Rabbi's Corner

The Talmud asks: “Mai Chanukkah?" - "What is Chanukkah?” Most American Jews are aware to some degree of the story of Chanukkah. It is actually two stories, one story telling of the victory of the brave Maccabees over the Syrian-Greeks and the other story telling of the miracle of the single cruse of oil that burned for eight days instead of just one. The earliest versions of the story focus on the military victory and are found in both the First and Second Books of Maccabees. You don’t know these books of the Bible? That is not surprising since they were not included in the Hebrew Bible. Instead, they were preserved by the Catholic Church and can be found in the part of their Bible known as “the Apocrypha.” The story of the miracle of the single cruse of oil is found in the Babylonian Talmud, specifically in Tractate Shabbat. It is therefore interesting to note that Chanukkah is the only Jewish holiday that has no basis in the Hebrew Bible. The story of the miracle of the oil is found in the Talmud, specifically in Tractate Shabbat.

Like the American Jewish community, Chanukkah continues to change and develop. During the Middle Ages, the focus of Chanukkah remained on the miracle of the single cruse of oil, this in spite of the fact that story of the bravery of the Maccabees was well known. While most Middle Age Jews did not know that First and Second Books of Maccabees, they did know of the stories, because they were recorded in Megillot Antiochus. The Scroll of Antiochus speaks of both the military victory of the Maccabees over the Syrian-Greeks and the miracle of the single cruse of oil. In America, Chanukkah is greatly influenced by the celebration of Christmas. Sadly, the attempt by the American Jewish community to create a Jewish equivalent to Christmas has made gift giving the most important part of the holiday and has made Chanukkah more important that the Torah-ordained festivals of Sukkot and Shavuot.

In the State of Israel, the military victory has an equal if not more important status and comes to play a central role in the celebration of the festival. The heroic struggle of the Maccabees over the numerically superior Syrian-Greeks is in keeping with Israel’s self-image.

So, “Mai Chanukkah - What is Chanukkah?” Chanukkah is like the flickering flames of the lights of the Chanukiah. The flames never look the same from one instant to the next, but at its core, the festival remains unchanged.

May you enjoy a joyous Chanukkah season spent with family and friends.