Feast of Dedication - Hanukkah - Festival of Lights by Mary Fairchild

Photo by Steve Martin - our home Hanukiah (Hanukkah menorah)

Feast of Dedication

Feast of Dedication, Hanukkah, Festival of Lights

Mary Fairchild, About Religion

Christianity Expert

Feast of Dedication - Hanukkah - Festival of Lights:

The Feast of Dedication, or Hanukkah, is a Jewish holiday. It is also known as the Festival of Lights. We will look at the Feast of Dedication from a Christian perspective, explaining its biblical basis, traditional observances, seasons, facts, and an interesting section revealing the fulfillment of the Messiah, Jesus Christ through the feast.

Time of Observance: Hanukkah is celebrated during the Hebrew month of Kislev (November or December). It begins on day 25 of Kislev and lasts for 8 days.


• See Bible Feasts Calendar for actual dates.


Scripture Reference: The story of Hanukkah is recorded in the First Book of Maccabees, which is part of the Apocrypha. The Feast of Dedication is mentioned in the New Testament Book of John, chapter 10, verse 22.

About the Feast of Dedication: Prior to the year 165 BC, the Jewish people who dwelled in Judea where living under the rule of the Greek kings of Damascus. During this time Seleucid King Antiochus Epiphanes, the Greco-Syrian king, took control of the Temple in Jerusalem and forced the Jewish people to abandon their worship of God, their holy customs and reading of the Torah, and he made them bow down to the Greek gods.

According to the records, this King Antiochus IV defiled the Temple by sacrificing a pig on the altar and spilling its blood on the holy scrolls of Scripture.

As a result of the severe persecution and pagan oppression, a group of four Jewish brothers, led by Judah Maccabee, decided to raise up an army of religious freedom fighters. These men of fierce faith and loyalty to God became known as the Maccabees.

The small band of warriors fought for three years with "strength from heaven" until achieving a miraculous victory and deliverance from the Greco-Syrian control.

After regaining the Temple, it was cleansed by the Maccabees, cleared of all Greek idolatry, and readied for rededicated. The rededication of the Temple to the Lord took place in the year 165 BC, on the 25th day of the Hebrew month called Kislev.

So Hanukkah received its name, the Feast of Dedication, because it celebrates the Maccabees' victory over Greek oppression and the rededication of the Temple. But Hanukkah is also known as the Festival of Lights, and this is because immediately following the miraculous deliverance, God provided another miracle of provision.

In the Temple, the eternal flame of God was to be lit at all time as a symbol of God's presence. But according to tradition, when the Temple was rededicated, there was only enough oil left in the Temple to burn the flame for one day. The rest of the oil had been defiled by the Greeks during their invasion, and it would take a week for new oil to be processed and purified. But at the rededication, the Maccabees went ahead and lit the eternal flame with the remaining supply of oil, and God's Holy presence caused it to burn miraculously for eight days, until the new sacred oil was ready.

This is why the feast is also called the Festival of Lights, and why the Hanukkah Menorah is lit for eight consecutive nights of celebration. Jews also commemorate this miracle of oil provision by making oil-rich foods, such as Latkas, an important part of Hanukkah celebrations.

• Learn more about Hanukkah traditions and celebrations.

Jesus and the Feast of Dedication:  John 10: 22-23 records, "Then came the Feast of Dedication at Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was in the Temple area walking in Solomon's Colonnade." (NIV) As a Jew, Jesus most certainly would have participated in the Feast of Dedication.

The same courageous spirit of the Maccabees who remained faithful to God during intense persecution was passed on to Jesus' disciples who would all face severe trails because of their faithfulness to Christ. And like the miracle of God's presence expressed through the eternal flame of God burning for the Maccabees, Jesus became the incarnate, physical expression of God's presence, the Light of the World, who came to dwell among us and give us the eternal light of God's life.

More Facts About Hanukkah 

Hanukkah is traditionally a family celebration. 

The lighting of the Menorah is the center of the Hanukkah traditions. 

Fried and oily foods are a reminder of the miracle of the oil. 

Dreidel games are traditionally played by children and often the whole household during Hanukkah. 

Probably because of Hanukkah's proximity to Christmas, many Jews give gifts during the holiday. 

More about Hanukkah.

Source: Bible Feasts

Ancient Mystery Solved: Greek Citadel Unearthed in Israel - CBN News

Ancient Mystery Solved: Greek Citadel Unearthed in Israel

By Chris Mitchell

CBN News Middle East Bureau Chief

Wednesday, November 04, 2015

Ad Feedback

JERUSALEM, Israel --  Earlier this week Israeli archaeologists announced one of the most important discoveries in history. 

For more than a hundred years, Israeli archaeologists have searched for the Greek fortress, known as Akra, from the time of the Maccabees, around 200 BC. Now they say they've found it.

The discovery answers a perplexing question about the ancient city of Jerusalem -- a question that Israeli archeaelogists have been digging for for nearly a decade.
   
"We can now be more than positive we are facing part of the stronghold that used to house the upper part of the city of David in the time of Antiochus IV," Doron Ben-Ami, of the Israel Antiquities Authority, said. 
 
Antiochus IV built the nearly 60-foot tall fortress in order to control Jerusalem. It also included a large ramp known as a Glasies.  After he defiled the Jewish temple, the Macabees, also known as the Hasmoneans, revolted.

The excavation shows evidence of that revolt, including artifacts such as arrowheads with the inscriptions of Antiochus and sling stones. The discovery confirms the accounts of the historian Josephus and the book of Maccabees.  
 
"In the book of Maccabees, it specifically says that the Akra fortress is built in the city of David," said Rabbi Barnea Levi Selavan, an archeologist and Jerusalem-based tour guide.   
 
It also fills in another big piece of the puzzle of ancient Jerusalem.  
 
"Today, because of this discovery, we can connect other elements that were isolated thus far and put them all together to see the real fortress or stronghold here on the upper part of the city of David," explained Ben-Ami.  

Rabbi Selavan says these ancient stones give proof to a story that many have considered legend, much like Santa Claus.
 
"Yes Virginia, there is a Josephus and he said the Greeks made it a powerful fortress which controlled the city," Barnea said.  "The bravery of the Hasmoneans to take on the Greeks who were sitting there in Jerusalem,  the bravery of the Hasmoneans to service in the Temple for 25 years while there's Greek soldiers right there. At least we can serve God.  So what if we don't have political freedom, but we can serve God.  What a message!" 

Why is Chanukah So Unique? (it’s not what you think…)

Why is Chanukah So Unique? (it’s not what you think…)

By Rabbi Ari Enkin, rabbinic director, United with Israel

Is Chanukah unique because we eat latkes (potato pancakes) and sufganiot(jelly donuts) and play with dreidels (spinning tops)? The real uniqueness is our victory celebration over an enemy that didn’t actually want to kill us!

The story of Chanukah takes place during the Second Temple period (approx. 200 BCE), when the Syrian-Greeks occupied the Land of Israel. In contrast to most enemies of the Jewish people, the Syrian-Greeks essentially had no interest in murdering Jews. Rather, they wanted the Jewish people to adopt the Greek religion and way of life.

I guess you could say that the Syrian-Greeks desired death by assimilation for the Jewish people. Jewish practice was officially against the law. Torah study, circumcision and even resting on the Sabbath were all punishable by death.

As the saying goes with regards to all Jewish holidays, “They tried to kill us. We won. Let’s eat!” Chanukah is no different. The primary victory was apparently the military victory of the small Jewish army, known as the Maccabees, over the huge and well-armed army of the Syrian-Greeks. When the battle was over, the Maccabees made their way to the Temple Mount (as did the “Maccabees” of theSix Day War). What they found, however, was a desecrated and defiled sanctuary.


In order to formally rededicate the Temple, the Maccabees had to light the Menorah. But to do so, they had to overcome another obstacle: They had to find pure olive oil that had been certified by a High Priest. And in what was yet another miracle, they did! They managed to find a single flask of certified oil!

On to the next miracle: The small flask of oil that contained enough oil to burn for only one day burned for eight days! The eight-day holiday of Chanukah was born!
The Only Miracle that Must be Publicized

In order to commemorate these miracles, Jews light the menorah, often called a chanukiya, on each night of Chanukah and recite the accompanying blessings. These menorahs are generally lit at the entrances of the home or at a window that faces the public thoroughfare in order to better publicize the miracles of Chanukah. Indeed, with minor exception, the miracle of Chanukah is the only miracle that we are obligated to publicize! It is commendable to remain alongside the candles for at least 30 minutes after lighting, studying Torah, singing songs and talking about the Chanukah story. Gifts are often given to children at this time.

A Deeper Understanding

Let’s take a deeper look into the miracle of Chanukah. What was it about the events of Chanukah that inspired our sages to institute a holiday in its honor? The answer is that Chanukah is different from all other holidays. It is the only holiday that truly commemorates a spiritual victory, not a physical one. If the Syrian Greeks would have simply demanded that the Jewish people paint their homes pink with blue polka-dots, that would have have been one thing. But to demand that the Jewish people dispose with their Torah and religion was truly another!

A flame flickers and rises, representing the soul of Man.

The oil that was miraculously found and then burned for eight days was nothing less than a Divine wink that a battle for religious freedom is a battle that’s worth it. Many things in life, most things in fact, are not worth fighting for. In most of life’s battles we should usually compromise for the sake of keeping the peace. But when it comes to tradition, especially Torah tradition, compromise and concessions are not an option.

Chanukah is indeed different. They did not try to kill us, they tried to assimilate us. And the Maccabees would have none of it.

The fact that a flame was the center of attention makes Chanukah the spiritual holiday that it is. This is because a flame flickers and rises, which represents the soul of all mankind that ‘flickers’ in its desire to rise higher and get closer to God.

Presents, sufganiyot (jelly doughnuts) and latkes (potato pancakes) are nice traditions, but don’t let the eight days of Chanukah slip by without recognizing them for the spiritual focus and victory that they are! Yes, and publicize it!

Chanukah begins this year on Tuesday night, December 16. Chag Sameach!

VIEW OUR AMAZING COLLECTION OF INSPIRING ARTICLES ABOUT CHANUKAH!

Source: United With Israel

Hanukkah begins sundown on Dec. 16, 2014 and ends sundown Dec. 24, 2014.

Is the Temple menorah from 70 A.D. there in Rome?

Holiness, mystery and ancient secrets: Inside the Vatican

Israel Hayom diplomatic correspondent Shlomo Cesana on his meeting with Pope Francis • "Jerusalem is important to both of us," I say. He smiles and recites a blessing in Latin: "Next year in Jerusalem."

Shlomo Cesana

Israel Hayom political correspondent Shlomo Cesana with the pope. "Jerusalem is important to both of us"  |  Photo credit: Amos Ben Gershom

When you enter the catacombs of the Vatican, it is impossible not to remember the best movies made about the Holy See, whether it be "Angels & Demons" starring Ayelet Zurer and Tom Hanks, which is based on the book by Dan Brown, or "The Da Vinci Code" by the same author.

Holiness, mystery and ancient secrets go hand in hand in the imagination as well as reality. In the end, it is all based on the tradition of the Hanukkah holiday, which commemorates the miracles of the Maccabees who purified the Temple in Jerusalem and lit the menorah there. 

Two hundred and five years later, the menorah was pillaged and taken into exile in a march of triumph to Rome, where the event was commemorated in relief on the Arch of Titus. More than 2,000 years later, the prime minister of Israel gave a silver menorah to the pope at the Vatican. Reality trumps any fiction.

Now the prime minister of the Jews is asking the pope -- the leader of 1.2 billion faithful -- to save the world from the forces of evil emanating from Tehran, and not to rely on the good graces of heaven.

The connection between Jerusalem and Rome goes back to ancient times. The foundations of Western culture were laid in Jerusalem and Rome. 

In Jerusalem, the ethical prophets gave added value to the Torah set down by our forefather Moses, whether in relations between one person and another or between a person and their God. The vision of peace on earth and the hopes for salvation of our nation and of the entire world. These values reached Rome and the seat of Christianity and were distributed from there to the entire world.

Pope Francis has brought a new spirit to the Vatican. The symbol of the Vatican, the key that Jesus gave Paul in Banias at the foot of Mount Hermon, hangs at the entrance to his office and reminds us again, like all the beautiful wall frescoes, of the connection to the Torah of Israel, to the land of Israel and to Jerusalem. With a wide smile he extends a hand to me. "Jerusalem is important to both of us," I say, as someone who wrote the book "A Guide to the City of Jerusalem." He smiles and recites a blessing in Latin: "Next year in Jerusalem."

Prime Minister Netanyahu also met on Monday with the pope, accompanied by his wife, Sara Netanyahu. The two told the pope about their son who won the National Bible Contest, and the connection between Jewish sources and the foundations of Christianity. In the meeting with Pope Francis, who is expected to visit Israel in May 2014, the prime minister asked him to stay in Israel for five days and not three as planned, in order to have time to visit additional sites that are holy to Christianity. "Come to the synagogue in Chorazin, Jesus visited there," the prime minister said.

Netanyahu also gave the pope a copy, in English, of a book that his father Professor Benzion Netanyahu wrote about the Spanish Inquisition, as well as a large silver menorah. The pope gave Netanyahu a medallion bearing the figure of Paul -- Jesus' most important disciple. Later, when the prime minister was meeting with his Italian counterpart Enrico Letta, his wife Sara had lunch with the Italian prime minister's wife, Gianna Letta. 

The two of them spoke of the Hanukkah holiday, about strengthening women and about the fact that the two of them continue to work despite their husbands' job as prime minister: Letta as a journalist and Netanyahu as a child psychologist in Jerusalem.

Thanksgivukkah: When Hanukkah and Thanksgiving Collide

Wednesday, November 27, 2013 |  Ariel Rudolph  

Share on gmailShare on bloggerShare on twitterShare on facebookMore Sharing Services

• Enlarge

Related Stories

• Why the Focused Rest of Shabbat is Important
• COMMENTARY: Prophetic Timing for Israel’s Victory
• Israel celebrates gift of God's Word

Topics:

Bible

As most of us know, Hanukkah commemorates the miracle of the oil. Once the Maccabees restored the Temple to Jewish control, the Temple oil burned for eight days when there was only enough oil to burn for one.

One of the traditions of Hanukkah is to eat foods cooked in oil and to give thanks to God for the miracle He gave to His faithful servants.

The American holiday of Thanksgiving is all about fellowship. It is about spending time with others we care about, sharing all the blessings that God has bestowed upon us, and lets us show the others in our lives the good fortune we have through faith in God.

Let’s look at Leviticus 7:12. This is a passage about the Fellowship Offering and it says, If he offers it for a thanksgiving, then he shall offer with the thanksgiving sacrifice unleavened loaves mixed with oil, unleavened wafers smeared with oil, and loaves of fine flour well mixed with oil.

As we can see in Leviticus 7, the Fellowship Offering of Thanksgiving involves food with oil! Wow. Not only that, but this type of offering was meant to be eaten in a fellowship meal, much like our Thanksgiving dinners today, The meat of their fellowship offering of thanksgiving must be eaten on the day it is offered; they must leave none of it till morning(Leviticus 7:15).

This year as we cook the turkey and prepare the other family tradition favorites, you might want to consider adding some Hanukkah favorites as well. Latkes are potato pancakes cooked in oil; they would be the perfect addition to a Thanksgiving meal, and fulfill a biblical Thanksgiving offering of unleavened wafers with oil.

Want more news from Israel?
Click Here to sign up for our FREE daily email updates

IDF Soldiers Learn About Hanukkah By Seeing the Sights

IDF Soldiers Learn About Hanukkah By Seeing the Sights

Some 20,000 IDF soldiers are this week attending special tours of the country, based on the history and traditions of Hanukkah

 

By David Lev, Israel National News 

First Publish: 12/9/2012

Hanukkah in the IDF

 

 

Some 20,000 IDF soldiers are this week attending special tours of the country, based on the history and traditions of Hanukkah. The “In the Footsteps of the Maccabees” program has exposed many soldiers to history and traditions of which they may have not been aware, while showing others the places where the important events from Jewish history actually took place.

Among the sites the soldiers visit are Beit Guvrin, Modi'in, Latrun, Jerusalem, and Gush Etzion. All these places were key sites in the wars between the Maccabees and their supporters against the Greek occupying forces and their Hellenist compatriots.

Participating in the tours are soldiers from all communal and religious backgrounds. The highlight of the program is a candle lighting event in the amphitheater at Latrun, where a large memorial to the IDF Tank Corps is located. Also participating are families who have lost soldiers in combat. Leading the candle lighting service is Chief IDF Cantor Ofir Sobol. Joining the soldiers on Tuesday will be President Shimon Peres and IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz.

Speaking at one of the events, IDF Chief Rabbi Rafi Peretz said that “the best part of these events is the feeling of unity that comes out of gathering everyone from many different locations – including towns, cities, and army bases. The hanukkiyah (Hanukkah menorah) is unique. It does not have one light, but 9, which shine brightly when they are all lit. There is a place for all the lights, and this is how the IDF sees things,” said Rabbi Peretz.

 

 

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/162988

Hanukkah

 

Hanukkah
A Hanukkiya or Hanukkah Menorah
Official name	Hebrew: חֲנֻכָּה or חנוכה English translation: "Establishing" or "Dedication" (of the Temple in Jerusalem)
Also called	Festival of Lights, Festival of Dedication
Observed by	Jews
Type	Jewish
Significance	The Maccabees successfully rebelled against Antiochus IV Epiphanes. According to the Talmud, a late text, the Temple was purified and the wicks of the menorah miraculously burned for eight days, even though there was only enough sacred oil for one day's lighting.
Begins	25 Kislev
Ends	2 Tevet or 3 Tevet
2012 date	Sunset, December 8 to nightfall, December 16
Celebrations	Lighting candles each night. Singing special songs, such as Ma'oz Tzur. Reciting Hallel prayer. Eating foods fried in oil, such as latkes and sufganiyot, and dairy foods. Playing the dreidel game, and giving Hanukkah gelt
Related to	Purim, as a rabbinically decreed holiday.

Hanukkah (Hebrew: חֲנֻכָּה, Tiberian: Ḥănukkāh, usually spelled חנוכה, pronounced [χanuˈka] in Modern Hebrew; a transliteration also romanized as Chanukah, Chanukkah or Chanuka), also known as the Festival of Lights, is an eight-day Jewish holiday commemorating the rededication of the Holy Temple (the Second Temple) in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt of the 2nd century BCE.

 Hanukkah is observed for eight nights and days, starting on the 25th day of Kislev according to the Hebrew calendar, which may occur at any time from late November to late December in the Gregorian calendar.

The festival is observed by the kindling of the lights of a unique candelabrum, the nine-branched Menorah or Hanukiah, one additional light on each night of the holiday, progressing to eight on the final night. The typical Menorah consists of eight branches with an additional raised branch. The extra light is called a shamash (Hebrew: שמש‎, "attendant")^[1] and is given a distinct location, usually above or below the rest. The purpose of the shamash is to have a light available for use, as using the Hanukkah lights themselves is forbidden.^[2]

Boy lighting Hanukkah candles

The name "Hanukkah" derives from the Hebrew verb "חנך", meaning "to dedicate". On Hanukkah, the Jews regained control of Jerusalem and rededicated the Temple.^[3]

Many homiletical explanations have been given for the name:^[4]

• The name can be broken down into חנו כ"ה, "they rested on the twenty-fifth", referring to the fact that the Jews ceased fighting on the 25th day of Kislev, the day on which the holiday begins.^[5]

חנוכה (Hanukkah) is also the Hebrew acronym for ח נרות והלכה כבית הלל — "Eight candles, and the halakha is like the House of Hillel". This is a reference to the disagreement between two rabbinical schools of thought — the House of Hillel and the House of Shammai — on the proper order in which to light the Hanukkah flames. Shammai opined that eight candles should be lit on the first night, seven on the second night, and so on down to one on the last night. Hillel argued in favor of starting with one candle and lighting an additional one every night, up to eight on the eighth night. Jewish law adopted the position of Hilleldit] Historical sources

Maccabees, Mishna and Talmud

The story of Hanukkah, along with its laws and customs, is entirely missing from the Mishna apart from several passing references (Bikkurim 1:6, Rosh HaShanah 1:3, Taanit 2:10, Megillah 3:4 and 3:6, Moed Katan 3:9, and Bava Kama 6:6). Rav Nissim Gaon postulates in his Hakdamah Le'mafteach Hatalmud that information on the holiday was so commonplace that the Mishna felt no need to explain it. Reuvein Margolies^[6] suggests that as the Mishnah was redacted after the Bar Kochba revolt, its editors were reluctant to include explicit discussion of a holiday celebrating another relatively recent revolt against a foreign ruler, for fear of antagonizing the Romans.

Hanukkah lamp unearthed near Jerusalem about 1900

The story of Hanukkah is preserved in the books of the First and Second Maccabees. These books are not part of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible); they are apocryphal books instead. The miracle of the one-day supply of oil miraculously lasting eight days is first described in the Talmud, written about 600 years after the events described in the books of Maccabees. ^[7]

The Gemara, in tractate Shabbat 21, focuses on Shabbat candles and moves to Hanukkah candles and says that after the forces of Antiochus IV had been driven from the Temple, the Maccabees discovered that almost all of the ritual olive oil had been profaned. They found only a single container that was still sealed by the High Priest, with enough oil to keep the menorah in the Temple lit for a single day. They used this, yet it burned for eight days (the time it took to have new oil pressed and made ready).^[8]

The Talmud presents three options:

1. The law requires only one light each night per household,
2. A better practice is to light one light each night for each member of the household
3. The most preferred practice is to vary the number of lights each night.

Except in times of danger, the lights were to be placed outside one's door, on the opposite side of the Mezuza, or in the window closest to the street. Rashi, in a note to Shabbat 21b, says their purpose is to publicize the miracle.

[edit] Narrative of Josephus

Various menorot used for Hanukkah. 12th through 19th century, CE

The ancient Jewish Historian Flavius Josephus narrates in his book Jewish Antiquities XII, how the victorious Judas Maccabeus ordered lavish yearly eight-day festivities after rededicating the Temple in Jerusalem that had been profaned by Antiochus IV Epiphanes. Josephus does not say the festival was called Hannukkah but rather the "Festival of Lights":

"Now Judas celebrated the festival of the restoration of the sacrifices of the temple for eight days, and omitted no sort of pleasures thereon; but he feasted them upon very rich and splendid sacrifices; and he honored God, and delighted them by hymns and psalms. Nay, they were so very glad at the revival of their customs, when, after a long time of intermission, they unexpectedly had regained the freedom of their worship, that they made it a law for their posterity, that they should keep a festival, on account of the restoration of their temple worship, for eight days. And from that time to this we celebrate this festival, and call it Lights. I suppose the reason was, because this liberty beyond our hopes appeared to us; and that thence was the name given to that festival. Judas also rebuilt the walls round about the city, and reared towers of great height against the incursions of enemies, and set guards therein. He also fortified the city Bethsura, that it might serve as a citadel against any distresses that might come from our enemies."^[9]

Other ancient sources

The story of Hanukkah is alluded to in the book of 1 Maccabees and 2 Maccabees. The eight-day rededication of the temple is described in 1 Maccabees 4:36 et seq, though the name of the festival and the miracle of the lights do not appear here. A story similar in character, and obviously older in date, is the one alluded to in 2 Maccabees 1:18 et seq according to which the relighting of the altar fire by Nehemiah was due to a miracle which occurred on the 25th 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 Maccabee.



Another source is the Megillat Antiochus. This work (also known as "Megillat HaHasmonaim", "Megillat Hanukkah" or "Megillat Yevanit") is in both Aramaic and Hebrew; the Hebrew version is a literal translation from the Aramaic original. Recent scholarship dates it to somewhere between the 2nd and 5th Centuries, probably in the 2nd century,^[10] with the Hebrew dating to the 7th century.^[11] It was published for the first time in Mantua in 1557. Saadia Gaon, who translated it into Arabic in the 9th century, ascribed it to the Maccabees themselves, disputed by some, since it gives dates as so many years before the destruction of the second temple in 70 CE.^[12] The Hebrew text with an English translation can be found in the Siddur of Philip Birnbaum.

The Christian Bible refers to Jesus being at the Jerusalem Temple during "the Feast of Dedication and it was winter" in John 10:22-23, the Greek term used is "the renewals" (Greek ta engkainia τὰ ἐγκαίνια).^[13] Josephus refers to the festival as "lights."^[14]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanukkah