1st Maccabees 1

In this fellowship meeting, Fr. Matthias Shehad begins a series on the Book of 1st Maccabees, exploring its historical and biblical context as a deuterocanonical text accepted by the Orthodox Church. He provides an overview of the intertestamental period, detailing the rise and division of Alexander the Great’s Greek Empire into four kingdoms, including the Seleucid Empire that controlled Israel during Antiochus IV Epiphanes’ reign. Fr. Matthias explains the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies in Daniel about empires and introduces the forced Hellenization and religious persecution faced by the Jews. He discusses the varied Jewish responses to Antiochus’ oppression, highlighting the resistance led by the Maccabees as a pivotal moment in preserving faith and culture. This teaching connects biblical prophecy, history, and the challenge of maintaining faith under cultural and political pressure, offering insights relevant to contemporary struggles of religious identity and unity.