As we celebrate the Light, let us also remember the warriors who fought and died to keep the Light burning.
The First and Second Books of Maccabees are the most detailed accounts of the battles of Judah Maccabee and his brothers for the liberation of Judea from foreign domination. The military prowess of Judah Maccabee, the Hammer, is legendary. To put it bluntly and crudely, the Maccabees were bad-@$$ warriors!
A statue of Judah Maccabee can be found at the United States Military Academy, a symbol of his influence as a warrior on George Washington and subsequent officers of the United States Army. Below is a picture of West Point Cadets claiming their heritage.
The Books of Maccabees are the earliest historical account of the rededication of the Temple. Hanukkah is Hebrew for dedicate. You could say the Maccabees hanukkah'ed' the Temple.
Yet, these books are missing from the Hebrew Bible, the Tanakh. There is some debate about why. Nonetheless, while the original Books were written in Hebrew, the Hebrew books were lost to the Jewish world for many centuries.
Hanukkah is the only holiday in the Jewish calendar that does not have a corresponding mishnaic tractate.
Ironically, the Books of Maccabees survived because they were translated to Greek and became part of the Christian canon.
Interestingly, there is renewed interest in these texts in the Jewish community. "Students of Jewish history and Jewish literature recognize the value of these documents that took such pains to record details, events and personalities of a major period in Jewish history."
Jews will find something more in Maccabes; Something which is common in the Christian mindset, but not a theme in the Jewish mindset. Maccabees, particularly the 2nd book, was quite vivid about the belief in resurrection.
Judah Maccabeus and his brothers were zealous Jews of the priestly Levite tribe. They fought with complete faith that they would be victorious in death. It is impossible to read the story of the "Mother and Her Seven Sons" in Maccabees II and not be moved by their faithfulness and confidence in resurrection. (Link to story. Warning: It is a downright gruesome story.)
The holiday of Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights, brings Jew and Christian together. It is a holiday we both can celebrate. After all, we both want to bring more Light into the World.
You say December, we say Kislev, but we both celebrate on the 25th! The 25th of December on the Gregorian calendar is the 359th day. 359 is the numeric value of the word Messiah in Aramaic, the predominant language at the time of Jesus.
P.S. Light is a common theme with other religions. Diwali (also spelled Divali), the festival of lights, is one of the major holidays of Hinduism and is also celebrated in Jainism and Sikhism.
