The History of Hanukkah

Chester Blunt Jr.

Rel/134

Instructor: William Umstetter

May 19, 2013

In this paper titled The History of Hanukkah Ido not use first person in APA plan to touch on key points of the origin of Hanukkah, what time of the year is it celebrated, the various religious practices that are associated with Hanukkah, and also the theological or cultural differences that might lead to differences in the observance of the holy day by the various branches of Judaism. I hope that in my readings you will get a better understanding for the tradition of Hanukkah. Double space most everything in APA

The Jewish festival of Hanukkah started back in the year 165 B.C.E. when the Jews of Judea stood up against the overwhelming oppression of King Antiochus IV Epiphanes who ruled over the Seleucid Empire. King Antiochus wanted all the Jewish people to give up their religious beliefs and principals. He ordered them to start worshipping Greek Gods. He also ordered them to the soldiers to make the Jews bow down in front of Greek God’s idol and eat pig. In Jewish culture eating the meat of a pig is against Jewish law. Everyone did not agree with this but there were some that did it out of fear. The rebellion was headed up by a small group of Jewish fighters. These soldiers fought against the Greeks for the land of Israel. King Antiochus intensified his crusade to take over the land by desecrating the Temple of Jerusalem and outlawing Jewish religious practices. The Jewish soldiers that did not uphold the practices of the Greeks and the King were called the Maccabees, who were led by priest Mattathias and his five sons. Judah was the priest oldest son and he was in charge of leading the crusade to rid the land of the Greeks, clean and rebuild the temple. After three years of cleaning the temple and campaigning against the Greeks they were victorious in rebuilding the temple. With the feeling of great accomplishment they wanted to celebrate their victory but were unable to celebrate the Sukkot holiday during its correct time in autumn. They decided to celebrate the Sukkot at the time of the rededication of the temple which was held on the 25th day of the month of Kislov in the year of 168 B.C.E. In the Hebrew calendar this time normally falls between November and December. The Sukkot holiday is held for seven days, so on the eighth days they celebrated the rededication which is now called Hanukkah. Many years after these events a Jewish historian named Flavius Josephus wrote about the origin of the holiday and called it the Festival of Lights. He used this term in reference to the holiday because of the victory that had taken place. He compared the event with images of light. Many Jewish people still refer to Hanukkah as the Festival of Lights.

Hanukkah has many traditions that are strictly followed in the celebration of the festival. The various traditions that are associated with Hanukkah include prayers, candle lighting, songs, food, and gifts. On the day of prayers there are also blessing that are offered during the lighting of the candles on a special apparatus called a candelabrum. Hanukkah is celebrated by the entire Jewish family at one time. There are three blessing that are recited during the prayers.

According to the website Hanukkah Celebration (2008) there are three blessing that are recited during Hanukkah:

First is: Baruch ata Ado-nai, Elo-heinu Melech ha'olam, Asher kid'shanu b'mitzvosav v'tzivanu l'hadlik ner shel Chanukah. This blessing means; Blessed are You, Hashem our G-d, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with His commandments, and has commanded us to Kindle the Chanukah light. The second blessing is; Baruch ata Ado-nai, Elo-heinu Melech ha'olam, She'asah nisim la'avoseinu, bayamim ha'hem baz'man hazeh. This blessing means, Blessed are You, Hashem our G-d, King of the universe, Who has wrought miracles for our forefathers, in those days at this season. The final blessing is, Baruch ata Ado-nai, Elo-heinu Melech ha'olam, She'hecheyanu, vekiyemanu vehigi'anu laz'man hazeh. This blessing means, Blessed are You, Hashem our G-d, King of the universe, Who has kept us alive, sustained us, and brought us to this season. ("Happy Hanukkah", 2008)

With praying and the blessing the lighting of the candles holds a significant part in Hanukkah celebration. It is said that the lighting of the candles is to pay tribute to the Miracle of Oil. Legend has it that a small amount of purified oil was found in the holy temple and was used in lighting one candle. Astonishingly, the oil not only lit that one but all eight candles on the Menorah and they remained lit for eight days. This gave president throughout the Hanukkah festival traditions. The Menorahs are made from various types of materials; such materials include glass, porcelain, crystals, and metals such as silver, brass aluminum, and gold. Hanukkah marks a time for Jewish people to celebrate have fun. When Hanukkah time is upon you can he the joyfulness of voices singing, chanting prayers. The tradition is passed down to the children various songs that get their attention. These songs are written in both Hebrew and English. Some songs are, "Chanukah, O Chanukah", "I Have A Little Dreidel", and "Eight Candles" just to name a few. ("Happy Hanukkah", 2008)

In current times the younger generation of Jews has stopped practicing the culture of their grand-parents. Many of them grew up in areas and homes where Jewish religious practices were not a main focus. This generation of Jews has been influenced by the ways of the western nations thru peer pressure and the way things are done in these various nations. According to "Judaism" (2007), “Recent studies of American Jews indicate that many people who identify as being of Jewish heritage no longer identify as members of the religion known as Judaism.” The Jewish denominations within the USA and Canada are on a crisis, concerning themselves over the increase in intermarriage and assimilation within the Jewish community. ("Judaism", 2007) The amount of Jewish children being born is at a lower rate because Jewish people are getting married later in years. Since the time of the Holocaust there has been an effort for reconciliation between Christians and Jews. This last sentence is a new idea that does not go along with your last paragraph.

References: should be centered at top of page with no colon – double space
Happy Hanukkah. (2008). Retrieved from http://www.hanukkahcelebrations.com/index.html hanging indent

Judaism. (2007). Retrieved from http://www.basicjudaism.org/judaism.html

Hanukkah History. (2003). Retrieved from http://www.myjewishlearning.com/holidays/Jewish_Holidays/Hanukkah/History.shtml

38 out of 40 – Content –cover the topic with good information; some repetition of content; there is good depth to the topic - however you are short of the 700 word minimum
16 out of 20 – Grammar/APA – 4 errors
14 out of 20 – References – APA references with citations 6 errors,
20 out of 20 – Clear outline and Thesis statement
Grade 88