Three Chanukah Cheers for the Maccabees Michael Galak
https://quadrant.org.au/opinion/religion/2022/12/three-chanukah-cheers-for-the-maccabees/
EXCERPT
The history behind this festival is extraordinary. What’s more, far from being important only to the Jewish people only, this festival is relevant to the entire Western civilization. I would even go as far as to say that this festival commemorates a decisive moment for the Western world because the events of more than 2000 years ago celebrated at Chanukah influenced — indeed, determined — the future of we know today as the Western world. If you think this assertion a bit over the top, please read on.
The Hanukkah story
Let me take you back to the time of the Greek-Syrian despot Antiochus III (222 -186 BC) , succeeded by his son Seleucus IV, and then by his brother of the same name during one of the most dramatic times Israel has endured in all its long and difficult history. Needing the money to pay off the Romans, who won a war against him, Seleucus decided to foot the bill by confiscating the treasure from the Temple in Jerusalem. At the time, every Jewish adult paid a special tax – ‘half a shekel” – in order to provide for orphans, to provide for the sacred rituals and, of course, to maintain the Temple itself. The decision to confiscate the national treasure was met with outrage but the people were helpless to resist.
Seleucus IV was succeeded in 174BC by his brother, Antiochus IV, more commonly known as Epimanes, the madman. To root out an intractable Jewish individualism he forbade all Jewish laws to be followed. The Jews rebelled, were crushed and thousands died. Jewish worship was forbidden, the Torah scrolls were siezed and burned, their study declared punishable by execution. Sabbath rest, circumcision and the observing of dietary laws were prohibited under pain of death, with many more thousands killed for refusing to comply. The spark which ignited the firestorm was lit in the village of Modiin, where an elderly priest, Mattityahu, refused to offer sacrifices as demanded by the gods of the Greeks. The villagers fell upon the Syrian soldiers and killed them. After this, the Jews had no choice but to seek refuge in the surrounding hills of Judea, and that is where the rebellion became a guerrilla war. The Jewish volunteer legions were formed, led by Juda Maccabee. This name, by way of background, was an acronym of the four Hebrew words Mi Kamocha Ba’Eilim Hashem – “Who is like You, oh G-d”.
Despite their overwhelming strength, the Syrian-Greek armies were defeated by the Maccabees, who returned to Jerusalem in triumph and rededicated the Temple, casting out the idols placed there in 139 BCE.
However, there was a problem. To conduct Templ’s re-dedication ceremony specially prepared olive oil was needed. Maccabees hadlocated only one supply of the good oil, but this was sufficient for only a single day. The legend tells us that this meagre quantity nevertheless kept the lamp burning for a miraculous eight days, hence Chanukah’s emphasis on having oily foods on the festive table. After the Temple’s re-dedication the war of liberation continued, with all invaders defeated and the land of Israel free and independent.
WHAT has all this got to do with the rest of the world? OK, the Jews won and, rather optimistically as it turned out, were looking forward to living happily ever after. There were more wars, however. People fought for their beliefs and their survival, won or were defeated, and thus did history repeat itself again and again. Human history is a ledger of endless war. Why then is this Jewish war against Greeks and Syrians so different, so important?
The answer is both simple and complicated at the same time. At a glance, this is the story of another liberation struggle for national integrity and identity, a revolution of dignity and of brave and unshakeable resistance. But there is another dimension, that of universal relevance and impact. Let me explain.
The key to understanding this seemingly puzzling twist is in the word ‘Bible’. Let me be clear and restate the obvious: the Bible — the Old Testament, as Gentiles call The Book — is a literal translation of the five books of The Torah, which Jews believe to be divinely inspired. From this simple fact all the rest flows. The Jewish struggle to retain the Torah, to continue to teach it to their children and to pass it on to the future generations goes well beyond the guerrilla war, however heroic. The Jewish fight to the death against paganism also takes on an entirely different meaning. The immensity of Jewish sacrifices in defending the Jewish right to follow the Jewish Law is indisputable. However, in their darkest hour, the Jewish people, being at the time the only monotheistic nation on the planet, fought for the future of all humanity even if they did not realise as much at the time. That is, objectively, the result of their struggle against paganism.
Imagine for a moment, that the Jews had lost, that the Syrians and Greeks succeeded in banning The Torah, forbidding all Jewish practices and installing in the Temple the idols of which they were so fond. Western civilization would not have become monotheistic and paganism would reign supreme. The Bible would not have become the cornerstone of the Western civilization. Christianity would not exist and there would be no Christian culture, nor would we enjoy its many contributions to the rise of West. No Sistine Chapel, no Ave Maria, no Ten Commandments, no supremacy of the life of the individual, no concept of human rights – just idols. It would be a different, very different culture. Surely, as day follows night, it would be different world, very different one.
The struggle for Jewish freedom was the fight to save monotheism for the world. That is why, I believe, the Menorah light represent much, much more than the miracle of the oil. Rather, it is a light of knowledge and hope for all members of the human race.
So Chanukah Sameach! Have some latkes!
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