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Judaism --> Chanukah or Hanukkah |
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Chanukah is a Jewish holiday, also known as the Festival of lights.
Chanukah is a Hebrew word meaning "dedication". It is also spelled
Chanuka, Hannukah or Hanukkah. The first evening of Chanukah (called
Erev Chanukah) starts after the sunset of the 24th day of the Hebrew
month of Kislev. As in Jewish tradition the calendar date starts at
sunset, Chanukah begins on the 25th.
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| Sources The story of
Chanukah is preserved in the books of 1 Maccabees and 2 Maccabees.
Story
Chanukah was instituted by Judah Maccabee and his brothers in the
year 165 BCE, to be celebrated annually with joy as a memorial of the
dedication of the altar in the Temple in Jerusalem. (1 Macc. iv. 59).
After having recovered Jerusalem and the Temple, Judah ordered the
latter to be cleansed, a new altar to be built in place of the polluted
one, and new holy vessels to be made.
When the fire had been kindled
anew upon the altar and the lamps of the candlestick lit, the dedication
of the altar was celebrated for eight days amid sacrifices and songs (1 Macc. iv. 36), in a similar fashion to Sukkot, the Feast of Tabernacles
(2 Macc. x. 6 and i. 9), which also lasts for eight days, and at which
the lighting of lamps and torches formed a prominent part during the
Second Temple (Suk.v. 2-4). Lights were also kindled in the household,
and the popular name of the festival was, therefore, according to
Josephus ( Jewish Antiquities xii. 7, § 7), the "Festival of Lights."
In the Talmud
The miracle of
Chanukah is referred to in the Talmud, but not in the books of the
Maccabees. This holiday marks the defeat of Seleucid forces who had
tried to prevent Israel from practising Judaism. Judah Maccabee and his
brothers destroyed overwhelming forces, and rededicated the Temple. The
eight day festival is marked by the kindling of lights with a special
Menorah, called a Chanukiah. |
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A legend recorded in the Talmud says that
after the occupiers had been driven from the Temple, the Maccabees
went in to take down the pagan statues and restore the Temple. They
discovered that most of the ritual items had been profaned. They
sought ritually purified olive oil to light a Menorah to rededicate
the Temple; however they found only enough oil for a single day.
They lit this, and went about purifying new oil. Miraculously, that
tiny amount of oil burned until new oil could be pressed, eight
days. It is for this reason that Jews light a candle each night of
the festival.
In the Talmud two customs are presented. It was usual either to display
eight lamps on the first night of the festival, and to reduce the number
on each successive night, or to begin with one lamp the first night,
increasing the number till the eighth night. The followers of Shammai
favored the former custom; the followers of Hillel advocated the latter
(Talmud, tractate Shabbat 21b). Josephus thinks that the lights were
symbolic of the liberty obtained by the Jews on the day that Chanukah
commemorates. |
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The Talmudic sources (Meg. eodem; Meg. Ta'an. 23; compare the different
version Pes. R. 2) ascribe the origin of the eight days' festival, with
its custom of illuminating the houses, to the miracle said to have
occurred at the dedication of the purified Temple. This was that the one
small cruse of consecrated oil found unpolluted by the Hasmonean priests
when they entered the Temple -- it having been sealed and hidden away --
lasted for eight days until new oil could be prepared for the lamps of
the holy candlestick. A legend similar in character, and obviously older
in date, is that alluded to in 2 Macc. i. 18 et seq., according to which
the relighting of the altar-fire by Nehemiah was due to a miracle which
occurred on the twenty-fifth of Kislev, and which appears to be given as
the reason for the selection of the same date for the rededication of
the altar by Judah Maccabeus.
Chanukah today
Before the 20th century, this holiday was a relatively minor one.
However, with the rise of non-Jewish Holidays as the biggest holiday in the
Western world and the establishment of the modern state of Israel, this
holiday began to increasingly serve both as a celebration of Israel's
struggle for survival and more importantly, as a December family gift
giving holiday which could be a Jewish substitute for the Christian one.
It is important to note that the view of Chanukah as a replacement for
Christmas is not universally held, and many Jews do not place this extra
significance on an otherwise relatively mundane holiday.
Adam Sandler wrote several versions of a song he calls "The Chanukah
Song". The song itself has little to do with Chanukah; in each version,
he lists celebrities who are Jewish.
Chronology
198 BCE: Armies of the Seleucid King Antiochus III (Antiochus the Great)
oust Ptolemy V from Judea and Samaria.
180 BCE: Antiochus IV (Epiphanes) ascends the Seleucid throne.
168 BCE: Under the reign of Antiochus IV, the Temple is looted, Jews are
massacred, and Judaism is outlawed.
167 BCE: Antiochus orders an altar to Zeus erected in the Temple. Mattathias, and his five sons John, Simon, Eleazar, Jonathan, and Judah
lead a rebellion against Antiochus. Judah becomes known as Judah Maccabe
(Judah The Hammer).
166 BCE: Mattathias dies, and Judah takes his place as leader. The
Hasmonean Jewish Kingdom begins; It lasts until 63 BCE
165 BCE: The Jewish revolt against the Seleucid monarchy is successful.
The Temple is liberated and rededicated (Chanukah).
142 BCE: Establishment of the Second Jewish Commonwealth. The Seleucids
recognize Jewish autonomy. The Seleucid kings have a formal overlordship, which the Hasmoneans acknowledged. This inaugurates a
period of great geographical expansion, population growth, and
religious, cultural and social development.
139 BCE: The Roman Senate recognizes Jewish autonomy.
130 BCE: Antiochus VII besieges Jerusalem, but withdraws.
131 BCE: Antiochus VII dies. Israel throws off Syrian rule completely
96 BCE: An eight year civil war begins.
83 BCE: Consolidation of the Kingdom in territory east of the Jordan
River.
63 BCE: The Hasmonean Jewish Kingdom comes to an end due to rivalry
between the brothers Aristobulus II and Hyrcanus II, both of whom appeal
to Rome to step in and settle the power struggle on their behalf. Rome
moves in and takes control of the whole nation. Twelve thousand Jews are
massacred as Romans enter Jerusalem. The Priests of the Temple are
struck down at the Altar. Rome annexes Judea.
Dates that Chanukah falls on in the Gregorian calendar
Chanukah begins on the evening prior to these dates.
December 5, 2007 |
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