Hanukka

Antiochus Epiphanes wanted to end the special position of the Jews and of Judea: it had to become a "normal" country, where the Greek Gods were worshipped. All other parts of his empire did. But in all the other parts people had gods that were comparable to the Greek gods. In Egypt Isis was comparable to Aphrodite, in Syrië Baal to Zeus etc. The inhabitants of these countries did not have problems with this identification.

But the Jews worshipped one God, who could not be identified to a Greek God, and refused to worship the Greek gods. And so the king decided in 167 BC to end the Jewish religion: the manifest was canceled, the service in the Temple was ended and the the laws of the Thorah abolished; the celebration of the Sabbath and the circumcision were forbidden. Thorah-scrolls were burnt, and having one in possesion was a capital crime. And an image of Zeus was put in the temple.

Or as it says in Daniel (8:11-12a.):

Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of the sanctuary was cast down. And an host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression

and Daniel 11:31:

And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate.

Many Jews accepted this, but many others did not. Some fled to the desert. A part of them was killed when they refused to defend themselves on Sabbath.

A discussion arose whether this was the intention of the Sabbath command.

We have no information about that, but we can imagine the arguments used. One group of people meant the Sabbath command ought to be obeyed literally: “What will happen when we make exceptions to this command only because we need them?”

The other side will have pointed to the fact that the history of Israel was full of wars, and wars make hallowing of the Sabbath impossible.

Had God not summoned Israel to kill all inhabitants of Canaan? (Deut. 7)

This cannot be done well when a Sabbath is celebrated in the midst of it.

Did not the people of Israël march seven days around Jericho, including a Sabbath? And had Goliath not defied the battle array of Israel for 40 days (I Sam. 17), thus including 5 or 6 Sabbaths of not hallowing by the people?

And had David not killed him with the aid of God?

And did not God forbid to kill people, and was not included in that command that you had to save a live if you could, even when it is Sabbath?

Discussions regarding the Sabbath can be found in the New Testament as well.

The leader of those who accepted fighting on the Sabbath was Mattathias from the city of Modin. His descendents are called the Hasmonees, after Hasmon, an ancester of Mattathias. He conducted a guerilla-war, if necessary on Sabbath.

When Mattathias died he appoimted his son Judas as commander, although he was not the eldest son. He was called Maccabaeus. He proved to be a great general. In several battles he defeated the army of the king. And as the king expected a war with the Parths, and because the Romans became suspicious Antiochus revoked his decrees. The manifest would be valid again. Judas cleaned de Temple and restored the burnt sacrifice, exactly three year after the first sacrifice to Zeus had taken place (in 164 BC.) This rededication of the temple was celebrated with a festival, which the Jews still celebrate: Hanukkah, also called Festival of Lights. It lasts eight days. An old tradition tells how with the rededication there was only holy oil for one day, but the Menorah burnt all eight days on that. On this festival each day a new candle is lit. And the children get a present each day. Daniel did not prophesy the rededication. Instead the End of days is announced. The great physicist Newton studied a.o. the prophecies in the book Daniel. He came to a different conclusion: according to him it describes the migration of the nations, which ended the West-Roman empire.

The Chasidim were content with the restoration of the old situation, but Judas and his family were not.

Not only the Jews, also the Samaritans had to accept an image of Zeus in their temple, on the Gerizim. But they did not have a Judas Maccabaeus!

The (apocryphical) books of the Maccabees give a good impression of those difficult days, seen through the eyes of a pious Jew.