Tonight at approximately 5:36pm, the Jewish celebration of Hanukkah begins. The eight-day festival of lights is in remembrance of the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem, following the Maccabean Revolt in the second century BC. Jews across the globe pause and remember every evening, lighting their menorahs.

Although Hanukkah is a relatively minor religious holiday, its proximity to Christmas and strong adherence even by secular Jews has given it more weight, especially in pop culture.

The date of Hanukkah appears to vary every year, due to the lunar months of the Hebrew calendar. While it always falls on the 25th day of Kislev, on the Gregorian calendar commonly used since the 1700s, the coinciding date falls sometime in late November thru December.

The Maccabean Revolt?

Throughout history, the Hebrew people were the most important cultures of the western world. Unfortunately, the significance of their homeland meant they were often conquered or taken captive into other empires and nations. In the second century BC, the Jews were part of the Seleucid Greek Empire.

The king, overhearing a debate between priests, worried they might revolt and banned all practice of Judaism. He took over Jerusalem and built an altar to Zeus in the Second Temple. All this actually led to the very revolt he worried about, led by Judah Maccabee.

After three years, they won the temple back and rededicated it to YHVH. Part of the ceremony involved lighting the temple’s holy lampstand or menorah. Unfortunately, they could only find a single container or cruise of undefiled oil. But the miracle of Hanukkah was that the oil lasted eight days, long enough to ensure that the lampstand would never be extinguished.

 Modern Hanukkah Celebration

Several traditions grew out of the original celebration of the miracle of the oil. Probably the most familiar symbol most have seen is the hanukkiah – or Hanukkah Menorah. Unlike the temple one described in the Bible, the menorah we know has nine candles, one for each day, and the shamash or “helper” candle that is used to light the other candles. Starting with two lit, then an additional candle is added and lit each night of Hanukkah.

Cooking in oil is also a big part of the celebration. Sufganiyot are jam-filled donuts, a sweet treat cooked in oil. Another tradition is the latke, or potato pancake – which actually has its roots in the 14^th century. Medieval Jews, scattered across the former Roman empire and Eastern Europe started cooking the delicacy, although it was originally made of cheese.

Another popular tradition also seems to have originated around that time, although no one knows for sure. There is an old European Jewish custom to give gelt – gold – on Hanukkah. Today, it is often gold wrapped chocolate coins, along with other small gifts, often one for each night of Hanukkah. And that is likely due to the holiday’s proximity with Christmas. It seems it rose in popularity in the 1950s, right around the same time Christmas gifts became heavily promoted post-World War II. Playing with the four-sided top known as a dreidel has similar roots.

As for the writing of Hanukkah, חֲנֻכָּה can also be written as Chanukah. However, in order to most accurately reflect the pronunciation of the classical Hebrew word, and maintain consistency in the way individual Hebrew letters are rendered in English, the modern recommended transliteration today is “Hanukkah.” That comes directly from the modern Hebrew language authorities in the state of Israel, established after World War II.

Light the Candles

Today we take a moment to remember the miracle of the oil and the festival of lights our Jewish friends and neighbors celebrate – both remembering the gift and grace of God for his people.

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