Chanukah – So what exactly happened again?

In 538 BCE Cyrus calls for the Jews to come and rebuild their Temple. The building was finished on March 12th 515 (Judaica). It was, of course, destroyed on 9th Av 70CE. In 17BCE[1] Herod decides to spruce it up a bit and the Gemara (Talmud) in Baba Batra 4a relates that, “A person who has not seen the Temple of Herod has never seen a beautiful building.”

In the year 333BCE Alexander the great conquers Judea and this now becomes part of the Greek Empire. The year 323 sees Alexander leave this world and of course the Empire splits with one bit ruled by Ptolemy (Egypt) and another bit ruled by Seleucis (Syria). Funnily enough, Judea is placed slap bang in the middle of the 2 kingdoms!

198, and Judea comes under Seleucid control and remains there until the Maccabean revolt. In 175 Antiochus IV Epiphanes becomes the Seleucid ruler. Rather than allow the cultural freedoms that had been permitted previously he decides that the Greek way is best and attempts to remove all religious and national differences in the Empire. Obviously, getting the Jews to fall into line that would be an impressive achievement. It all sounds Greek to me!

In the very same year, Jason becomes High Priest of Judea. Unfortunately this was due to a ‘bung’ to Antiochus. Jase was a fan of Greek Hellenism and wanted to import as much of it as possible into Jewish life. Many Jews were up for this, but as many other Jews were horrified at this dumbing down of Judaism and Jewish life. In 171 Jason goes and is replaced by Menelaus - but he is made of the same stuff, and so Antiochus’ repression continues anyway.

In 168 Antiochus shoots himself in the foot (easy to say retrospectively, which is not so easy to say) when on the 25th of Kislev he orders a statue of Zeus to be placed in the Temple and an altar built so Zeus can be worshipped. He also ordered that any man who kept Shabbat would be killed, as would Jews who were found with a Torah scroll. This, of course, posed difficulties for the Jews. Some simply couldn’t deal with the pressure and gave up their religion for the sake of the safety of their families. But others wanted to rebel…

… 168 is the year of Mattityahu who leads the revolt against the Greeks. He was the son of Yochanan son of Shimon a priest of the family of Yehoyariv and so was held in high esteem in his village/town of Modiin... But when those that were appointed by the King to come to Modiin, that they might compel the Jews to do what they had commanded; and to enjoin those that were there to offer sacrifices as the King had commanded, they desired Mattityahu, because his fellow citizens would follow his example. But Mattityahu said that he would not do it and that even if all the other nations would obey the commands of Antiochus, either out of fear, or to please him, neither he, nor his sons would leave the religious worship of their country.”

(Josephus – Antiquities of The Jews 6:1:268)

… But as soon as he had finished his speech, one of the Jews came and sacrificed in the way that Antiochus had commanded. Mattityahu along with his sons went after the man with their swords and killed both the man that sacrificed and the King’s general. He also overthrew that altar and cried out, “If anyone be zealous for the laws of this country, and for the worship of G-d, let him follow me.” And when he had said this, he went off into the desert with his sons…”

(Josephus – Antiquities of the Jews 6:1:270)

3 years of battle against incredible odds (and the Greeks) ends on the 25th of Kislev 165 when Judah (son of Mattityahu who told his sons before he died that Judah should take over his mantle as leader of the rebellion) drove the Greeks out of Jerusalem and rededicated the Temple. To be fair, the fighting did not just stop. As with all rebellions, small groups kept on fighting for close to 20 years.

When the Jewish rebels entered the Temple they found it ruined and ‘defiled’. The Jews wanted to light the great Menorah that was lit in the Temple night and day. However, there was only one small bit of oil left, and though Judah lit it in the knowledge that it would not last long, tradition has it that God made a miracle and the oil burned for 8 days, just enough time for new, fresh, pure oil to be made by the Jews. So they re-dedicated the Temple - and indeed ‘Chanukah’ is Hebrew for dedication.

The Gemara in Shabbat 21b stresses the miracle of the oil more than the military victory. It says, “What is the reason for Chanukah? Mai Chanukah? For our Rabbis taught: On the 25th of Kislev commences the 8 days of Chanukah and on these days it is forbidden to mourn the dead or fast. For when the Greeks entered the temple, they defiled all the oils inside and when the Hasmonean dynasty triumphed and defeated the Syrian Greeks, they searched and found only one cruse of oil which lay with the seal of the High Pries, but only enough for one days lighting, yet a miracle occurred and they lit the Temple menorah for 8 days.”

The Book of Maccabees 1 is more interested in the military and nationalistic side of things. Even in the Chanukah prayers we see different emphases placed on the spiritual and/or nationalistic view of the festival. Haneirot Halalu goes for “These lights we kindle upon the miracle….”, Maoz Tzur speaks about the ”Greeks who gathered against me in the Hasmonean days. They breached the walls of the towers….”. Al Hanissim (of the miracles) speaks about Mattityahu, the revolt, the help from G-d, and the kindling of lights. Obviously depending on your world-view, and social/political circumstances you will respond to the story of Chanukah in varying ways - all legitimate.

One of the most interesting things about Chanukah is that it can be tied in so closely with questions of Jewish identity. Is it just a Jewish Christmas? or is it a powerful statement about what it means to be Jewish in the Diaspora (outside of Israel)?

Look at the history with your young people and discuss how they feel Chanukah relates to them.


What is Chanukah?

There are many ways of looking at the history of Chanukah. You might want to use the extracts below and put on a Chanukah Presentation for young people. Have each person (or some people together) read the extract aloud. There are 8 extracts. You might want to read each one and then light a candle. If it is not actually Chanukah when you read these pieces, and therefore it might be inappropriate to light the chanukiah, you may want to set the scene with a lit chanukiah on the stage, or even many candles around the readers to create a special ambience.

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Extract 1

Our Rabbis taught: On the 25th of Kislev commence the 8 days of Chanukah and on these days one if forbidden to lament the dead or fast. For when the Greeks entered the Temple, they defiled all the oils inside and when the Hasmonean dynasty triumphed and defeated the Syrian Greeks, they searched and found only one cruse of oil which lay with the seal of the High Priest, but only contained enough for one days lighting only, yet a miracle occurred and they lit the temple menorah for 8 days.

Talmud Bavli, Shabbat 21b

Extract 2

In the days of Mattityahu, the son of Yochanan, the High Priest, the Hasmonean, and his sons – when the wicked Greek kingdom rose up against Your people Israel to make them forget Your Torah and compel them to stray from the statutes of Your Will – you in Your great mercy stood up for them in the time of their distress… You delivered the strong into the hands of the weak, the many into the hands of the few, the impure into the hands of the pure…

Al Hanissim prayer

Extract 3

In the year 333 BCE Alexander the great conquers Judea and this now becomes part of the Greek Empire. The year 323 sees Alexander leave this world and of course the Empire splits with one bit ruled by Ptolemy (Egypt) and another bit ruled by Selecus (Syria). Funnily enough Palestine is placed ‘whap bang’ in the middle of the 2 kingdoms!

Extract 4

198, and Judea becomes under Selucid control which remains until the Maccabean revolt. In 175 Antiochus IV Epiphanes becomes the Selucid ruler and rather than allow the cultural freedoms that had been permitted previously he decides that the Greek way is best and attempts to remove all religious and national differences in the Empire.

In 168 Antiochus shoots himself in the foot on the 25th of Kislev he orders a statue of Zeus to be placed in the Temple and an altar built so Zeus can be worshipped. He also ordered that any man who kept Shabbat would be killed, as would Jews who were found with a Torah scroll. This of course posed difficulties for the Jews. Some simply couldn’t deal with the pressure and gave up their religion for the sake of the safety of their families whilst others wanted to rebel…

Extract 5

168 is the year of Mattityahu. He leads the revolt against the Greeks. He was the son of Yochanan son of Shimon a priest of the family of Yehoyariv and so was held in high esteem in his village/town of Modiin… But when those that were appointed by the King to come to Modiin, that they might compel the Jews to do what they had commanded; and to enjoin those that were there to offer sacrifices as the King had commanded, they desired Mattityahu, because his fellow citizens would follow his example. but Mattityahu said that he would not do it and that even if all the other nations would obey the commands of Antiochus, either out of fear, or to please him, he, nor his sons would leave the religious worship of their country.”

Extract 6

I and my sons and my brothers will continue to live by the covenant of our ancestors. Far be it from us to desert the law and the ordinances. We will not obey the king’s words by turning side from our religion to the right hand or to the left.

When he had finished speaking these words, a Jew came forward in the sight of all to offer a sacrifice on the altar in Modiin, according to the king’s command. When Mattityahu saw it he burned with zeal and his anger was stirred. He gave vent to righteous anger; he ran and killed him on the altar. At the same time he killed the king’s officer who was forcing them to sacrifice and he tore down the altar. Thus he burned with zeal for the law, just as Pinchas did against Zimri, son of Salu. (Numbers 25:6-13)

Sefer HaMaccabee 1 2:20-26

Extract 7

3 years of battle against incredible odds (and the Greeks) ends on the 25th of Kislev 165 when Judah (son of Mattityahu who before he died told his sons that Judah should take over his mantle as leader of the rebellion) drove the Greeks out of Jerusalem and rededicated the Temple. To be fair, the fighting did not just stop, as with all rebellions, small groups kept on fighting for close to 20 years.

Extract 8

When they entered they found a ruined and ‘defiled’ Temple. The Jews wanted to light the great Menorah that was lit in the Temple night and day. However, there was only one small bit of oil left, and though Judah lit it in the knowledge that it would not last long, tradition has it that a miracle of God occurred and this caused the oil to burn for 8 days, just enough time for new, fresh, pure oil to be made by the Jews. They re-dedicated the Temple and indeed Chanukah is Hebrew for dedication.

What can we learn from Chanukah?

After all the Hebrew word Chanukah is closely related to the Hebrew chinuch (education).

You may choose to discuss one or more of these topics. Some are really only suitable to discuss with older age groups/leaders.

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Zealotry
The Concise Oxford Dictionary tells us a zealot is ’an uncompromising or extreme partisan; fanatic’
In today’s society, how do we feel about such dedication to a cause? Is zealotry something we understand? Can we relate to it in any context? Was zealotry essential to Jewish survival at the time? Ultimately, Judaism rejected zealotry as a way of solving its difficulties. However, zealots still have their supporters in different political arenas.
Today, we look at some groups as being ‘crazy fundamentalists’. Can we make a realistic judgement on their views for their survival?
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Tikkun Olam (Healing the World)
There are many festivals which look at healing the world and making it better. Chanukah does not address these issues in a straight forward way. It isn’t about planting trees or cleaning the oceans. The story of Chanukah can be understood as standing up for human rights. The right to pray and the right to live as you choose. Expand this idea with your chanichim. What social causes are they prepared to stand up for? You might want to write letters to your local MP about something happening in your area which you would like to be improved. You might want to teach some Chanukah songs to chanichim and arrange a visit to a home for older people or a local hospital to brighten the day for others.

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Pride

The pride felt be the Jewish people (in those days) must have been astounding. How fantastic must they have felt to have succeeded against all odds? Discuss other periods in Jewish history where Jews must have felt such pride. Do you think they felt proud to leave Egypt and slavery? Can you imagine how proud they were that Queen Esther convinced her Persian King to not let Haman kill all the Jews? Pesach and Purim can give us a certain perspective on Jewish pride.

What about the story of Anne Frank, or Hannah Senesh, or of Jewish survival despite the atrocities they were faced with by the Nazi regime during the second world war?

Do we still feel proud of those survivors? When we see films like Schindler’s List do we feel proud of the Jewish people? Discuss with your chanichim of all ages, what makes them proud to be Jewish? Being part of a Jewish football team or a synagogue/Jewish school/youth club/youth movement? Can they relate to themselves as being a link in the chain of Jewish history?

With older chanichim you might want to discuss current affairs in Israel.

Israel, our modern Jewish homeland, has fought wars for its survival. Today, from our own lounges we watch Israeli soldiers engaged in conflict on a daily basis. How do we feel about that? Is it actually difficult to feel pride right now? When the words Israeli, Jewish and Zionist are used interchangeably, does that make us feel more connected to Israel?

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Lights

For many of us, lighting the Chanukah candles is the main focus of the festival.

Here are some interpretations of what lighting the candles is all about.

Candles are supposed to be in the window, so everyone can see.

The halachic (Jewish law) concept of pirsuma nissah tells us to display

our candles in a window so that we are publicising the miracle.

The mitzvot of Chanukah lights – one lights in a space facing the entrance to a public place

(Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 139:7)

We show to the world that we are proud of our heritage, which we do not shy away from our identity or of who we are. This is the answer to Mark Twain’s question “What is the secret of his (the Jews’) immortality?” (see Gordis Ch.4 p.109)

The candles are a beautiful aspect of Chanukah. Dark, cold winter days and yet we have the light and warmth of the candles flickering in our windows. If Chanukah is the festival of hope then the imagery of the light brightening the darkness is even more resonant.

So the Christians & The Pagans sat together at the table,

Finding faith and common ground the best that they were able,

Lighting trees in darkness, learning new ways from the old,

And making sense of history and drawing warmth out of the cold

Dar Williams,Christians & Pagans