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Jewish Life & Celebrations

Chanukah

The Real History of Chanukah

A long time ago the Greeks led by Alexander the Great, their king, were trying to take over the world. When they reached Jerusalem, they put the city under Grecian rule, but they allowed the Jews to practice their religion. They also introduced the Jews to Greek culture. Many Jews embraced Greek ideas concerning beauty, art, music, books, drama and philosophy.

After Alexander the Great died, the new ruler became Antiochus IV. He began to oppress the Jews severely. He placed a Hellenistic (Greek) priest in the Temple, massacred Jews, prohibited the practice of the Jewish religion, and desecrated the Temple by requiring the sacrifice of pigs on the altar.

Although many Jews enjoyed the new Greek culture, more traditional Jews, led by Mattathias the Hasmonean, and his son, Judah Maccabee, were opposed not only to the Greeks but also to the Jews who welcomed Greek culture. Mattathias and his sons led a revolt against the Greek government. Their fight was also aimed at their fellow Jews who welcomed the Hellenistic (Greek) ideas.

The uprising succeeded and the Greeks were defeated. Maccabean Jews recaptured Jerusalem and the Temple. This war ended in the fall, around October. However, the victorious Maccabees waited until the Winter Solstice Festival, then called Nayrot (which means “lights”) to rededicate the Temple. They changed the name of Nayrot to Chanukah, which means “dedication” and they hid the original meaning of the Nayrot festival.

Nearly 300 years later, the rabbis developed a fanciful story to down-play the responsibility that men and women have for their own lives and to emphasize, instead, reliance on supernatural intervention.

The new story, written in the Talmud hundreds of years after the military victory, dismissed the political uprising and added the story of the oil that miraculously lasted for eight days. Oil was needed for the menorah (candelabrum) in the Temple, which was supposed to burn throughout the night every night. According to the rabbis, there was only enough oil to burn for one day, yet miraculously, it burned for eight days, the time needed to prepare a fresh supply of oil for the menorah. The rabbis declared an eight-day festival to commemorate this miracle. According to this explanation, the holiday commemorates the miracle of the oil, not the military victory. It shifts the emphasis from the military skill of the Maccabees, who are barely mentioned, to the supernatural intervention of Yahweh.

As Humanistic Jews, we celebrate this holiday as a victory of human achievement and freedom from oppression. We celebrate the idea that people can stand up for what they believe is right, even against the odds.

We also teach another part of the story that is often overlooked. It is that after the Maccabees overthrew the Greeks, they later became oppressive leaders themselves. It is very easy for victors to become as cruel and harsh as the former leaders they replaced. They were especially cruel to their fellow Jews who didn’t think the same way they did, and were unwilling to allow the Hellenist Jews to embrace their newly found culture.

Following their victory, the Maccabees and their descendants oppressed the masses of the Jewish people with extreme acts of cruelty. And when they won military battles, they forced the conquered peoples to convert to Judaism. They had become as tyrannical as the Greeks they overthrew.

As Humanistic Jews, we celebrate the Maccabees’ victory over the Greeks, but we condemn the way they became harsh rulers themselves. We do not believe in telling stories about miracles, but rather, celebrate the deeds of human achievement. And we believe in telling the full story, even if it isn’t always so positive and doesn’t always show off our ancestors in a good light. And this is what Chanukah means to us, too: that we have the freedom and the responsibility to tell the real story of Chanukah, not some make-believe legend, including all the events that took place. And as part of this real story, we can make connections with the original Winter Solstice celebration.

Finally, we think that Chanukah is a wonderful time to celebrate the joy of freedom and peace. We light our menorahs to bring brightness to the lives of our family, our friends and ourselves.




From “The Voice” of The City Congregation for Humanistic Judaism, New York, NY; Adapted by Rabbi Peter Schweitzer from writings of Rabbi Sherwin T. Wine, materials provided by the Society for Humanistic Judaism and other sources.

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