|
History of the Themes, Events and Meaning
of Hanukkah
Hanukkah comes from the Hebrew word meaning dedication.
The history of Hanukkah begins with Alexander the Great who, after conquering Syria, Egypt and Judea, allowed all people to continue to
have their chosen religions. It wasn’t until later that the successor of Alexander the Great, Antiochus IV, caused a great upheaval
among the Jewish population.
|
|
Under the reign of
Antiochus, the Jewish people were required to worship
Greek gods. In 165 BCE, Judah’s son Maccabee,
decided to rebel against this law and formed a
crusade against Antiochus. Having defeated the Greek
army, Maccabee and his allies found a sacred temple
which had been left in ruins as a result of
Antiochus’ army, and they restored the temple to
its former glory.
Thus, on the 25th day of Kislev, they dedicated the
temple by lighting a restored menorah. Although they
were only able to find enough oil to keep the menorah
lit for one day, a miracle occurred and the menorah
stayed lit for eight days.
Thus, the Festival of Lights was born to commemorate
that day in the temple, when the miracle of the
menorah first occurred. All Jews celebrate the
miracle of the oil by placing eight candles in the
menorah and lighting one candle on each of the eight
days of Hanukkah.
Although not considered a holy day, Hanukkah is
nevertheless celebrated by Jews around the world in
observance of the miracle of the oil that occurred in
the temple. Hanukkah traditionally begins on the 22nd
of December and ends on the 31st of December.
Research also reveals, that there are two types of
menorahs: one is 7-branched, and one is 8-branched.
There was a prohibition against the use of a
7-branched menorah similar to the one used in the
original temple.
The Chanukah (another way of spelling Hanukkah)
menorah has eight candles, as well as a nineth candle
set apart from the rest. It is said that the eight
candles commemorate the miracle of the oil while the
nineth candle, the Shamash, symbolizes light.
|
|
