Hanukkah celebrates Jewish re-dedication
“Hanukkah is simply not a Jewish version of Christmas,” said Stephen Siporin, a practicing Jew as well as a professor of religious studies at USU. “Hanukkah is more like a Jewish independence day than anything else.”
Some Americans and Christians may have the misconception that since Hanukkah often overlaps Christmas festivities, the holidays are related, he said. But the timing, he said, is simply a coincidence. Judaism 101, a Web site which states it’s devoted to helping the world better understand Jewish culture, states Hanukkah is an eight-day Jewish festival of re-dedication.
“Also known as the festival of lights, it begins the 25th day of the Jewish month of Kislev. Hanukkah is probably one of the best known Jewish holidays, not because of any great religious significance, but because of its proximity to Christmas,” the site states. “Many non-Jews (and even many assimilated Jews) think of this holiday as the Jewish Christmas, adopting many of the Christmas customs, such as elaborate gift-giving and decoration. It is bitterly ironic that this holiday, which has its roots in a revolution against assimilation and the suppression of Jewish religion, has become the most assimilated, secular holiday on our calendar.”
Siporin said at that time, the Jewish people in Judea were under control of the Greek empire in Syria. The emperor did not approve of the Jewish religion and forced the people to worship the Greek gods, which included the emperor, he said. According to the Torah, the Jewish holy book containing much of the Old Testament and other writings, this was unacceptable since they were commanded to worship only one God.
Eventually the emperor put a statue of Zeus in the temple of Jerusalem. This, Siporin said, incited a rebellion among the Jewish people. The Jews eventually won and in 165, they retook Jerusalem.
“The story of Hanukkah is one of independence and of the little guy overcoming oppression,” Siporin said. “It is like an independence day for us. This notion was increased during the Zionist movement when the Jews wanted to return to Israel after World War II.”
The other, more publicized miracle, Siporin said, is the story of the menorah. In the Jewish temple, an oil lamp called the eternal flame was always lit. After the Jews regained control of the temple, they had to relight the menorah, he said. But there was only enough oil left to keep it lit for one day, and it would take eight days to make more oil. Miraculously, he said, the oil burned for eight days, and the flame didn’t go out.
“The story of the light isn’t as exciting as an underdog defeating a great empire, but it is the story that has captured people’s imaginations,” Siporin said.
It is from the story of the menorah that most of the Hanukkah traditions come. Siporin said Hanukkah lasts eight days to commemorate the eight days of light. In addition, Jews light eight candles in a candle-holder, which is not called a menorah, but rather a hanukkiya. Siporin said this also commemorates the eight days.
“Fried foods, potato pancakes and a kind of doughnut are also eaten during Hanukkah,” Siporin said. “This is related to the symbolism of oil and light. The idea of light as the presence of God and of enlightenment is particularly strong. Children are even given gold coins for the holiday because they are shiny.”
The comparison to Christmas here in America is still particularly strong, he said.
“In America, Hanukkah became particularly important because of its proximity to Christmas,” Siporin said. “It is hard for Jewish kids to deal with not having a Christmas gift, so Hanukkah adapted to that need. Hanukkah added some Christmas traditions and became a bit more Christianized in America. But the same thing happened with Christmas. Christmas used to be a time for men to get drunk and to shoot guns. Then it became a family holiday, and now it is becoming very commercialized. In that regard, Hanukkah and Christmas are similar.”
-michael.buhler@aggiemail.usu.edu