Hanukkah

Tomorrow is Hanukkah.

Hanukkah, The Feast of Dedication or Festival of Lights, is celebrated for eight days and nights, starting on the 25th of Kislev on the Hebrew calendar .

The holiday commemorates the rededication of the Temple of God Most High in Jerusalem in 165 B.C.

In 168 B.C., the Temple was seized by Antiochus Epiphanes, King of Syria and dedicated to the worship of Zeus.

Some Jews were afraid of the soldiers and and did not resist, but most were angry and decided to fight back.

Fighting began in Modiin, a village not far from Jerusalem. Soldiers assembled the villagers and ordered them to bow to an idol and eat the flesh of a pig. An officer ordered Mattathias, a Jewish High Priest, to lead the ceremony. He refused, and another villager stepped forward and offered to do it instead. Mattathias became outraged, took out his sword and killed the man, then killed the officer. His five sons and the other villagers then attacked and killed the soldiers. Mattathias' family went into hiding in the nearby mountains, where many other Jews joined them. They attacked the soldiers whenever possible.

Jewish resistance fighters, led by Judah Maccabee took back the Temple. They cleaned and repaired the Temple, and when they were finished, they decided to have a big dedication ceremony. For the celebration, the Maccabees wanted to light the menorah. They looked everywhere for oil, and found a small flask that contained only enough oil to light the Menorah for one day. Miraculously, the oil lasted for eight days. This gave them enough time to obtain new oil to keep the menorah lit.

Today Jews celebrate Hanukkah for eight days by lighting one candle every night. The ninth candle of the Menorah is used to light the other eight.

God's command to us is the same today as it was in 165 B.C.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.

Happy Hanukkah