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The story of Hanukkah

Why do we Jews celebrate Hanukkah? To better understand the holiday, we need to review historical events that we celebrate 2170 years later

After the death of Alexander the Great (323 BCE), the empire he had carved out was divided among his generals. The area known as Yehudah (Judea) first fell into the hands of the Ptolemaic Empire, centered in Egypt, and later became part of the Greco-Syrian Empire (198 BCE). The inevitable result was that Greek thinking and culture began to make inroads into the culture and life of the Jewish homeland.

 

By 175 BCE when the evil Antiokhus Epiphanes rose to the throne, Hellenism had taken root within the Jewish people. The Hellenists, a significant minority among the Jews drawn almost exclusively from the wealthy elite of Jerusalem and the large coastal cities, saw Greek culture as the most advanced and enlightened of the day, and turned their backs on their God and their people.

 

Such betrayal always has its rewards. These ‘Jews’ were feted by the Greco-Syrian government and were often appointed to positions of power within the colonial administration; the position of 'tax collector' was particularly coveted, which afforded the opportunity to rob and extort with official sanction. These traitors constantly fought for the minds and hearts of the populace with not insignificant success (Macabees I, 1:11).

 

For the hard-core Hellenists, however, this was not enough. Envisioning a new Middle East, they petitioned the king to adopt a programme calculated to undermine Jewish life and culture. If their Jewish brethren did not recognize the 'beauty' of Greek 'progress' and insisted on remaining true to their God and His Torah - even at the price of being out of step with the rest of the Empire - they would simply have to help them to see the light.

 

Antiokhus was only too ready to comply and the new government policy was proclaimed. Circumcision, Shabbat observance and Torah study were outlawed. Women whose babies were discovered to be circumcised were put to death together with their sons. An idol of the Greek god Zeus was erected in the temple; Torah scrolls were sought out and torched.

 

Many Jews chose to die a martyr's death rather than transgress the Word of God (Macabees I, 1:44-64). For a time it seemed that the anti-Torah forces would prevail.

 

This was the state of affairs when a force of Greek soldiers arrived in the town of Modhi'in to enforce the edict requiring every Jewish settlement to sacrifice on a Greek altar. The townspeople were forcibly gathered, and Matithyahu - the head of the clan of Kohanim who resided in the town - was approached by a Greek official to ‘do the honours’.

 

"Heaven forbid - I and my sons shall follow the example of our forefathers. We shall never forsake the Torah" he replied (Macabees I, 2:20-21). Another Jew, however, willing to do the dirty work (for a price), was called upon.

 

As this Jew was about to desecrate God's Name in public, Matithyahu decided that enough was enough; it was now clear beyond doubt that the only choice left was to live as an idol-worshipping Greek or die as a Jew. Matithyahu resolved that if he must die, he would die fighting:

 

"And Matithyahu was zealous, being greatly perturbed; in his just outrage he ran and slaughtered the man on the altar. He then killed the official in charge, and destroyed the altar. He acted zealously for the Torah like Pinhas did to Zimri Ben Salu, and he cried: 'All those who are zealous for the Torah, who are faithful to the Covenant - follow me! And he and his sons fled to the mountains, leaving all their belongings behind" (Macabees I, 2:15-28).

 

The Hashmonean revolt

Thus began the Hashmonean revolt. The rest, as they say, is history: In a campaign that lasted three years, an irregular army of untrained peasant-soldiers, poorly armed and forced to live off the land, led by Matithyahu's son Yehudhah, succeeded in driving the Greco-Syrian forces out of Jerusalem and much of the country. They reinstated the Laws of the Torah, and actively persecuted the Hellenist turn-coats.

 

The victorious Jewish forces marched to Jerusalem - which the Greeks and Hellenists had declared off limits to Jews - and entered the temple. The sight that met their eyes was not a pretty one: The temple was desolate, the altar had been desecrated and weeds grew in the cracks of the stone floors.

 

It took eight days to restore some semblance of order, rebuild the alter and produce the necessary vessels for the temple service (Meghilath Ta'anith, 23). On the 25th day of the ninth month (Kislev) they rose early in the morning and performed the first sacrifice that had been offered in three years:

 

"And the people fell on their faces, and prayed, and praised God for having granted them victory. And they celebrated the rededication of the Altar for eight days... and the rejoicing of the people was very great; the ignominy of foreign domination was removed. And Yehudhah, his brethren, and all of the Assembly of Israel instituted that these Days of Rededication of the altar be observed annually for eight days, beginning on the 25th of the month of Kislew..." (Macabees I, 4:55-58).

 

This is the essential story of Hanukkah: The successful revolt of God-fearing Jews, dedicated to the Torah of their forefathers, against those ‘Jews’ and non-Jews determined to eradicate their way of life.

 

The revolt succeeded beyond their wildest dreams. Not only did they restore the primacy of Torah culture; for the first time in centuries, the Jewish nation was once again sovereign and able to determine its own destiny. The historic significance of this victory cannot be overstressed: It is quite likely that without the successful armed revolt led by Matithyahu and his sons, we would have disappeared as a people more than 2000 years ago.

 

Courtesy of Machon Shilo - Tora La'am VeLaarets

 


פרסום ראשון: 12.15.06, 16:11
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