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Byzantine rule is generally considered to have stretched from 324-612. Over time the Byzantines combined traditional Roman anti-Semitism with Christian anti-Semitism, and the Jewish community in Israel fell into a period of decline during these centuries. The Sanhedrin, the Supreme Court of the Jewish people, stopped sitting in Israel. In the 4th century, the system of declaring the new moon had to be abandoned in favor of the fixed calendar. In spite of these unfavorable conditions, the Jerusalem Talmud was compiled from the ancient Oral Tradition in 368.
Finally, in the 5th century, the Roman empire no longer recognized the position of the President of the Jewish People. Although a strong Torah presence always continued in the land of Israel, by the end of the Byzantine era the Jewish academies in Babylon became major centers of Torah scholarship.
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However, within a short time, Ezra sparked a tremendous resurgence of Jewish life and learning in the Land of Israel--including the rebuilding of the Temple. Such was his stature as a Jewish leader that he is considered to be as great as Moshe in certain ways.
Ezra found a strong ally in Nehemia, who arrived several years later, armed with a Royal Persian edict to continue the efforts to fortify Jewish life in Israel. Nehemia helped to complete Ezra's work and is credited with rebuilding the walls around Jerusalem.
Both men were prophets and members of the Great Assembly, a parliament of sages who led the Jewish people during the century after the destruction of the First Temple until the Greek conquest of Israel.
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Against this background, a small band of Cohanim--Priests--rose up against the might of the Greek empire. Mattisiyahu and his five sons lead a guerilla revolt to drive the Greeks out of Israel and to rededicate the Temple. Never numbering more than a few hundred to a few thousand men, the Maccabees took on some 30,000 to 40,000 Greek soldiers.
Within three years, the Maccabees succeeded in liberating the Temple, which is the source of the miracle of Chanukah. As they were restoring the Temple service, they soon realized that there was almost no pure oil left with which to light the menorah. One small container remained, enough for one day. The miracle, as we know, was that it lasted eight days.
For the record: Until the Maccabbees, it was unheard of for one people to go to war with another over religious or ideological reasons. Thus, you could say that it was the Jewish people who taught the world that some ideas are worth dying for.
But even more than simply dying for a cause, the Maccabbees taught the world that if you're willing to die for a cause--then live for it, too! Their willingness to sacrifice their lives to fight the Greeks was a direct outgrowth of--and also brought about--an intense desire to live freely as Jews.
The Maccabees ruled for 103 years (167-63 CE), and succeeded in expanding Israel's borders to their largest extent in history.
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Hirkanus, the weaker of the two, had an advisor known as Antipater. A descendent of the Edomites, who had come under Jewish control and were forced to convert to Judaism, Antipater was a shrewd political manipulator and power player. He convinced Rome to "mediate" the conflict between the two warring brothers, and in doing so eventually paved the way for his son, Herod Agrippas, to be placed on the Jewish throne.
The son of Herod Agrippas was also known as Herod, whose tyrannical reign stretched from 37-4 BCE. In an effort to gain credibility with the masses, he married the last female descendant of the Maccabees--only to eventually kill her in a fit of rage. He also executed nearly all of the great Sages of his time.
Later he would try to make amends by renovating and expanding the Temple, and, in fact,the structure that he built was one of the most beautiful buildings of all time. He also embarked on an ambitious construction campaign. Cesaria, Masada and Herodia, were all built in his time.
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- MAMELUKES
- This tribe of slave warriors rebelled against their Egyptian masters in 1250 and took control of Egypt. From the 1300s until the 1500s they controlled the land of Israel and were responsible for numerous building projects.
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- MISHNAH
- A generation after the Hadrian oppressions, the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius would
maintain a more favorable policy toward the Jews. He learned with the great sage, Rabbi
Yehuda Hanasi, who is also known as Rebbe.
It was Rebbe who brought together a thousand Sages in his effort to formalize the Mishnah. What emerged was a work that contains all of the major principles of Jewish law, including a detailed description of the full range of activities that took place in the Temple.
Jewish children today compete with their friends to memorize the more than 2,500 separate mishnayos, which are arranged in six separate subheadings. It is the Mishna that serves as the basis for the Gemora--the backbone of higher Jewish learning in the yeshivas--which includes the full commentary and explanation of the mishnah.
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- OTTOMAN TURKS
- By the mid-1500s, the Turkish empire was at the height of its power, with Suleiman the
Magnificent rebuilding Jerusalem in 1536. It was Suleiman who built the present walls
around the Old City of Jerusalem.
The Ottomans were generally lenient toward the Jews, and it was under their rule that the land of Israel began to experience the first significant resettlement of Jews. They ruled until 1917, when the British took control of Palestine as a result of World War I.
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- SALADIN
- Saladin means "Successful in Judgment", and it is in fact Saladin who reconquered the holy land from the Crusaders in 1187. A Kurd who ruled out of Egypt, Saladin was generally favorable toward the Jewish community in Israel.
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