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Subject: Chanukah (Feast of Renewal or Dedication)
Date: Tue, 15 Dec 1998 18:18:40 -0800
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From: Uri Marcus
To: heb_roots_chr@geocities.com
Subject: Chanukah (Feast of Renewal or Dedication)

Shalom once again from Jerusalem, and Eretz Israel, Land of the Maccabim*:

Hag Chanukah Samay'ach (Holiday Greetings) to all...

---------------
LIGHT THE LIGHT
---------------

THE FIRST of eight Chanukah candle lightings begins this evening at
sundown, the 25th of Kislev on the Hebrew Calendar (13th of December), as
many of you know. With christmas** just around the corner, and it being a
holiday day with dubious pagan origins and which falsely impersonates
itself as the day which Yeshua HaMashiach was born, we though you might
be encouraged if we brought you some teaching which will assist you in
reconnecting to your roots, the Torah, and to the Land and People of
Israel, instead.

Each holiday that the Jewish People approach is like a way-station along
the turnpike of history. The largest distance on that highway is between
Succot and Pesach, between which there is no holiday to stop off and
refuel. In the darkness of exile, G-d in His wisdom provided us with two
more fueling stations, Chanukah and Purim. Through tradition, we
celebrate Chanukah, which reminds us about what makes us His People.
Namely, it is through the wisdom of G-d, the purity and continuance of
the Torah, the strength and genius He provided to the Maccabim to be
victorious over the ancient Syrian/Greek forces, and our steadfast
committment to serve the G-d of our forefathers.

Differnt traditions of Beit Hillel vs. that of Beit Shammai*** will
determine if Jewish households will light the Chanukah candels in an
ascending fashion, or in a decending fashion. In anycase, the last of the
lightings this year will occur on the evening of the 20th of December.

------
NOTES:

* Maccabim -- the heros of the Chanukah story according to Jewish
History. The term "Maccabee" is most likely an acrostic created by
combining the first letter of the Hebrew words "Mi Kamocha Ba'Elim
Adonai," which means, "Who is like you, O Lord, from amongst the gods?"

The second theory is that "Maccabee" is the Hebrew word for "Hammer,"
derived from the root "Makav." Yehudah, the leader of the revolt
against the Syrians, was given the name "Maccabee" because of his
great strength.

In either case, one will not find any Talmudic reference to the
Maccabees or the Hashmona'im (Hasmonean Dynasty) because, by
purposeful ommission, the Rabbis expressed dissatifaction over the
action of the Hashmona'im, who re-established the monarchy after their
victory over the Syrian-Greeks. Jewish tradition maintained that the
right to be royalty belonged only to the House of David, descendants
of the tribe of Yehudah. The Hashmona'im were not members of this
tribe, nor were they Levim or Cohanim (Levites or Priests). The result
of their political mischief became fully manifest during the days of
Yeshua, when the positions of Kingship and the Priesthood became
totally corrupt and were driven by political manipulations for greed
and power, rather than by Torah commands.

**As a reminder, for any who may have missed earlier posts, and would
like to get a copy of two articles which deal with the whole issue of the
real birthday of Messiah vs the imposter (christmas), please write in
with your request, and I'll post them to you via eMail. The message in
entitled "Succot or Christmas?".

*** There is a dispute in the Talmud between Beit (school of...) Shammai
and Beit Hillel whether to increase the number of candles each day from
one to eight, or to start with eight and remove a candle each day for
eight days. Beit Hillel argues that we should add a candle each day since
Chanukah celebrates the return of holiness to the Temple after its
contamination by the Greeks. Hence, we also move upward in matters of
"kedusha" (holiness) and therefore should light in ascending order to
illustrate this increase in kedusha, or our belief in the gradual
progress of spiritual growth. Thus, it can also be understood that the
Torah observant people of G-d the world over, mark the slow but steady
victory over the violent storms which have raged against us across the
centuries, and will eventually culminate in our salvation, bringing about
"life from the dead" through Y'shua HaMashiach. Zechariyahu best sums it
up when he records for us, "Not my might, nor by power, but by My Spirit,
says the Lord of hosts," whose words are read in the Haftarah portion
(reading from the Prophets) for Shabbat Chanukah (Zechariah 2:14-4:7).

Beit Shammai's rationale is for going downward, and diminishing the
number of candles lit each night by one, since the world is in a state
of decline, which will lead to the arrival of the Mashiach, who will
restore all things. Thus, lighting the Chanukah (candle holder) in
descending order would symbolize the decreasing effect that entropy
has on the world and the decreasing influence that the Nations have on
the Jewish people in accordance with prophecy, eventually bringing the
Mashiach.

--------------
UP FOR RENEWAL
--------------

Chanukah is one of the Jewish people's ancient holidays whose
non-biblical origin was instituted about 2,200 years ago by our Rabbis
and Sages. It is in commemoration of the miracle that occurred during the
war of liberation against the Syrian-Greeks in the year 165 BCE. Yehuda
HaMaccabee and his four brothers, all members of the Hashmona'im family,
triumphed over their enemy who had invaded Israel and eventually
conquered Jerusalem as part of their overall efforts to subjugate the
world to Greek hegemony.

The first thing the Greeks did after gaining control of Jerusalem was to
corrupt the Temple service and prohibite Rosh Chodesh (the New Moon
celebration), a move intended to humiliate the Jewish population and
assert the superiority of Greek culture over Jewish culture. But, since
the Jewish calendar is based upon the re-appearance of the moon, yet is
regulated by the sun, unless the new months can be proclaimed, there is
no calendar, and without a calendar there can be no festivals. Thus, if
the Syrian-Greeks had succeeded in eradicating the observance of Rosh
Chodesh, they would have succeeded in eliminating large numbers of other
Torah commandments which relate to the Temple service.

Rosh Chodesh symbolizes renewal, the ability the G-d provided for His
people to rise up from oblivion and restore themselves. In the same way
that the moon does not contain the light within itself, but reflects the
light it receives from a greater source, so are the people of G-d, who
have not the light within themseles, but receive it from Mashiach, the
Living Torah. Just as the moon disappears at the end of each month, but
returns and grows to fullness, so the nation of Israel may suffer exile
and decline, but they always renew themselves -- until the coming of
Messiah, when the promise of the Exodus and the Revelation at Sinai will
be fulfilled, never to be dimmed again.

Having this as our hope in the interim, when our Torah was threatened,
the Jewish people rose up in defense of it and the Temple service, and
their triumph is commemorated through Chanukah, the festival of renewal.
The commemoration of this great military victory over the Syrian-Greeks
serves to not only to focus our attention on G-d's miracles, wonders and
deliverances of His people during the days of the Maccabees, but
throughout the ages as well.

This is why the first thing the Hashmona'im liberators of Jerusalem did
was to restore the Temple service to its original state. To do this it
was necessary to light the great Menorah of the Temple with ritually pure
olive oil.

The eternal light of the Temple Menorah had always represented the
everlasting relationship between the Eternal One and His people. Thus,
any effort to change or corrupt the nature of the Menorah, was as an
attempt to undermine this relationship and negate the identity of the
chosen nation. The Greeks knew this, as they sought to impose the
paganism of the Hellenistic world of their day, upon the Jews, and so
outlawed, under penalty of death, the teaching or study of Torah.

The scenerio is a familiar one in our own day, as Greek mythology,
paganism, and idolatry so prevalent in the church, seek to influence and
overtake the minds and hearts of G-d's people in the Body of the Messiah,
the world over. This hellenization of the Gospel is the most successful
time-tested strategy that HaSatan uses to lure the saints away from their
roots, and it will endure until the end of days, when the True Judge, the
Mashiach will arrive to replace the man-centered abstract rule of
knowledge and experience, with the G-d centered concrete rule of the fear
of the Almighty and His revelation.

After the Hashmona'im liberated Jerusalem they searched all of the
storage areas of the Temple to find pure olive oil to re-light the
Menorah. At the end of their search they found only one small bottle,
which would have provided enough oil for only one day's worth of burning.
They knew that the process of obtaining new oil would take seven days.
They were faced with a dilemma. Should they rekindle the Menorah
immediately, only to have its light go out once again at the end of the
day, or should they wait until new oil was available, and thus delay this
important assertion of national allegiance to the Torah?

In the end they decided that it was better to rekindle the Menorah, if
only for one day, than to delay the ritual. Then the Guardian of Israel
"who neither sleeps nor slumbers" performed a miracle and the oil burned
eight days. This gave them the necessary time for new oil to be prepared
and brought to the Temple.

When the news of the miracle reached the general population, its effect
was dramatic. A great sense of national pride was ignited and renewed
effort was made to drive out the foreign invaders. Those Jews who still
lived under Greek persecution especially needed the news. It gave them
the strength to resist and the motivation to fight. The following year,
our Sages instituted the Mitzvah (commandment) of kindling lights to
commemorate the seven-day miracle of Chanukah.

Then why "EIGHT" days for Chanukah? Shouldn't we only light the lights
for seven days, because on that first day the Menorah burned completely
naturally -- after all, there was enough oil for the one day, in which
there was no miracle at all.

Not true! It is taught that the eighth candle is to remind us of the
miracle that is constantly with us. The problem is that a lot of the time
we don't see it as a miracle at all. We don't call it a miracle. We call
it "Nature." However, we have to open our eyes to see from where that
support is coming. And that's the reason we light the eighth candle - to
celebrate the miraculous in the mundane. To remind ourselves that Mother
Nature has a Father.

We are reminded of this when we daily recite the "Amidah" or "standing
prayer" during Chanukah, in which we give thanks to G-d and add,

"And for the miracles, and for the salvation, and for
the mighty deeds, and for the victories, and for the
battles which You performed for our forefathers in those
days, at this time. You in your great mercy stood up for
them in the time of their distress. You took up their
grievance, judged their claim, and avenged their wrong.
You delivered the strong into the hands of the weak, the
many into the hands of the few, the impure into the
hands of the pure... and the arrogant into the hands of
those who were faithful to thy Torah... Your children
came to the Holy of Holies of Your House, cleansed Your
Temple... kindled lights in the Courtyards of Your
Sanctuary; and they established these eight days of
Chanukah to express thanks and praise to Your great
Name."

------------------------
EIGHT, THE FINAL RENEWAL
------------------------

What is the significance of the number eight? Why does it appear in
connection with some of our holidays? What does it teach us?

The number seven defines the natural world: There are seven days in the
week; seven notes in the diatonic scale. Eight is that which reveals the
supernatural in the natural. Brit mila, the mitzvah (commandment) of
circumcision, for example, is performed on the eighth day after birth.
Brit mila reveals the spiritual in the physical.

It accomplishes this by removing the covering of nature. It takes off the
mask of the natural world to reveal that Man's body has a holy
purpose. It teaches us that the real purpose of the world, which is
spiritual -- we allow the spiritual core to break through to the physical
world. We accord spirituality its appropriate place at the pinnacle of
Creation and we relegate the physical to its subjugated role as a
backdrop to holiness. In other words, the physical becomes the canvas
upon which the spiritual world is painted.

When the days of Mashiach will arrive, this world view will be the rule,
and not the exception, as it is today. In an instant, the covering will
be removed from nature. Suddenly everything became transcendently clear.

When the world hears just three words - "I am HaShem" - all the paradoxes
and mysteries will be revealed to be no more than an overture to the
final crescendo of world history.

Then HaShem will reveal the faithfulness of His covenant, His Brit, with
the People of Israel and the covering will be removed from the natural
world once and forever.

------------------
RENEWING OUR FOCUS
------------------

The Holy Temple was the place where G-d's Presence was manifest among the
Jewish People in ancient Israel. In the Holy Temple itself, the Divine
Presence was most manifest in the western part. The ark containing the
"two tablets" was in the west, and the western lamp of the Menorah
(candelabra) burned miraculously for centuries before the Greeks snuffed
it out.

Even though the Temple was destroyed in 70 CE, the Western Wall remains
until this day. This was foretold by the midrash (Jewish literature)
which states "the Western Wall will never be destroyed, because the
Divine Presence is manifest in the west."

But the history of this site goes back much further than the Temple. Our
Sages state that this was the place where Avraham offered his son
Yitzchak, and it was here that Ya'akov envisioned the ladder with angels
upon it decending and ascending into G-d's heaven. If ever there were a
portal connecting the earth to the Throne of Glory, it is here, upon the
Temple Mount. It was from this place that G-d took the earth from which
He fashioned Adam, and it is the center of the universe, the point from
which the universe was created and from which it expanded (called "Even
Shatia" or The Foundation Stone).

This is why the Western Wall and its environs has a powerful spiritual
and emotional pull on all humanity. People from all over the world are
drawn here to interface with their souls' deepest yearnings.

It is actually possible to see the Western Wall on the Internet! Just go
to: http://www.virtual.co.il and click on "KotelKam". At about 10:00 PM
Israel time, this evening, you can even witness the ceremoney of the
first candle lighting, at the Western Wall.

------------------------
TRUTH AND BEAUTY RENEWED
------------------------

We live in a world that is replacing substance with form, reality with
appearance. This is the result of the hellenistic model when it is
manifest to its fullest extent upon the world's stage. Its sells us the
idea that man is at the center of all things. Education is the cure for
all evil and leads us into all truth. Knowledge comes through discipline
rather than through the fear of the Lord and beauty substitutes
revelation. The Torah and the Holy One of Israel are not even in view.

Truth and Beauty are redefined. These two values represent a historic and
perpetual confrontation between The People of the Book and The "Beautiful
People", between Jerusalem and Athens.

Greece gave the world the idea that Beauty is, in itself, a supreme
ideal. The Torah says this ideal can become an idol. If Beauty doesn't
dwell in the tents of Truth, then 'Beauty' may become the 'Beast' -- a
pretext for hedonism and immorality.

But don't think that there is no place for Beauty in Torah's world-view,
for it states categorically that aesthetics have a value. But, its value
is to the extent that it serves Truth, and uplifts the soul. In other
words, Truth is Beauty, but what is beautiful may not necessarily be
true. When you gaze into the light of the Chanukah candles, remember that
their light shines out with the radiance of the love for Truth the Torah
brings, through-out all the ages.

--------------
HIDDEN RENEWAL
--------------

Of all Ya'akov sons, the one most closely associated with the study of
Torah Yissaschar. Yissaschar was born on Shavu'ot, the festival of the
Torah's giving. His conception, however, was on Chanukah.

Thus, Yissaschar himself, his very entrance into this world, connects
Chanukah to Shavu'ot. Just as the conception of life is hidden from us,
manifest only after the fact, so too Chanukah symbolizes the hidden light
of the Torah.

Birth represents the ultimate revelation of that which is hidden.
Shavu'ot too, is the ultimate revelation - the Torah revealed in light
and sound on Mount Sinai.

Chanukah falls in the Hebrew month of Kislev. Kislev's sign is the Bow
(the Hebrew word for Bow is "Keshet" in Hebrew). For it was at the
beginning of Kislev that the first rainbow was seen after the Flood. The
rainbow symbolizes the pact that G-d made with Noach never again to
destroy the world with water. The bow also echoes the military victory of
Chanukah - the bow of the purity of Jerusalem vanquishing the bow of
impurity of Athens.

In addition, the hidden colors in the rainbow are like the revelation of
the hidden light which comes from Jerusalem.

A rainbow reveals the anatomy of white light. White light seems
indivisible. No detail can be discerned in its pure whiteness. The
rainbow reveals the secret of the white light. It shows us how the white
light is really composed of all the colors.

Rabbi Shimon once remarked "Do not expect the coming of Mashiach until
you see the self-illuminated rainbow."

Just as the coming of Mashiach is compared to the revelation of the
hidden light, so too Chanukah, the Festival of Lights, is a symbol of the
revelation of the hidden light, the hidden Torah.

------------------------------------
COVENANT RENEWAL (HaBrit HaChadasha)
------------------------------------

One might ask concerning Chanukah, NOT being a Biblically mandated
Holiday, or an "Appointed Season" of G-d... "Do we find any reference of
it in the New Testament?"

The answer is "Yes," we find Yeshua in Jerusalem during the Chanukah in
John 10:18-30.

"Then came the Feast of Dedication at Jerusalem. It was winter, and
Yeshua was in the temple area walking in Shlomo's Colonnade. The Jews
gathered round him, saying, "How long will you keep us in suspense? If
you are the Messiah, tell us plainly." Yeshua answered, "I did tell you,
but you do not believe. The miracles I do in my Father's name speak for
me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. My sheep listen
to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life,
and they shall never perish; no-one can snatch them out of my hand. My
Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no-one can snatch
them out of my Father's hand. I and the Father are one."

Without going to go into a great exposition here of the above passage, it
should serve to encourage you to ponder the import of Yeshua's words as
you connect them to the ideas presented above. Just ask yourself,
"Knowing the traditions and minhagim (customs) of Chanukah, what did
Yeshua's audience think when they heard him answer the age-old question,
'Are you the Messiah?' especially in relation to the miracles G-d
performed and Light of the Torah (Menorah) which was renewed?"

In addition, by all calculations and clues given us in the NT, the
occurance of two events can be pinpointed during the week of Chanukah.

The first is that since Yeshua was born at Succot, and conceived about
six months after Yochanan HaMatbil (John the Baptist), the approximate
time of conception would have fallen sometime in late November to late
December. This is exactly the period of time of the Festival of Chanukah.

Second, in studying the birth narrative, and carefully noting the passage
of time, it is highly likely that the Magi arrived in Beit Lechem with
gifts for the new King of the Jews about 15 months after His birth,
again, at Chanukah.

Instead of getting into elaborate proofs on the above two ascertions in
this article, I will instead invite you to read my Brother's book, "Signs
in the Heavens" which amply developes these themes in a very convincing
way. "Signs in the Heavens" can be ordered by calling in the US,
1-800-880-2656.

--------------------
LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE
--------------------

Chanukah took place in Israel during the Hellenistic oppression called
"Galut Yavan." This third exile lasted 180 years, and was dubbed "the
exile of darkness." "Exile," because the Greeks made every effort to take
away the light of Torah and force Jews see and understand the world in a
way that was alien to the Torah. "Darkness," because nothing is as dark
as the enslavement of the human mind, which the Greeks held on a level
equal with the gods.

Darkness is the absence of light. Things that are negative we often
associate with darkness. They are the opposite of good. Evil is darkness.
But you can combat evil in the world in two ways:

1. You can attack it by fighting whatever is wrong in the world or...

2. You can create such a tremendous light where you are that the
darkness just fades away.

Chanukah expresses the victory of light over darkness. But the question
remains, "Which strategy is most successful; to burn away and destroy
evil; or, to create a greater light so that the darkness just vanishes?"

Look closely at the nature of a flame. It also has two very distinct
properties: it can burn, and it can illuminate. In combating evil in the
world, our two strategies remain.

When Mashiach comes, all the Nations of the world are going to realize
that whatever they did to enrich themselves, i.e. build a world
military-power, make scientific discoveries, become an economic-power,
whatever... they are going to see that the point of it all had to do with
what impact it had on the revealing the Creator to the world, because the
light of Mashiach will then judge and destroy whatever did NOT meet this
criteria.

Our Sages tell us that at this world trial, G-d will ask the 70 Nations:
"what did you do to promote Torah on the earth?" And the Talmud says that
all the Nations will come forward with their new understanding of world
history, and they will try to take credit for having enabled Jews to
learn Torah by providing them with such necessities as marketplaces,
roads, bridges, and bathhouses. But G-d will reject their claim telling
them: "Although your achievements did actually benefit the people of the
Torah, it was only because My Divine Plan of World History put you in a
position to do so. But, in fact, your motivations were purely selfish
ones; either for economic exploitation or physical gratification."

This is why in the meantime, we are supposed to be "A Light Unto The
Nations." That is our particular G-d given role in this world. That is
what light is all about. When we perform as light, i.e. when we do
something about bringing the light of Torah into the world, that's when
there is light! And when we are not a light, i.e. when we are not
performing the good works of the Torah, for which we were made (Eph
2:10), then we end up assimilating, and in essence forgetting who we are.
Whenever this has happened in the history of Israel, like a reactor that
has gone into critical mass, G-d saw fit to remind us of who we are and
that we were His people by sending us the Babylonians, the Persians, the
Greeks, the Romans, the crusaders and the pogromists, enlightenment and
emancipation, and the Western World, and all the other threats that
happened throughout history. They are sent to stimulate us, to wake us
up, and to arouse us back to our original purpose and calling.

Hence, for Jews who light the Chanukiah this year, or for those who can
learn from our customs, we should keep in mind that in our encounter with
"darkness", we don't want to use the flame to burn and destroy the world,
but rather, we want to use it to illuminate the whole world with Torah.
We want to light the way for all the Nations so that they can prosper
materially and spiritually. Even though they will never fully respond to
this before the coming of Mashiach, we must still give them this
prescription. It is the same as it was in the time of the Hellenistic
oppression: by increasing our light, the darkness fades and the bright
Morningstar arises.

Hag Samay'ach (Happy Holiday) and may this entire season be to you and
your house a time of strength for good and for blessing, through Yeshua
the Messiah.

Uri Marcus
Jerusalem

-------------------------------------------------------------
Portions of above material were adapted from the Ohr Somayach
archives, Shorashim's JERUSALEM INSIGHTS and other sources.
-------------------------------------------------------------

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January 22-24, 1999

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