Chrysoloras

While I don't subscribe to steve's thesis I have to point out that the Maccabean conflict was not, as is presented in Jewish religious tradition, simply a rebellion against a foreign occupier but had a very significant element of a civil conflict as well, that is certainly how it began. There existed at the time a very significant fraction of Hellenizers within Judaism who even supplied High Priests and generals with Hellenic names like Jason and Menelaus. Antiochus Epiphanes sided with the Hellenisers in their effort to gain power and his proscription of traditional practices provided a focal point for the reaction of the Traditionalists. Tha Hassmonean kings that ruled as a result of the Maccabees success also incorporated a large number of Hellenic elements so the interpretation that the conflice somehow underscores the fundamental incompatibility between Hellenism and Judaism is also incorrect.

Sarah Iles Johnston , Ancient Religions, Harvard University Press, 2007, ISBN: 0674025482, 9780674025486, p.186

One source of diversity lay in different responses to neighbouring cultures. After the conquests of Alexander the Great, Greek culture exercised a great fascination for many people in the Near East. In the 2nd century BCE, some people in Jerusalem vet about promoting Greek culture in Jerusalem, wirlt a view ru breaking down the separation of Jew and Gentile. According to 2 Maccabees this led to neglect of the temple cult, and some people even went so far as to disguise the marks of their circumcision. The motives of the reformers were not entirely idealistic, Their leaders Jason and Menelaus outbid each other for the high priesthood and eventually engaged in civil war. At that point she king, Antiochus IV Epiphanes, intervened and attempted to suppress by force the observance of the traditional law. The religious persecution that resulted was a rare phenomenon in antiquity. and there is no consensus at to the king‘s motivation, The persecution led to the Maccabean revolt which resulted in the establishment of a native Jewish kingship under the Hasmonean Dynasty which lasted for a century.

Joseph P. Schultz . Judaism and the Gentile Faiths: Comparative Studies in Religion, Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press, 1981, ISBN: 0838617077, 9780838617076, p.155

Jewish tradition, following the books of the Maccabees, has ascribed the subsequent revolt against Antiochus Epiphanes to a despotic king's policy of religious persecution. Modem 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. From the beginning, the Hellenising reforms encountered widespread opposition among broad sections of the Jerusalem public craftsmen, labourers, and petty traders-as well as among the conservative-minded rural population. Leadership in the orthodox camp was provided by the Pharisees, the scribes, the lay interpreters of the Torah, and in particular a Pharisaic sect of Hasidim (the Pious).

Clodius

Wait till the classicist John Ma publishes his ideas on the Maccabean revolt. I went to a talk he gave, and I'm not going to give away what he said, but his thesis challenges everything. That'll be a BIG book when it comes out!!!

steve53

The Samaritans went along with the Greek-Syrians on pain of death or banishment. That might have been a far bigger factor that Judean Jews "turning" Greek.

I would be more interested in a Samaritan versus Judean/Galilean Jewish epic. Not only with the Samaritans support the Greeks in 163 B.C., but also the Romans unequivocally in A.D. 70.

Herod the Great built them a Temple in Sebaste that Josephus says was every bit as grand as the one in Jerusalem for the Judean Jews.

Sankari

If I was asked to select the best director to produce a movie about Judas Maccabeus, I would not choose an anti-Semitic Roman Catholic.

BulgarianPrime

Actually my brother resides in Los Angelas, and when he met Joe Eszterhas that he was to cast Common (A Rapper/Actor known for his role in the series Hell on Wheels) to the film. Personally I believe due to Mel Gibson's recent anger management issues I suppose Eszterhas will be forced to direct the film or select another to compensate Gibson. I have managed to watch his independent films and this film will seem to be worthy for a film award, perhaps European. If I were to cast actors into this movie I would cast Jack Huston to play the role of Judah Maccabees, (not for his display but for his Shakespeare career) and possibly an older person for the role of Mattathias.

BulgarianPrime

I hope they do make actual quotations of the Hebrew bible, most importantly they add suspense to the scene where Mattathias begins his rebellion against the Greek priests in a very gruesome way. "Whoever is zealous for the Law, and maintaineth the covenant, let him follow me." I would be interesting if Richard Gere were to play that role.

Clodius

It's not happening now. It all imploded when Gibson and his screenwriter fell out spectacularly a few months back, and the studio pulled the plug.

Carlo G

I expect a lot of gory and violent scenes just like the Passion of the Christ

RoyalGovnaWatts

Excuse me? Braveheart was a superb film despite its historical inaccuracies. I don't like that they portrayed Robert the Bruce as a backstabbing villain in the film but it was incredibly well done and had some of the best battle scenes of any film to date.

Ancientgeezer

Having hundreds of Scotsmen displaying their bare backsides and flashing their genitals was the highpoint of Stephen Fry's career.