lang-la|Machabaei}} or {{lang|la|Maccabaei}}; {{lang-grc|Μακκαβαῖοι}}, {{transliteration|grc|Makkabaioi}}), were a group of [[Jews|Jewish]] rebel warriors who took control of [[Judea]], which at the time was part of the [[Seleucid Empire]].<ref>{{Cite book |title=The Mathematics of the Calendar |last=Cohn |first=Marc  |year=2007 |isbn=978-1430324966 |pages=60|publisher=Lulu.com }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=Theatre, Sacrifice, Ritual: Exploring Forms of Political Theatre |url=https://archive.org/details/theatresacrifice00fisc |url-access=limited |last=Fischer-Lichte  |first=Erika  |publisher=Routledge |year=2005 |isbn= 978-0415276757 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/theatresacrifice00fisc/page/n205 195]}}</ref> They founded the [[Hasmonean dynasty]], which ruled from 167 to 37&nbsp;BCE,<ref name="Wessels Jansen Hofland 2020 p. 150">{{cite book | last1=Wessels | first1=Anton | last2=Jansen | first2=Henry | last3=Hofland | first3=Lucy | title=The Grand Finale: The Apocalypse in the Tanakh, the Gospel, and the Qur'an | publisher=Wipf and Stock Publishers | year=2020 | isbn=978-1-7252-7601-7 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7Cv4DwAAQBAJ&pg=PT150| page=150 | quote=The Hasmonean dynasty ruled Judea from the Maccabean revolt in 167 BC until 37 BC.}}</ref> being a fully independent kingdom from 104 to 63 BCE. They reasserted the [[Judaism|Jewish religion]], expanded the boundaries of Judea by conquest, and reduced the influence of [[Hellenization|Hellenism]] and [[Hellenistic Judaism]].
 ==Etymology==
-The name Maccabee<ref>Latin: ''Maccabaeus''; Greek: Μακκαβαῖος ''Makkabaios''; from Hebrew ''maqqeb et'', "hammer" (''[[Oxford English Dictionary]]'').</ref> is often used as a synonym for the entire [[Hasmonean dynasty]], but the Maccabees proper were [[Judas Maccabeus]] and his four brothers. The name Maccabee was a personal epithet of Judah,<ref>See 1 Maccabees 2:4</ref> and the later generations were not his direct descendants. One explanation of the name's origins is that it derives from the [[Aramaic]] ''maqqəḇa'', "the hammer", in recognition of Judah's ferocity in battle.<ref>{{CathEncy|wstitle=The Machabees}}</ref> The traditional Jewish explanation is that Maccabee ({{lang-he|מכבים}} {{transliteration|he|Machabi}}) is an [[acronym]] for the [[Torah]] verse that was the battle-cry of the Maccabees, ''"[[Song of the Sea|'''M'''i '''ch'''amocha]] '''ba''''elim [[YHWH|'''Y'''HWH]]"'', "Who is like You among the heavenly powers, Lord!",<ref name=SET-Ex>{{cite book|editor-last=Scherman|editor-first=Nosson |title=Tanakh = Tanach : Torah, Neviʼim, Ketuvim : the Torah, Prophets, Writings : the twenty-four books of the Bible, newly translated and annotated|year=1998|publisher=Mesorah Publications|location=Brooklyn, N.Y.|isbn=1578191092|pages=171–172|edition=1st student size ed., Stone}}</ref><ref>[[Book of Exodus|Exodus]] 15:11</ref> as well as an [[acronym]] for ''"[[Mattathias|'''M'''atityahu]] [[Kohen|ha'''K'''ohen]] '''b'''en '''Y'''ochanan''" (Matthias the priest, son of John). The correlating [[Torah]] verse [[Book of Exodus|Exodus]] 15:11, ''The song of Moses and the Children of Israel by the Sea'',<ref name=SET-Ex/> makes a reference to ''elim'', with a mundane notion of natural forces, heavenly might, war and governmental powers. The scholar and poet Aaron Kaminka argues that the name is a corruption of [[Machbanai]], a leading [[commando]] in the army of King [[David]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oztorah.com/2008/01/what-does-maccabee-mean-ask-the-rabbi/ |title=What does "Maccabee" mean? – Ask the Rabbi |publisher=Oztorah.com |access-date=2013-07-29}}</ref>
+The name Maccabee<ref>Latin: ''Maccabaeus''; Greek: Μακκαβαῖος ''Makkabaios''; from Hebrew ''maqqeb et'', "hammer" (''[[Oxford English Dictionary]]'').</ref> is often used as a synonym for the entire [[Hasmonean dynasty]], but the Maccabees proper comprised [[Judas Maccabeus]] and his four brothers. The name Maccabee was a personal epithet of Judah,<ref>See 1 Maccabees 2:4</ref> and the later generations were not his direct descendants. One explanation of the name's origins is that it derives from the [[Aramaic]] ''maqqəḇa'', "the hammer", in recognition of Judah's ferocity in battle.<ref>{{CathEncy|wstitle=The Machabees}}</ref> The traditional Jewish explanation is that Maccabee ({{lang-he|מכבים}} {{transliteration|he|Machabi}}) is an [[acronym]] for the [[Torah]] verse that was the battle-cry of the Maccabees, ''"[[Song of the Sea|'''M'''i '''ch'''amocha]] '''ba''''elim [[YHWH|'''Y'''HWH]]"'', "Who is like You among the heavenly powers, oh God!",<ref name=SET-Ex>{{cite book|editor-last=Scherman|editor-first=Nosson |title=Tanakh = Tanach : Torah, Neviʼim, Ketuvim : the Torah, Prophets, Writings : the twenty-four books of the Bible, newly translated and annotated|year=1998|publisher=Mesorah Publications|location=Brooklyn, N.Y.|isbn=1578191092|pages=171–172|edition=1st student size ed., Stone}}</ref><ref>[[Book of Exodus|Exodus]] 15:11</ref> as well as an [[acronym]] for ''"[[Mattathias|'''M'''atityahu]] [[Kohen|ha'''K'''ohen]] '''b'''en '''Y'''ochanan''" (Matthias the priest, son of John). The correlating [[Torah]] verse [[Book of Exodus|Exodus]] 15:11, ''The song of Moses and the Children of Israel by the Sea'',<ref name=SET-Ex/> makes a reference to ''elim'', with a mundane notion of natural forces, heavenly might, war and governmental powers. The scholar and poet Aaron Kaminka argues that the name is a corruption of [[Machbanai]], a leading [[commando]] in the army of King [[David]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oztorah.com/2008/01/what-does-maccabee-mean-ask-the-rabbi/ |title=What does "Maccabee" mean? – Ask the Rabbi |publisher=Oztorah.com |access-date=2013-07-29}}</ref>
 ==Background==
-In the 2nd century BCE, [[Judea]] lay between the [[Ptolemaic Kingdom]] (based in [[Lower Egypt|Egypt]]) and the [[Seleucid Empire]] (based in [[Syria-Coele|Syria]]), [[Diadochi|monarchies which had formed]] following the death of [[Alexander the Great]]. Judea had initially come under Ptolemaic rule but fell to the Seleucids around 200&nbsp;BCE. Judea at that time had been affected by the [[Hellenization]] initiated by Alexander the Great. Some Jews, mainly those of the urban upper class, notably the [[Tobiads|Tobiad]] family, wished to dispense with Jewish law and to adopt a Greek lifestyle. According to historian [[Victor Tcherikover]], the main motive for the Tobiads' Hellenism was economic and political.<ref name=tcherikover/> The [[Hellenistic Judaism|Hellenizing Jews]] built a [[Gymnasium (ancient Greece)|gymnasium]] in [[Jerusalem]], competed in international Greek games, "[[Epispasm|removed their marks of circumcision]] and [[antinomianism|repudiated the holy covenant]]".<ref>[[I Maccabees]], i, 15</ref>
+In the 2nd century BCE, [[Judea]] lay between the [[Ptolemaic Kingdom]] (based in [[Lower Egypt|Egypt]]) and the [[Seleucid Empire]] (based in [[Syria-Coele|Syria]]), [[Diadochi|monarchies which had formed]] following the death of [[Alexander the Great]]. Judea had initially come under Ptolemaic rule but fell to the Seleucids around 197&nbsp;BCE, after the [[Battle of Panium]], during the Fifth Syrian War. Judea at that time had been affected by the [[Hellenization]] initiated by Alexander the Great. Some Jews, mainly those of the urban upper class, notably the [[Tobiads|Tobiad]] family, wished to dispense with Jewish law and to adopt a Greek lifestyle. According to historian [[Victor Tcherikover]], the main motive for the Tobiads' Hellenism was economic and political.<ref name=tcherikover/> The [[Hellenistic Judaism|Hellenizing Jews]] built a [[Gymnasium (ancient Greece)|gymnasium]] in [[Jerusalem]], competed in international Greek games, "[[Epispasm|removed their marks of circumcision]] and [[antinomianism|repudiated the holy covenant]]".<ref>[[I Maccabees]], i, 15</ref>
-When [[Antiochus IV Epiphanes]] became ruler of the Seleucid Empire in 175&nbsp;BCE, [[Onias III]] held the office of [[High Priest of Israel|high priest]] in Jerusalem. To Antiochus, the high priest was merely a local governor within his realm, a man whom he could appoint or dismiss at will, while orthodox Jews saw the holder of the high priesthood as divinely appointed.<ref name=Oesterley>Oesterley, W.O.E., ''A History of Israel'', Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1939.</ref> [[Jason (High Priest)|Jason]], the brother of Onias, bribed Antiochus to make him high priest instead of Onias. Jason abolished the traditional theocracy and "received from Antiochus permission to convert Jerusalem into a Greek ''[[polis]]'' called Antioch".<ref name=tcherikover/><ref name=delangeatlas>De Lange, Nicholas, ''Atlas of the Jewish World'', Oxford: Andromeda, 1992</ref> In turn, [[Menelaus (High Priest)|Menelaus]] then bribed Antiochus and was appointed high priest in place of Jason. Menelaus had Onias assassinated. Menelaus' brother Lysimachus stole holy vessels from the [[Solomon's Temple|Temple]]; the resulting riots led to the death of Lysimachus. Menelaus was arrested for Onias' murder and was arraigned before Antiochus, but he bribed his way out of trouble. Jason subsequently drove out Menelaus and became high priest again. In 168 Antiochus pillaged the Temple, attacked Jerusalem and "led captive the women and children."<ref>I Maccabees, i, 30–32</ref> From this point onwards, Antiochus pursued a zealous Hellenizing policy in the Seleucid satrapies of [[Coele Syria]] and [[Phoenicia]].<ref name="oxfordbibliographies.com">{{Cite web|url=https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780195393361/obo-9780195393361-0031.xml|title=Maccabean Revolt|work=Oxford Bibliographies}}</ref>
+When [[Antiochus IV Epiphanes]] became ruler of the [[Seleucid Empire]] in 175&nbsp;BCE, [[Onias III]] held the office of [[High Priest of Israel|high priest]] in Jerusalem. To Antiochus, the high priest was merely a local governor within his realm, a man whom he could appoint or dismiss at will, while orthodox Jews saw the holder of the high priesthood as divinely appointed.<ref name=Oesterley>Oesterley, W.O.E., ''A History of Israel'', Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1939.</ref> [[Jason (High Priest)|Jason]], the brother of Onias, bribed Antiochus to make him high priest instead of Onias. Jason abolished the traditional theocracy and "received from Antiochus permission to convert Jerusalem into a Greek ''[[polis]]'' called Antioch".<ref name=tcherikover/><ref name=delangeatlas>De Lange, Nicholas, ''Atlas of the Jewish World'', Oxford: Andromeda, 1992</ref> In turn, [[Menelaus (High Priest)|Menelaus]] then bribed Antiochus and was appointed high priest in place of Jason. Menelaus had Onias assassinated. Menelaus' brother Lysimachus stole holy vessels from the [[Solomon's Temple|Temple]]; the resulting riots led to the death of Lysimachus. Menelaus was arrested for Onias' murder and was arraigned before Antiochus, but he bribed his way out of trouble. Jason subsequently drove out Menelaus and became high priest again. In 168 Antiochus pillaged the Temple, attacked Jerusalem and "led captive the women and children."<ref>I Maccabees, i, 30–32</ref> From this point onwards, Antiochus pursued a zealous Hellenizing policy in the Seleucid satrapies of [[Coele Syria]] and [[Phoenicia]].<ref name="oxfordbibliographies.com">{{Cite web|url=https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780195393361/obo-9780195393361-0031.xml|title=Maccabean Revolt|work=Oxford Bibliographies}}</ref>
 <blockquote>
@@ Line 22: / Line 22: @@
 According to 1 Maccabees, Antiochus banned many traditional Jewish and [[Samaritans|Samaritan]]<ref name="oxfordbibliographies.com" /> religious practices: he made possession of the Torah a capital offense and burned the copies he could find;<ref>I Macccabees. 1:57</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Bourgel |first1=Jonathan |title=The Samaritans during the Hasmonean Period: The Affirmation of a Discrete Identity? |journal=Religions |date=2019 |volume=10 |issue=11 |page=628 |doi=10.3390/rel10110628 |doi-access=free }}</ref> [[sabbath]]s and feasts were banned; [[Circumcision in Judaism|circumcision]] was outlawed, and mothers who circumcised their babies were killed along with their families;<ref>{{cite web|title= 1 Maccabees 1:60–61 (New Revised Standard w/ Apocrypha)|url= http://www.biblestudytools.com/nrsa/1-maccabees/passage.aspx?q=1-maccabees+1:60–61|publisher= biblestudytools.com}}</ref> and traditional Jewish ritual sacrifice was forbidden. It was said that an idol of Olympian [[Zeus]] was placed on the altar of the Temple and that Israelites set up altars to Greek gods and sacrificed "unclean" animals on them.<ref>I ''Maccabees'', 1, 41–50</ref>
+The main objective of Antiochus is explained throughout [[Chabad]] Chassidic thought. It says that Antiochus didn't mind that the Jews kept the culture of Judaism, rather all he wanted was to eradicate the laws of the [[Torah]] ([[mitzvos]]) that weren't logical but rather kept solely because it is God's command. But when he saw that even the logical/rational and cultural commandments of the Torah were being practiced by the Jews in a way higher than logic, he then opposed Judaism in its entirety.<ref>Toras Menachem Melukat volume 2 pg. 162</ref>
 ==Revolt==
@@ Line 28: / Line 30: @@
 [[File:Judea Jonathan Makk.PNG|thumb|230px|Jonathan's conquests|right]]
 [[File:Judea Simon Makk.PNG|thumb|230px|Simon's conquests|right]]
-In the narrative of ''I Maccabees'', after Antiochus issued his decrees forbidding Jewish religious practice, a rural Jewish priest from [[Modiin]], [[Mattathias]] the [[Hasmonean dynasty|Hasmonean]], sparked the revolt against the Seleucid Empire by refusing to worship the [[Greek gods]]. Mattathias killed a Hellenistic Jew who stepped forward to offer a sacrifice to an idol in Mattathias' place. He and his five sons fled to the wilderness of Judah. After Mattathias' death about one year later in 166&nbsp;BCE, his son Judah Maccabee led an army of Jewish dissidents to victory over the Seleucids in [[guerrilla warfare]], which at first was directed against Hellenizing Jews, of whom there were many. The Maccabees destroyed pagan altars in the villages, circumcised boys and forced Jews into outlawry.<ref name=deLange/> As a result, one explanation of the name ''Maccabees'' is based on the Aramaic word for "hammer", because they "strike hammer blows against their enemies".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/Maccabees.html |title=Jewish Virtual Library |publisher=Jewish Virtual Library |access-date=2013-07-29}}</ref>
+In the narrative of ''I Maccabees'', after Antiochus issued his decrees forbidding Jewish religious practice, a rural Jewish priest from [[Modi'in (ancient city)|Modi'in]], [[Mattathias]] the [[Hasmonean dynasty|Hasmonean]], sparked the revolt against the Seleucid Empire by refusing to worship the [[Greek gods]]. Mattathias killed a Hellenistic Jew who stepped forward to offer a sacrifice to an idol in Mattathias' place. He and his five sons fled to the wilderness of Judah. After Mattathias' death about one year later in 166&nbsp;BCE, his son Judah Maccabee led an army of Jewish dissidents to victory over the Seleucids in [[guerrilla warfare]], which at first was directed against Hellenizing Jews, of whom there were many. The Maccabees destroyed pagan altars in the villages, circumcised boys and forced Jews into outlawry.<ref name=deLange/> As a result, one explanation of the name ''Maccabees'' is based on the Aramaic word for "hammer", because they "strike hammer blows against their enemies".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/Maccabees.html |title=Jewish Virtual Library |publisher=Jewish Virtual Library |access-date=2013-07-29}}</ref>
 The revolt involved many battles, in which the Maccabean forces gained notoriety among the Seleucid army for their use of guerrilla tactics. After the victory, the Maccabees entered Jerusalem in triumph and ritually cleansed the Temple, reestablishing traditional Jewish worship there and installing [[Jonathan Maccabee]] as high priest. A large Seleucid army was sent to quash the revolt but returned to Syria on the death of Antiochus IV. Its commander Lysias, preoccupied with internal Seleucid affairs, agreed to a political compromise that restored religious freedom.
@@ Line 46: / Line 48: @@
 ==Biblical accounts==
 {{main|Books of the Maccabees}}
-The Maccabean story is preserved in the books of the First and Second Maccabees, which describe in detail the re-dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem and the lighting of the menorah. These books are not part of the Tanakh ([[Hebrew Bible]]) which came from the Jewish canon; however, they were part of the Alexandrian canon which is also called the [[Septuagint]].<ref name="Carson 2005">{{cite book |title= Hermeneutics, Authority, and Canon |last= Carson |first= D. A. |year= 2005 |publisher= Wipf and Stock Publishers |isbn= 9781597521185 |quote= E. AN ALEXANDRIAN CANON? Some assert that the Greek translation of the Old Testament (called the Septuagint or LXX) offers evidence that the canon of diaspora Judaism |page=307}}</ref> Both books are included in the [[Old Testament]] used by the Catholic and Orthodox churches,<ref>Stergiou, R. (1997), {{cite web|url=http://www.orthodoxchristian.info/pages/old_testament.html|title=The Old Testament in the Orthodox Church}}, accessed 10 December 2020</ref> since those churches consider the books [[Deuterocanonical books|deuterocanonical]]. They are not included in the Old Testament books in most [[Protestantism|Protestant]] Bibles since most Protestants consider the books [[apocrypha]]l.
+The Maccabean story is preserved in the books of the [[1 Maccabees|First]] and [[2 Maccabees|Second Maccabees]], which describe in detail the re-dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem and the lighting of the menorah. These books are not part of the Tanakh ([[Hebrew Bible]]) which came from the Jewish canon; however, they were part of the Alexandrian canon which is also called the [[Septuagint]].<ref name="Carson 2005">{{cite book |title= Hermeneutics, Authority, and Canon |last= Carson |first= D. A. |year= 2005 |publisher= Wipf and Stock Publishers |isbn= 9781597521185 |quote= E. AN ALEXANDRIAN CANON? Some assert that the Greek translation of the Old Testament (called the Septuagint or LXX) offers evidence that the canon of diaspora Judaism |page=307}}</ref> Both books are included in the [[Old Testament]] used by the Catholic and Orthodox churches,<ref>Stergiou, R. (1997), {{cite web|url=http://www.orthodoxchristian.info/pages/old_testament.html|title=The Old Testament in the Orthodox Church}}, accessed 10 December 2020</ref> since those churches consider the books [[Deuterocanonical books|deuterocanonical]]. They are not included in the Old Testament books in most [[Protestantism|Protestant]] Bibles since most Protestants consider the books [[apocrypha]]l.
-Multiple references to Hanukkah are made in the [[Mishnah|Mishna]] (Bikkurim 1:6, Rosh HaShanah 1:3, Taanit 2:10, Megillah 3:4 and 3:6, Moed Katan 3:9, and Bava Kama 6:6), though specific laws are not described. The miracle of the one-day supply of oil lasting eight days is first described in the Talmud, committed to writing about 600 years after the events described in the books of Maccabees.<ref>{{cite news|last=Dolanksy|first=Shawna|title=The Truth(s) About Hanukkah|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/shawna-dolansky/the-truth-about-hanukah_b_1165708.html|newspaper=Huffington Post|date=23 December 2011}}</ref> The [[New Testament]] mentions [[john 10#The Feast of Dedication|Jesus visiting the temple during Hanukkah]] (John 10:22-23).
+Multiple references to Hanukkah are made in the [[Mishnah]] (Bikkurim 1:6, Rosh HaShanah 1:3, Taanit 2:10, Megillah 3:4 and 3:6, Moed Katan 3:9, and Bava Kama 6:6), though specific laws are not described. The miracle of the one-day supply of oil lasting eight days is first described in the [[Talmud]], committed to writing about 600 years after the events described in the books of Maccabees.<ref>{{cite news|last=Dolanksy|first=Shawna|title=The Truth(s) About Hanukkah|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/shawna-dolansky/the-truth-about-hanukah_b_1165708.html|newspaper=Huffington Post|date=23 December 2011}}</ref> The [[New Testament]] mentions [[john 10#The Feast of Dedication|Jesus visiting the temple during Hanukkah]] (John 10:22-23).
+==Christian veneration and possible Jewish preceding tradition==
-==Holy Maccabean martyrs==
+===The nine "Holy Maccabean Martyrs" in Christianity===
 [[File:Koeln st andreas Machabaeerschrein.jpg|thumb|left|What are believed to be the Maccabees' relics – kept in the ''Maccabees Shrine'' – are venerated in [[St. Andrew's Church, Cologne]], Germany.]]
@@ Line 59: / Line 62: @@
 |death_date =167–160&nbsp;BCE
 |feast_day  =August 1
-|venerated_in=[[Roman Catholic Church]]<br/>[[Eastern Orthodox Churches]]
+|venerated_in=[[Roman Catholic Church]]<br/>[[Eastern Orthodox Churches]]<br/>[[Oriental Orthodox Churches]]
 |image      =Stattler-Machabeusze.jpg
 |imagesize  =230px
-|caption    =[[Wojciech Stattler]]'s ''"Machabeusze"'' (''"The Maccabees"''), <small>1844</small>
+|caption    =[[Wojciech Stattler]]'s "''Machabeusze''" ("''The Maccabees''"), <small>1844</small>
 |birth_place=[[Judea]] (modern-day [[Israel]])
 |death_place=[[Judea]]
@@ Line 78: / Line 81: @@
 |issues=
 }}
 The second and fourth books of the Maccabees recount the martyrdom of seven Jewish brothers, their mother and their teacher. Although these are not said to be of the Maccabee family, they are referred to in Christianity as the "Holy Maccabean Martyrs" or the "Holy Maccabees." According to one tradition, their individual names are Habim, Antonin, Guriah, Eleazar, Eusebon, Hadim (Halim), Marcellus, their mother Solomonia, and their teacher [[Eleazar (2 Maccabees)|Eleazar]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.holytrinityorthodox.com/calendar/los/August/01-03.htm |title=The Seven Holy Maccabean Martyrs |publisher=Holytrinityorthodox.com |date=2007-05-20 |access-date=2013-07-29}}</ref>
 The three Ethiopian books of [[Meqabyan]] (quite distinct works from the other four books of Maccabees), which are canonical in the [[Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church]], also refer to the Maccabee martyrs. The first of these books states that their father was a Benjamite named Maccabeus and that three of the brothers, who are called Abya, Seela, and Fentos, were captured and martyred for leading a guerrilla war against Antiochus Epiphanes.
-From before the time of the [[Tridentine calendar]], the Holy Maccabees had a [[commemoration (liturgy)|commemoration]] in the [[Roman Rite]] liturgy within the feast of [[Liberation of Saint Peter|Saint Peter in Chains]]. This commemoration remained within the weekday liturgy when in 1960 [[Pope John XXIII]] suppressed this particular feast of Saint Peter. Nine years later, 1 August became the feast of Saint [[Alphonsus Maria de' Liguori]], and the mention of the Maccabee martyrs was omitted from the [[General Roman Calendar]], since in its [[Mysterii Paschalis|1969 revision]] it no longer admitted commemorations.<ref>"Calendarium Romanum" (Libreria Editrice Vatican, 1969), p. 132</ref> The feast day of these saints is 1 August in both the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]] (for which 1 August is also the first day of the [[Dormition Fast]]) and the [[Catholic Church]].
+From before the time of the [[Tridentine calendar]], the Holy Maccabees had a [[commemoration (liturgy)|commemoration]] in the [[Roman Rite]] liturgy within the feast of [[Liberation of Saint Peter|Saint Peter in Chains]]. This commemoration remained within the weekday liturgy when in 1960 [[Pope John XXIII]] suppressed this particular feast of Saint Peter. Nine years later, 1 August became the feast of Saint [[Alphonsus Maria de' Liguori]], and the mention of the Maccabee martyrs was omitted from the [[General Roman Calendar]], since in its [[Mysterii Paschalis|1969 revision]] it no longer admitted commemorations.<ref>"Calendarium Romanum" (Libreria Editrice Vatican, 1969), p. 132</ref> The feast day of these saints{{which|It was just said: Holy Maccabean Martyrs supressed in 1969 in Roman Cath. Ch.! |date= February 2024}} is 1 August in both the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]] (for which 1 August is also the first day of the [[Dormition Fast]]) and the [[Catholic Church]].{{dubious|See previous tag! Nonsensical.|date=February 2024}}{{cn|date=February 2024}}
+===Theory: Jewish ancient veneration===
-While comparing a mosaic discovered in [[Huqoq]] by Jodi Magness with the books of Maccabees, Nina V. Braginskaya [https://iocs.hse.ru/news/213162968.html comes to the conclusion] that the mosaic reflects the symbolic story of the Maccabees.{{Clear}}
+{{Clear}}
+While studying a floor mosaic discovered during the 2012-2016 campaigns at the [[Huqoq]] synagogue near the [[Sea of Galilee]] and dating to the 4th–5th centuries, Russian researcher Nina V. Braginskaya comes to a different conclusion from that of the dig director, [[Jodi Magness]].<ref name=NVB>{{cite web |author= Braginskaya, Nina V. |title= Нина Брагинская о загадочной мозаике из библейской деревни |trans-title= Nina Braginskaya about the mysterious mosaic from the biblical village |date= 19 December 2017 |publisher=[[Higher School of Economics]] (HSE), Institute of Classical Orient and Antiquity |location= Moscow |lang= ru |url= https://iocs.hse.ru/news/213162968.html |access-date= 2 February 2024}}</ref> Braginskaya puts forward that the mosaic reflects the ancient Jewish veneration of the nine Maccabee martyrs from the books of the Maccabees, which is later perpetuated just in Christianity, while Jewish tradition preserves only the rite of lighting a nine-branched [[candelabrum]] during [[Hanukkah]].<ref name=NVB/> In her opinion, there is a direct relationship between the Jewish symbolic object and the Christian symbolic story, with the [[Hanukkah menorah]] undergoing a one-and-a-half-millennium long secondary symbolic interpretation in Judaism, while the Christian tradition kept the original meaning, that of a martyrdom-for-the-faith tradition.<ref name=NVB/> This interpretation would help to explain the unique [[iconography]] of this particular mosaic carpet, which is the only one found so far in synagogues of its period depicting scenes [[Jewish apocrypha|not found]] in the [[Hebrew Bible]].<ref name=NVB/> Only due to the discovery of the Huqoq mosaic could the connection between the Jewish and Christian traditions be noticed and proposed for discussion, so Braginskaya.<ref name=NVB/>
 ==Hasmonean rulers==
@@ Line 100: / Line 106: @@
 ==See also==
+*[[al-Midya#Possible family tomb of the Maccabees|al-Midya]], possibly the site of the mausoleum of the Maccabees
-* [[Zionism|Jewish national movements]]
 * ''[[My Glorious Brothers]]'', novel by [[Howard Fast]]
+* [[Zionism|Jewish national movements]]
 ==References==

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