What is Hanukkah (or Chanukah)?

[Guest guest]

What is Hanukkah (or Chanukah)?

 

Hanukkah is not the Jewish version of Christmas.

 

Although it is celebrated the same time of year,

Hanukkah commemorates the physical and spiritual

victory of the Jews over the Greeks more than 2,000

years ago.

 

Hanukkah is also known as the:

 

 

Festival of Lights, since the flame in the Temple

burned miraculously for eight days.

Feast of Dedication, since the Temple was rededicated

after being desecrated.

Hanukkah is celebrated from 25 Kislev - 2 Tevet,

according to the Jewish calendar, which is lunar, so

it falls on different dates each year. This year

Hanukkah begins Thursday evening, December 21, 2000

and ends on Friday evening, December 29. Remember that

in the Bible, the day begins at sundown.

 

How Hanukkah is celebrated:

Each evening at sundown, the Hanukkah menorah is lit.

The menorah has 9 candles. The one in the middle

(called the Shamash - or Servant Candle) is used to

light all the others. The other eight (4 on each side,

and a little lower than the Shamash) are for each of

the eight days that the Temple flame miraculously

burned. On the first night, only the far right candle

is lit. The second night, two candles are lit starting

at the far right. The third night, three candles, and

so it goes until the eighth and final night when all

eight candles are lit. They are lit for a half hour,

during which we do no work, but instead we remember

the work of God (His miracles and providence) and

praise Him.

 

You know, the Servant Candle in the middle reminds me

of Christ, who is the light of the world, and from

whom we receive light for our own lives. (John

1:4,8:12)

 

The lighting of the candles is accompanied by prayers,

like:

 

 

Blessed are you, O Lord our God, King of the Universe,

Who has made us holy through your Word

And has instructed us to kindle the Hanukkah light.

 

The Story of Hanukkah

The Story of Hanukkah took place in the land of Israel

long, long ago. In fact, it happened more than two

thousand one hundred and fifty years ago, even before

Jesus was born.

 

Back then, Israel did not have its independence, but

was controlled by part of the Greek empire, since

Alexander the Great had conquered most of the known

world. One of the Greek kings that followed after

Alexander was the Syrian king, Antiochus. He was the

ruler of Israel at that time.

 

Antiochus was a very proud king, and he wanted

everyone in his kingdom to think and live the way he

did. So he made laws forcing people to give up their

own beliefs and practices and to do things his way.

And many people did what he said.

 

He tried to make God's people, the Jews, stop

following the Bible. He tried to make them disobey

God. He wanted them to stop worshipping the true God.

And if they did not do what he said, they were

persecuted. Sometimes the faithful were even killed.

Unfortunately, many of the Jewish people did what

Antiochus said. Some were even happy to follow

Antiochus, because they liked Greek culture more than

they liked following God.

 

Antiochus was upset that not all the Jews were

following him, so he got more and more harsh in his

treatment of them. He even went to the Temple of God

in Jerusalem and stole all of the gold and silver and

everything else of value. Then on the 25th day of the

Jewish month of Kislev, he set up a statue of the

Greek god Zeus in the holy Temple, and sacrificed an

unclean pig on the altar. Then he sent idols to all

the cities in Israel and ordered the Jews to sacrifice

pigs and worship the Greek gods.

 

Now there were some Jews who remained faithful to God.

One of these was an old priest name Mattathias. He

lived in the village of Modin with his five sons. They

were grieved at what they saw happening to the Jewish

people throughout Israel. Then one day, the Greeks

came to Modin and set up an altar with Greek idols

right in the center of their town!

 

The King's officer called to Mattathias and his five

sons to come out and sacrifice to the false gods. But

the righteous priest called out, " even if every one in

every nation obeyed the command of King Antiochus,

neither I nor my sons will disobey the God of our

fathers nor turn from God's laws even one small bit! "

 

Then Mattathias took a sword and killed both the

king's officer who was trying to make them disobey

God, as well as a Jew who was about to blaspheme God

and sacrifice to the idols. Mattathias tore down the

altar and then called in a loud voice, " Whoever is for

God, follow me! " And then he took his sons and their

families and they fled to the hills. And many people

followed him. Thousands of Jews wanted to remain

faithful to God. So they left the comfort of home and

went into the wilderness where they could keep God's

commands. But the armies of King Antiochus tried to

find them and kill them.

 

Now Mattathias was very old and about to die, so he

appointed his son Judah as the commander of the new

army that was forming in the hills. And God showed his

favor to the faithful Jews by giving them victory over

the armies of Antiochus.

 

Before battle, Judah had his men fast and pray to God.

They repented of their sin and asked God to give them

victory. But when they saw the armies of Antiochus,

many of the men were afraid because they were so

outnumbered. But Judah declared, " The victory does not

depend upon the size of the army, but it comes from

the strength of the God of Heaven. They come with

great pride, but we fight for our faith. God will

defeat them, do not be afraid! "

 

Time and time again, by the power of God, Judah and

his small army came out of the hills and defeated the

great armies of Antiochus. In fact, Judah was so

successful that he was given a new name. He was called

Maccabeus (which in Hebrew means " Hammer " ), because in

battle he was like a hammer pounding away at the

enemy.

 

Filled with anger, Antiochus sent an even larger army

against them, and in the miraculous, decisive battle

at Bet Tzur, the Jewish forces emerged victorious once

again. From there, they marched on to Jerusalem, where

they liberated the city and reclaimed the Holy Temple.

They cleared the Sanctuary of the idols, they rebuilt

the altar, and they prepared to resume the Temple

worship services. Finally, the Temple of God was back

in the hands of the faithful.

 

After cleaning the Temple, they looked for the pure,

sacred olive oil to light the eternal flame that

always burns in the house of God. To their dismay,

only one small bottle of the special, holy oil could

be found. It was enough oil to light the flame for

just one day. And they knew it would take at least

seven days for more of the holy oil to be prepared.

 

Undaunted, in joy and thanksgiving, they lit the flame

and rededicated the Holy Temple on the 25th day of

Kislev (exactly 4 years after Antiochus committed his

blasphemous sacrilege). Each morning they expected to

wake and find that the oil had burned out, but

miraculously, each day the flame was still burning

brightly. For eight days the oil burned until the high

priest could finally consecrate more.

 

God's people again rejoiced and worshipped him for his

constant protection and provision for them while they

fought for truth and righteousness.

 

And that is why we celebrate Hanukkah. It reminds us

of God's wonderful miracles on our behalf. It reminds

us of God's protection throughout our lives. It

reminds us to remain true to God even when the world

around us tries to force us into a different mold. " Do

not conform any longer to the pattern of this world,

but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. "

(Romans 12:1-2)

 

The lights of Hanukkah remind us that as followers of

Jesus Christ, we are the light of the world. So we

should do as Jesus told us: " let your light shine

before others so that they may see your good deeds and

praise your Father in heaven. " (Matthew 5:14-16)

 

Questions for thought:

Have we given in to our culture in ways that are

displeasing to God?

How is our lifestyle a light that leads others to

Jesus Christ?

How can we celebrate Christmas in a way that honors

God rather than gives into cultural expectations?

Is Hanukkah Biblical?

Well... it is not part of the Old Testament law, but

John 10:22 tells us that Jesus celebrated it. The

story of Hanukkah is found in the Book of Maccabees.

This book is not part of the Hebrew Scriptures or the

Protestant Bible, but it was part of the literature of

Israel in the time of Jesus, and used in the early

church.

 

Other customs associated with Hanukkah:

An early custom was the giving of money to children

(called gelt, and sometimes made from chocolate).

Later, in an effort to be equal and not deprive their

children, began also to give presents, not just one

present, but one for each night, with each night's

gift more grand than the one before. The children also

enjoy exchanging gifts.

 

The children play Chanukah games, like spin the

dreidel. This four sided top has one Hebrew Letter on

each side: Nun, Gimel, Hay, Shin. These stand for the

Hebrew phrase, " Nes Godol Hayah Sham, " meaning " A

Great Miracle Happened There. "

 

The most popular Chanukah foods are those that use

oil. The oil reminds us of the oil which miraculously

burned in the Temple eight days instead of one. Here

is the recipe for the Traditional Potato Latkes:

 

5 potatoes, peeled

1 onion

2 eggs

1/2 cup flour

1 tsp. Salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

Shred or grate potatoes and finely chop the onion.

Squeeze out excess liquid. Mix in the eggs, then the

salt and pepper, and finally the flour. Heat about 1/3

inch of oil to a medium heat. Fry spoonfuls until

golden brown. Be patient; flipping too much will burn

the outside. Drain and serve hot with applesauce or

sour cream. Yields: 4 to 6 servings

 

Interesting Note: G. F. Handel, who composed " The

Messiah, " also wrote " Judas Maccabeus, " which is

popular among the Jewish community during Hanukkah.

 

As always, here are some WWW resources:

http://www.chanukah99.com/

http://www.holidays.net/chanukah/

 

 

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Language is an expression of thought. Everytime you speak, your mind is on

Parade Exodus 20:8-11 & Hebrews 4:9

 

 

 

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