The Miracle of Chanukah In the Second Temple era, the Greek sovereignty decreed many terrible decrees upon the Jewish people and did not allow them to involve themselves in Torah learning or Mitzvah observance with hopes of making them forget the commandments of the Torah. Additionally, the Greeks entered the holy Temple and inflicted much damage and disrepair upon it. All this caused tremendous anguish to the Jewish nation until Hashem had mercy on them and brought about salvation to Israel through the sons of the Hashmonai high-priests who defeated and annihilated the Greeks and eventually appointed a member of their own priestly family as king. When the Hashmonai family entered the recently ruined Temple and wanted to light the pure Menorah (candelabra), only one container of pure olive oil, enough to last for only one day, was found. However, Hashem performed a miracle and the flames of the Menorah stayed kindled for eight consecutive days until they were able to procure more olives in order to produce more pure olive oil. The day that the single container of pure oil was found was the 25th of Kislev and thus, the Sages of that generation established these eight days, beginning with the 25th of Kislev, as days of thanksgiving and joy. Furthermore, they established that candles should be lit every one of these eight nights in order to publicize the miracle. These days are called “Chanukah.”
Posted on: Wed, 20 Nov 2013 07:15:20 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015