» "Matityahu" redirects here. For the Israeli settlement, see Matityahu, West Bank. Mattathias (Matitiyahu or Matisyahu ben Yochanan HaCohen in Hebrew) was a Jewish priest whose role in the Jewish revolt against the Syrian Greeks's related in the Books of the Maccabees. Mattathias's accorded a central role in the story of Chanukah and, as a result,'s named in the Al Hanissim prayer Jews add to Grace after meals and the Amidah during the festival's eight days. History The father of Judah and the… (More on Mattathias)