A gUESfi-ON
~
0F, VALUESE‘IF“ ,
Why did the Maccabees
rebel“?
4' r—V‘.
4“
’MV
1“.
w. 1:2.
;
shay:
:13
@
‘
is a question which we must ésk
Ulhis
every year at dhanukkah, for unless we kfiow the answer the whole signie ficance of this festival may escape qs,
Let us be» clear, then, that
there was no threat to the clife of the Jews, or even
to-
their livelihood.
If they had submitbed‘ t9 the démands of Antiochus, he would have alloWed them torlive in peaée and security. Mdttathias himself was told that if
_
he and his sons did as they were Biddehu, they would be numbered among the
king's friends and showere‘d withr‘gif‘és of silver and gold,
they
fight
fOr
po'l‘i’ticai
for LL00 years; and
independence.
1:tt m3
'Jl‘hisr'hhe
Neither did
JeWs had not enjoy‘edi
doubt t-hé longing for
11;
had fiensi‘sted,
‘7
yet their life had‘ been cofiarétiveity comfortable and unmolesized ufiéelr Persian a‘ndiGfieek rule, (ltl'w‘as only when the war got under way and“ ‘
. ‘
:bhe
Maccabees had tasted the fruits‘of vicfoiiy that their! appetite was
fihedfited: for
national independence
‘and
the attainment of it became a r
realistic ambition,
The initial motive was neither eq-onomic no? political but religious. It was the onsiamgfit ‘onut-he efia' distinctive religious life, and especiall the command tom/cramp i-dbi'é, Vlkéiéh provided the signal for the revolt; In certain areas Compromise might have been poSsi‘bleg but idhlatry was the denial of everything that Judaism stood for.
E0 yield to that would
be to run a real risk of destroying f6: ever the whole edifice or Jewish belief and practiée ~Which had been 30 painfully‘built up far- so many "
cerituries.
Yet even '
nthi-s
AleXande‘r‘the Great
is not the whole story; hagi.
1‘50
years had elapsed since
conquered Palestine and the whole of the Near
East as far as India. During this period an oriental version of Greek
‘
"
i'
2
:-
r
civilisation, known as Hellenism,
"
-;-
'had‘
established ifise'lf
1
in all
the conquer'ed territ’briés, and many Jews hadljin Varying degree «sficcum'bedi
to it.
Ehese Hellenised
to Anti'ochus and
Jeirls,,‘w'er‘m'ay‘
they had ‘beéome
inore‘GreeI‘:
themselves that it was: possible {whey grobabiy argued
constitute
5’
sure, did; not pffér anynresisfakhéqi
profide any recruits
did» not
After several generations, reach a before,~,
:‘be
tha'iz.
real threat,
{:6
:gitt‘le
7'
fat" {the
Madcab'eanwarmy.
more assimilated than
t’he‘on‘e
thafiIJewish, or else they peréuafled“
in Greek ofitwgr'dif and Jewish inwardly;
even the éeéi‘ee commanding idolavorship‘ did It,
‘
n61:
was, after all, only an outwardi‘gestfire
‘
required of'the“ lead‘epé of the cormnunity as a symbol ‘of' their logal‘by to the Empire, Once-they had gfieii "this, tokeh of their patriotism they would, probably be least alqne.‘
‘
There was, howevei', another section
angling
the JeWS,;‘h10\m
:33
the
:Chasidim' Or Faithful Ones, who had“ never welgomed 'Heflenisjm. so ‘eageriy;
They had maintained towards it an attitude of albofqess or even hostility and reqed to make any compromises with it, It was. from these Chasidim that Mattathias and Judah drew "their rgcruit 5., t‘o‘ ‘
A‘ndI
tvherefbre¢ if we wish
umierstand- the fuli 'signifiéance‘.of ihe Maccabean Rebellion, We must
seek?
to understand the motives of this anti-Heilenistic attitude, Some-
how, the 'Chasidi-m must‘ have sensed' that ,, even quite apart fiomrthe‘
oppressive edicts of Antiochus; Hellenism represented a mortal
threa’ft
-
to Judaigm. More particularly, though fthéy probably did not see it so clearly, it rep-re‘serited a different; and ‘pd‘bentially dangerous; system of values,
What were the values of Hellenism especially as it manifested itself in Palestipe'f What Were the 'thjtngs which Hellenistic soéiety
; ‘
Va 1
v
>13.
.-
fci-avedvgrrfirized' ‘pleasui‘éé,
and féspected‘? Fundanienfia‘ilj
fibers were thzie'é;
First,
and therefor? wealth; for a.1th6ugn (wealth (zonaa'uin the
he‘firesiredg for? itself, its chi’glg rungsti‘On
‘end:
to
the pfirchase of pleasuré§
5.15
jlpe‘Héilenistic world Was very affluent.“ Aiezande‘r'syoonques’ts had"
opened up'undrféamtg-of‘tradé routes strefiching '
India“,
7
and from‘Egyptr to the Baltic
to capacity wiizh silks
Sea»
flom‘mfim'egeecg
to
”
Shipsgarnd caraVans were iade‘n“
furs, Spicesé‘na' gems, and these and’gothei" luxury goods: were readily available in the maéhts.’ The people spent,
~their wealth freely
stadiums and VT‘fie
and:
on,
rljheal'bres
every form of
sprang up like;
ex‘rez;
and'gntertainmehta
rrfl‘iushroom‘sHih eiei'y
hot because l-Jiidégis‘m
Chasidim- lacked on askéhée;
ascgticism, amignot
spcirst
hmaamentauy
'36a 7‘
~
‘
jéhly because many of the'se’entertainfiiefi'fisj were, was}
sbm'tfiifig
ui‘heal'fihya'bout tzpis vinmleg'attitude 6f "le'brus‘
and bé mer‘i‘yyfor:t‘dmorrow‘wé dim", >
sizéfilé‘
"éehands afiflife; of
sexually immora1,fput'fiécau_se they‘realisédiihat‘ “there
77
@ymnaéiurhsx‘,”
excifement became more and
5113811111?
‘
eat; drifik‘
of pleaéufié and
mqife sophi'sticaiied-Qf f/i'e'nzied‘afidnall-Aabéoizfiing;
"crowding out higher aims; maxim fihé
rpeflgpi’e"
maifrereht to {11¢ suffering
of animals, to the plight of the slams-,gqtczusocia; ih~juéticeyxahdrto morai
"
distinctions generally, The s_econd overarigi'ng Value
of‘Hél-leni-sfm‘,
Palestine than algewherez, washeaut'y,
though
gmhitecture
1eés' ewidenl‘t
afgdrscuip‘hur‘ej,
im
“
poetry
and drama, £10urished.ét Athens ‘andiAlexandria, at Rhodes and} Antidcfi: and
other centres of the Hellenistic world; From. tfie point
and literature it was one of the mast creative doubt the Jews,- in so far as they Vin apppegiation
unduly
621.6.
01‘?
inerip'ds of
viéw bf
art.
history.
No
‘
not'become“'He'11§nised:, were? ladlgiug
for thfiasficulifupal creativity, just asnthey were perhaps‘ about physical exercise and populaiI entertainment.
ewzgmafi
q
‘
A
1
-
{nevertheless
“was. a
‘i‘aisi‘ng artist‘mé
#1
sound; ingti‘nctjwmc’h aiertéqvthe‘m to fipéf dangér:
for art‘s sake,.‘name1y the ééngér qf
“inhereh? in, the pursuit;- of ‘
9,
Véiues to
1:138
status of
‘sfiprem'e
belongs to nibraiva-iugs aligns, Even if they
'wiugngw
'wcmi-d
‘zhave “aggrmfi-ced the; wAci'opo'lisV’of
flsing‘i'e‘ ‘x'rénse
of Scripturé qr for
"towards the ‘poor and. gpprerssqq,
a-
Statizs
Athens- and
comedirlea‘ar
sing?
lria‘c‘l:
of
‘
which
admiredliéz‘eék'.cuitui'ez,
sof'Rhodes, the‘ tragedies Of‘Euripides andl'the $05: a
values,
‘
r
I
they
Coldée‘tjs
7tzhé
‘
‘
of Arifiéphan'es; jfis‘hice and}:megrizyZ
V
r
'
mirajly,;-the H‘e'l‘l‘ehisticrVibrldi‘valugd.knowiédgei ané' pqnsuea :withv
avidity. AESnohqmyQ- gegmétpy, botany, zggfialgy, history-find
‘flourished
in“
me
other centres bf Chagidi‘c d‘eWS
antist,
naming;
,hgd:
‘Sc’ientific‘
‘
.geoigrélimsf~
:bétween‘
‘ag'aizji:
berg, toe,7‘bhe 7
it-fiasfsbme’hdw bi‘aéphemcfis .tofipeer
k‘n’bw'le dgé wa'nq
amt theyunderétooq Wi’sdémg, Kfio‘vfléédg'e. '
It can‘be"i1:séd fgr- good: or
is .mbr‘allyineu’tral.
‘Bli‘l;
[not
7‘
Perhaps they were a littig“ robséqrér
the-if reserfiratiofié,
Pérhéiheyrelt 1:t
'a ‘vdis‘b 11155121 on:
Study peached'a lévé‘;
of islam and the Renais‘sahtjey‘
‘days-
closely into the mysteries oftngtqré, i‘ 's
‘
universities} iibraries and mugefims of Alexandria and
‘attaineduuntfl, the
‘
11:,
'eiril:
gt}
than in, “gel:
>
that
To beééxfié for humn
pfirpos'es.
can lead to a diKSreg’afdi x'leifare. W—i'sd‘om', ‘on the other hand, 13 _the findersltanding; {1912. so much mfisfi live in, ordeii to achieve» éi? how nédzure works, but 91‘ how toqpre—pcgfipied with
self-mlfl'lment and .
’60
‘
it,-
m
zthferefore,
social
'
V ‘hai‘mony5mwmm .
>
,
And this seemed ‘
the Jews incomparably more impoptant;
The Jews possessed
two‘
first place they possessed a
things which“ thé Greeks lacked. iifing'ugi‘ei'igi‘onaa
'
In the
‘
~
Thé ancient Greek religion,
-
,
5 -
with its worship of'the Olympian gods, was largely dead.
It had been
idolaitrous, degfiéding“and childish, “and was no longer taken seriously.-
'Its passing had left
void which nothing was able to fill. There were, course, ,the yhixools of philosophy, but they differed from one anotmer
‘63?
'
a‘
base.
and their interest was largely academic, smthat they did not provide v ~ _ indivdual his life an ideology on which the 9:061 nary could And '
~
‘
in the absénce of such an ideology thé .cormnom people turned to all sorts 6r ‘supengt‘itions and cranky cults. Magician‘s, atrologers and writers of :amulets:
were in great‘demand'.
In“
thig field, therefore, the Greeks,
IwhoGJerefso ‘stmphiisticated in sport and "Viinéfel,.:fcsbyrnpai-ed
‘with
tieJewa,‘ pueailé.
Veriter-tainmentll,‘
"time
1m art and science,
eagernéss with which this
"world ulfiimafiéiy éhbnaceq Christianity shows how desperatelir
.
fish
needed
Isoxfiéthing whsigh itfdid not possess, namely‘a mature, respect—worthy '
religion. ,
)Afidfl
_
‘
‘ ‘
fgr‘thi‘ree‘grson the Greeks'were also..deficient
épfifilc‘i‘va‘b‘ear
the finliiiess of beauty,
:but
:L‘n
morality.
not the beauty of holiness;
structurewwgs nugget, and‘bgifl on thg institution bf slavery “jgwhich‘évehn {fps Egrearhfts‘fi. of:fihe‘VGreekbhilosophers did not condemn. And :mfierr
F
q’cr‘i‘al;
“7".3’117‘ét'LVas‘t'i'1é3r '1
‘
had‘yno‘sc‘gruples
‘4‘»a‘60i1t‘_“o"pi‘>‘résjtsing“foréigners‘;
(1a ’
“tbrd‘rea‘t‘ziin
s‘fiefitat’ofsf serii‘ryedr
‘
'
about slavery, torturing
so"
fiiiisohe'rs or
they had no scrupleé
watéhing humant‘beihgs‘
the amphit heatzfe‘sfio profide entertainment for the
life, to‘o, was of low quality. The wife onlyvto breed children, the husband sought his social and M'téii‘c"
fiamiigir
cu'ifura; life ou'gside ther‘home', homosexuality and promiscui‘by were camon; l’hg Jews, on the other hand, were rendwyéhedi above all for
quagities: mercy, chastity and charity. They had a” tremendous respéct‘ for human life, they had a strong sense of justice, "they were It'rhree
‘
'
‘
—
¢
-
" 6
'5 n
,
‘
humane and compassipna-te to the poor
arid
the needy, the stranger and the“
orphan, the widow and the aged and‘ infirm,- and they had
affectionate family life.
z
Héwever inferior the
a;
pure and“
J‘éws \veré to the
in sport and art, in science and philosophy, religiously
arid
Greeks
§
morally they
were immeasurably gupeyior. Here, then,rwere two‘conf'licting ideologies.
pleasure, beauty and knowiedge are the chief goais
Ac‘cording‘ to Helienisin ’of
_
According to Hebraism-the only supreme Values are moral values. According to Hebraism,‘ if a society fiossesses wealth and lumpy, sport and entertainment, art life.
literature; science and philosdphy, but does not possess mercy an'd justice, it phasesses nothing. If it has these, it has everything. It was fundamentally because the ghasidim perceived this distinction: {éhafi and.
‘
when the hour of decision came, they rebelled.
me
important impliééti‘oms for ‘usr TEe‘acie‘ty in whicfiwe live ié réma‘rkably fike that ‘of “the Hellenistic WOi‘lda“ 120:0 All: ‘this, let
add,“ has
Via an (affluent ’sociéty,
71-11,
‘toq', 1‘s
I
obsessedlwi‘t‘h “the pupsuifi of ‘pleagprem
Gavernméfit White ‘Pap'eI-“whiéh has 51191; been pfiblished efiémineg thé‘sis‘ociai ‘chgn‘ges that have taken place in Bnitaifi‘ the last decade, It shows w; ‘thatlmore people arefie‘arnin‘g‘, and ‘spendifig; more money than eyer before, ;
bf thié expendit‘ure is of: gambl‘ingzningohnd other forms of not particularly elevating entertainment, and the national debt incurred in. the hire purchase of '1uXuI-y goodé hag reached astronomid‘al Proportions. Ours, too; is a so‘cie‘ty which appreéiates a-rt and‘iliterrature. L‘Ac‘corfiing to the White Paper-liners books are beingpubli‘shed and read than eirer before, and flare ié increased interest ‘in the theatre, concerts, ballétv, opera and painting. Again, the pursuit of'knowlédge ié taken very seriously. More‘and more people are taking uhiversi-ty degrees; vé-ry large part
L
’
r
I
/a\
V
F
"V
'17e
“
,7>
‘
eéientific‘ énd' technologiCal research are making rapid strides.
the other hand? there is mbral decline.
But on
Grimes‘of violence, especially
among juvenilesmave increased alarmingly,
1’remari~'l;a1
5nd extramarital
Family Life is becoming rattenuat ed as more married' women take up employment,.EUnoffic-i‘al strikes and
promiscuity-are \vidé‘spmad. and more
raciai riots have been frequent,] In these circumstances our duty isglefir. a~ ‘
brilliant essay on Judaism
wealth,
‘Sg'i‘ence,
maid
Heliniam, ~wzfote:
art and. literature;
adequate faith“ and
would
ahdi
11;
Milton Steinberg,
'Exhey
"Ting
in:
ages}: world
were not enough;
‘
1’:
hadzv
had
mm
had too little heart, 'It was inevitable that this ‘
fall into decay; that it would: collapse into barbarism...
In the very moment of its rfléwering, HelléniSm was doomed‘, fbecauée the ifit’ellect and the sense of the raesthetic are not suffiicie‘nt‘ for man."
our duty:
as‘
Jews: and as inheritqrs
of the flaccabean spirit is
to- reg;
assért, by precept and example,- the values of Hebrais‘m; to save our
civilisation from diéinfiegration by reminding it that pleasure; beauty I
and knowledge are; not enough; that. to make these"our supreme afifiitiom éhd'rflpregccupationl is
1:9
relgpSe
i‘n'to
paganismgt'tuat only that
‘soci‘ej'ly.
‘
'pOSSgSSes- stability ansd permanence whigp ‘hungers and "thirsts after 7
ri‘ghfieoums’néé‘a, a
‘
7