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Hanukkah Made Western Civilization Possible
Fox News ^ | December 22, 2022 | Dennis Prager

Posted on 12/22/2022 10:42:13 AM PST by nickcarraway

Were it not for its proximity to Christmas, Hanukkah would be unknown to most non-Jews and it would not be celebrated by most non-religious Jews. The proof is that the other post-Hebrew Bible holiday, Purim, while very popular in Israel, where it is sort of a Jewish Mardi Gras, is essentially unknown to non-Jews and largely ignored by most American Jews. Too bad. Hanukkah is actually of seminal importance both to Judaism and to the world.

SNIP

To understand why Judaism so bothered Antiochus, one needs to understand that no pagan religion completely rejected Hellenism. Judaism did. If Antiochus wanted a statue to him or to a Greek god erected in a pagan temple, none of the pagan religions would have objected. The pagan attitude toward religion was non-exclusive. No pagan god was regarded as the one God of all humanity. But the Jews claimed that their God was indeed the only God in the world.

Despite this belief — that the God of Judaism is the God of all humanity — Judaism never insisted that non-Jews needed to convert to Judaism. Thus, Jews never forcibly imposed Judaism on non-Jews. But, unlike all their pagan neighbors, the Jews rejected the gods of everyone else. And this infuriated Antiochus. He hated the Jews’ monotheism.

(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...


TOPICS: Education; History; Religion
KEYWORDS: antiochus; anukka; christmas; dennisprager; festivaloflights; godsgravesglyphs; greekidolatry; hanukkah; jerusalem; letshavejerusalem; maccabeanrevolt; prager; romanempire; secondtemple; seleucidempire; westerncivilization

1 posted on 12/22/2022 10:42:13 AM PST by nickcarraway
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To: nickcarraway

Well somebody’s gonna do it, might as well be me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUCNAnp2QAI


2 posted on 12/22/2022 10:43:07 AM PST by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
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To: dfwgator

Hanukkah made Christian Civilization possible.


3 posted on 12/22/2022 10:52:15 AM PST by NeverCheney
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To: dfwgator

Thanks for that.


4 posted on 12/22/2022 10:58:01 AM PST by BipolarBob (The party never stops until someone calls the cops.)
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To: NeverCheney

Yes. And Catholics honor that with 1 Maccabees and 2 Maccabees.


5 posted on 12/22/2022 10:58:55 AM PST by nickcarraway
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To: nickcarraway

Interesting that Prager ignores that this was at first a Jewish civil war. Hellenist Jews (‘Mit-yavnim’ in Hebrew) were eager to adopt Greek practices and outlook and to discard Torah-mandated practices.


6 posted on 12/22/2022 11:07:17 AM PST by jjotto ( Blessed are You LORD, who crushes enemies and subdues the wicked.)
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To: nickcarraway
Despite this belief — that the God of Judaism is the God of all humanity — Judaism never insisted that non-Jews needed to convert to Judaism. Thus, Jews never forcibly imposed Judaism on non-Jews. But, unlike all their pagan neighbors, the Jews rejected the gods of everyone else. And this infuriated Antiochus. He hated the Jews’ monotheism.

While the Jews never forcibly imposed Judaism, Christians and Muslims drew the logical conclusion and forcibly imposed Christianity and Islam. However, it is also not clear that Judaism was the only pre-Christian monotheistic religion. There are monotheistic elements in some sects of Hinduism, Zoroastrianism, and Yazdism.

7 posted on 12/22/2022 11:27:20 AM PST by FarCenter
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To: FarCenter

the Jews rejected the gods of everyone else.


Not according to what I read in the OT. Official position vs what they actually did.


8 posted on 12/22/2022 11:36:47 AM PST by PeterPrinciple (Thinking Caps are no longer being issued but there must be a warehouse full of them somewhere.)
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To: dfwgator

:)

“I’m jewish, so its ok!”

Remember dentist Tim Watley on Seinfeld converted to judaism and started with the jokes...

“I went to the gym today and sat in the spa, you know, a jewish workout...”

“Hey Chrissie, gimme a schtickel of fluoride...”


9 posted on 12/22/2022 11:44:37 AM PST by Secret Agent Man (Gone Galt; not averse to Going Bronson.)
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To: FarCenter

I would point out that the statement “Jews never forcibly imposed Judaism on non Jews” is false.

Around 100 BC the Jewish king of judea, john hyracanus, invaded Edom and forcibly converted them to Judaism.

One of those forcibly converted was Herod the great’s father.

Incidentally the Idumeans ie Edomites, ended as a people in 70 AD when they died defending Jerusalem against the Romans


10 posted on 12/22/2022 12:24:18 PM PST by Cronos (.)
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To: FarCenter

Hinduism at best is Henotheism, with the concept of Ishwara as being the primeval God from whom the others emanate. But that belief dates from after Christianity reached India in 52 AD.

Zoroastrianism until Zurvanism, the sect promoted by the Sassanid empire starting from 224 AD, was sternly dualistic with Ahura Mazda, the god of light, being equal to Aingra Mainyu, the God of the lie.

As for Yazdiism, I believe it post dates the arrival of Jews in Babylon


11 posted on 12/22/2022 12:27:55 PM PST by Cronos (.)
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To: nickcarraway

Wow. And some people think Prager is smart or something. Rejecting Greek Hellenism never happened, thankfully, which is why we have human rights, free markets and freedom of religion. Thank you, Pericles and Pythagoras. And thanks go to St. Raymond of Penyafort (died 1275) for advancing the principles of Greek Hellenism and to Alexander Hamilton (died 1804) for advancing free markets.


12 posted on 12/22/2022 1:54:19 PM PST by Falconspeed ("Keep your fears to yourself, but share your courage with others." Robert Louis Stevenson.)
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To: nickcarraway

My stition is more super than your stition


13 posted on 12/22/2022 2:00:59 PM PST by enumerated ( )
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To: FarCenter

“Jews never forcibly imposed Judaism on non-Jews.” Of course not. Gentiles were despised. Christ himself ordered his disciples to have nothing to do with them, and he himself only had relations on, as I recall, three occasions before appearing before Pontius Pilate and meeting his death. Before Paul came along, and the world was changed through the intercession of the heavenly Christ himself, gentiles and jewry were an anathema.


14 posted on 12/22/2022 2:02:06 PM PST by Bookshelf
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To: Bookshelf

Roses are reddish, violets are blueish, if it wasn’t for Jesus, we’d all be Jewish.


15 posted on 12/22/2022 5:18:17 PM PST by HenpeckedCon
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To: nickcarraway

Wow, thanks Jews!


16 posted on 12/22/2022 10:30:06 PM PST by Mr. Blond
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To: 240B; 75thOVI; Adder; albertp; asgardshill; At the Window; bitt; blu; BradyLS; cajungirl; ...
The other GGG topics added since the previous digest ping, chrono sort:

17 posted on 12/24/2022 2:40:32 PM PST by SunkenCiv (Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
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