[MoJo2001]

Good morning, troops! Hope everyone is doing well. Just got back from SHOPPING!! Woohoo!!!

Happy Hanukkah To Our Jewish Friends and Allies!! Be safe! May you have continued peace, prosperity, good health, and fortune!

[Kathy in Alaska]

Oh my gawd, Kid, you are actually one of those who goes out with the hordes!

[Radix]

The Hammer

Judah the Maccabee

Nearly two hundred years before Christ, in the land of Judea, there was a Syrian king, Antiochus*. He had ambitions of becoming a world ruler, like Alexander the Great, and planned to establish the Greek way of life in all his lands. The king ordered the Jewish people to reject their God, their religion, their customs and their beliefs and to worship the Greek god, Zeus. He defiled and desecrated the Temple, prohibited the Jews from keeping the Sabbath, and outlawed the Torah and practices such as circumcision. As a final insult he erected a statue of Zeus on the altar in the Temple.


There were some who did as they were told, but many refused. A priest, Mattityahu, slew one of the king's officers, and escaped with his five sons to the wilderness. There they were joined by many other Jews, who carried on a guerrilla war against the king.

The five brothers were Judah, John, Simon, Eleazer and Jonathan. When Mattityahu died, Judah, the eldest son, became leader of the rebellion. He became known as "the Maccabee", which means "the Hammerer" **. After two years of fighting, the Maccabees were finally successful in driving the Syrians out of Israel and reclaimed the Temple in Jerusalem. The Maccabees wanted to clean the building and to remove the hated Greek symbols and statues. On the 25th day of the month of Kislev, the job was finished and the Temple was rededicated.


When Judah and his followers finished cleaning the temple, they wanted to light the lamps of the great Menorah. This should be kept continually alight, and is remembered in synagogues today by the eternal light, known as the N'er Tamid. Once lit, it should never be extinguished.

When they entered the Temple, only a tiny jug of oil was found with only enough for a single day. The oil lamp was filled and lit. Then a miracle occurred as the tiny amount of oil stayed lit not for one day, but for eight days.

Jews celebrate Hanukkah to mark the victory over the Syrians and the rededication of the Jerusalem Temple. The Festival of the Lights, Hanukkah, lasts for eight days to commemorate the miracle of the oil. The word Hanukkah means "rededication".

* Antiochus IV Epiphanes ("The Illustrious) ruled from 175-163 BC)

** There is also a legend that Judah's banners bore the slogan "Mi Chamoca Ba'ElimYahweh" (Who is like you among the mighty, O Lord?), from Exodus 15:11. The initial letters of this slogan spell out the word 'Maccabee'.