Modiin: It was in the small village of Modin, a few miles from Jerusalem, that a single act of heroism turned the tide of Israel's struggle, and altered her destiny for all time. In Modiin, an aged high priest named Mattathias lived with his five sons, John, Simon, Judas, Eleazer, and Jonathan. This family is sometimes referred to as the Hasmoneans. More frequently, however, they are called the Maccabeans (a nickname meaning The father of Judah and the other Maccabee leaders). One day, in 167 BCE, the henchmen of Antiochus arrived to force the Jews living there to offer sacrifices to the pagan gods. Mattathias, as a leader in the city, was commanded by the officers to be the first to offer a sacrifice. He refused with a noble speech; because of the determination of Mattathias, and fearing bloody reprisals against the people for his refusal, a certain Hellenistic Jew stepped forward to offer the sacrifices to the pagan gods in place of the priest. At this point Mattathias grabbed his sword and killed the man. His five sons and other friends attacked the troops, slew the idolaters, and destroyed the idols. They killed many of them and chased the rest away. They then destroyed the altar. He and a courageous circle of partisans fled to the mountains of the Judean wilderness, where they gathered forces to overthrow the oppression of Antiochus and his collaborators.