If you can’t see the sea, then the tomb can’t be Maccabee

 

 

480 × 360by

 

Damien F. Mackey

 

 

There may be a reminiscence of the Maccabean tomb in the story of the priest, Jonathan ben Uzziel, a semi-legendary character of whom little is known.

  

Archaeologists in their enthusiasm for the location, Horbat Ha-Gardi, at Modi'in-Maccabim-Re'ut in central Israel, as being, potentially, the site for the tomb of Jonathan the Hasmonaean, priest-brother of Judas Maccabeus, and of Simon, who built the elaborate tomb, are making some significant geographical (topographical) mistakes, so I believe.

 

One of these is, as I have insisted in my article:

 

Must look elsewhere for Maccabee town, Modein

 

(3) Must look elsewhere for Maccabee town, Modein

 

that the grand tomb had to be in the sight of sailors in the sea (I Maccabees 13:29):

 

“… and beside the suits of armor carved ships,

so that they could be seen by all who sail the sea”. 

 

This description cannot possibly apply to any site “in central Israel”.

 

Far more excusably, but of no less significance regarding outcomes, is their failure to realise that Judas Maccabeus was the same person as Gamaliel’s “Judas the Galilean … in the days of the Census” (Acts 5:37), when Jesus Christ was born (cf. Luke 2:1).

 

That necessitates that the ‘ancestral home’ of the Maccabees (cf. I Maccabees 13:25) was situated in Galilee.

Hence we would expect Jonathan’s tomb to have been visible to sailors, not in the Mediterranean, but on the Sea of Tiberias.

Ancient Jewish burials, indeed, are found in Tiberias: Tiberias - Archaeology in Israel

 

Tiberias

 

by Jacqueline Schaalje

 

Tiberias has more than beaches or stifling summer heat. Just off Lake Galilee, there are rich archaeological remains and the graves of many famous rabbis, testifying to the city’s glory as the once capital of Jewish learning. ….

 

Tomb of Jonathan ben Uzziel

 

There may be a reminiscence of the famous Maccabean tomb in the story of the priest, Jonathan ben Uzziel, a semi-legendary character of whom little is known.

 

He purportedly belonged to the very same era as Jonathan Hasmonaean (revised):

Jonathan ben Uzziel | Hebrew writer | Britannica

“…  Jonathan ben Uzziel, a pupil of Hillel, the famous rabbinic sage of the 1st century bce–1st century ce …”.

 

Regarding his tomb as a place of pilgrimage, we learn that it has been traditionally located in Galilee, at least - but “tucked away” in Amuka, some 34 km distant from the Sea: Tucked away site of pilgrimage - Review of Tomb of Jonathan Ben Uzziel, Amuka, Israel - Tripadvisor

 

Tucked away site of pilgrimage

 

Review of Tomb of Jonathan Ben Uzziel

Reviewed September 20, 2017

“Jonathan Ben Uzziel is mentioned in the Talmud but his grave was only found and formally set up at a pilgrimage a few decades ago. …”.

 

Jonathan ben Uzziel - Wikipedia

 

Tomb

 

According to tradition, the tomb of ben Uzziel is located in Amuka, Galilee near Safed, Israel.

 

According to Zev Vilnai, Rabbi Shmuel ben Shimshon wrote about the tomb in 1210: "There is a large tree next to it, and the Ishmaelites [Arabs] bring oil and light a candle in his honor and make vows in his honor."

 

An illustration of Yonatan ben Uzziel's tomb appears in "Ancestry of fathers and prophets" (Hebrew: יחוס אבות ונביאים), a book printed in 1537.

 

It is customary to visit ben Uzziel's tomb on Rosh Chodesh, the first day of the lunar month, and on 26 Sivan (the day on which he died), although visitors arrive all year round.

 

A practice that began in the 17th century was to pray at the gravesite for a good marriage partner, for children, satisfaction from one's children, a good livelihood, health and happiness. Many unmarried men and women pray there for a match. Doing so is considered a segula (propitious remedy) for finding one's mate within the coming year. ….

 

Zev Vilnai offers two theories for this custom (these do not seem to be original theories, as they had been referenced in the Haredi community before he published them): …. (a) The practice developed from the Pseudo-Jonathan translation of the Bible on Deuteronomy 24:6, where he writes that anyone who prevents the connection between a husband and wife forfeits his portion in the world-to-come; (b) The practice is based on a mistaken reading of Rashi …. who writes in reference to a place called Harpania (Aramaic: הרפניא) "Everyone goes there: all ineligible men (pesulim) who cannot find a woman turn and go there. And it is deeper (Amuka) and worse than Gehinnom." The words "and it is deeper (Amuka)" are the headwords to Rashi's next comment, and do not relate to his preceding comment about men going to Harpania to look for women. However, the mistaken reading connects Rashi's words to the community named Amuka.

 

It is also widely believed that Jonathan ben Uzziel was single or childless, so men in similar situations seek to benefit from his special powers, but nowhere in the writings of Chazal is this stated. ….