Zealots (Sicarii)

ZEALOTS (SICARII). - A Greek term (ζηλωτής, "zealous"), which originally had only a moral meaning, inasmuch as it distinguished the faithful observers of the Law: a program that the dying Mattathias left to his sons and followers (I Macc. 2:50).

The Zealots organized themselves into a political party under Judas the Galilean (Acts 5:33) in the time of the Roman procurators. They were rigid Pharisees, in whom the nationalist idea predominated over every other.

In their extremist nationalism the Zealots often turned into common murderers, covering themselves with no small number of crimes (Flavius Josephus, Bell. Jud., VII, 268). From the small dagger (Latin sica) used for this purpose they were also called sicarii. They played a leading part during the revolt against the Romans (A.D. 66-70). Led by Eleazar, they penetrated into Jerusalem (Fl. Josephus, ibid., IV, 136 ff.), where they committed every kind of outrage. Having occupied the Temple (ibid., V, 5-7), they at first fought against the more moderate party led by John of Gischala (ibid., V, 101-103), then continued the war with extreme fanaticism against the Romans. The last survivors with Eleazar took refuge in the fortress of Masada (v.), where, after a long siege, in order not to fall prisoners they carried out a collective suicide.

Since "zealot" in Aramaic is gan'ānā, according to not a few exegetes the apostle Simon called καναναῖος "Cananaean" (Mt. 10:4; Mk. 3:18) would have been a Zealot (cf. Lk. 6:15; Acts 1:13) in the primitive sense of the word.

Angelo Penna