Last night was the first night to celebrate the festival of lights. It is a great holiday to remind us of the many miracles that God works on our behalf. Here is the story of Hanukkah:
A long time ago, in the land Judea, the Jewish people lived peacefully. They believed in only one God and prayed in a beautiful temple in Jerusalem. But when a Syrian king named Antiochus became ruler, everything changed. He said the Jewish people should pray to many gods, as he did. He said that the Jewish religion was not allowed.
One day, the Kings' soldiers traveled to the Jewish town of Modin. They asked a wise old man names Mattathias to bow down to the a statue of one of their gods. Mattathias refused. This made King Antiochus furious. He sent his men to destroy the Temple of Jerusalem and to punish any Jews who would not obey him. All might have been lost if it had not been for Mattathias and his five sons. They gathered a small band of Jews to fight back. The oldest son, Judah, became their leader. He trained the men to be soldiers, and soon they had a small army. They were so strong they were called Maccabees, the Hebrew word for hammers.
The king's army was huge. It had thousands of soldiers. But the Maccabees were clever. They hid in caves and made surprise attacks. Little by little, they began to defeat the king's army. Finally, after three long years, Antiochus's soldiers gave up.
Judah and the Maccabees marched into Jerusalem. The people took back their temple and began working to make it beautiful again. They cleaned and polished the wood and stone, repaired the walls, and took out Antiochus's statues, and built a new alter. At last, the Temple was ready to be dedicated to God again. It was time to light the traditional seven-candle Menorah, the symbol of the Jews' love for God. The menorah was supposed to remain lit all the time. But the people could only find a small jar of oil, enough to last for just one day. It would take eight days to make more oil. the Jews were too excited about opening their temple again to wait. They decided to pour the oil into the lamp.
The menorah burned for EIGHT whole days. It was a miracle that the oil lasted for eight days, just enough time to make more oil. And it was a miracle that a small group of soldiers could defeat a huge army.
That is the story of Hanukkah. You don't have to be Jewish to understand how wonderful this miracle was to a faithful people. At this time of year, try to look back at your struggles, see how your faith pulled you through and when all was said and done you had been blessed and had witnessed many miracles large and small. Be thankful to your Father in Heaven for those miracles and many more will come to you. I love how Hanukkah and Christmas are thrown together in the same month. The greatest miracle this world has ever known and will ever know was the birth of our Saviour Jesus Christ. We need to constantly remember him in everything we do and grateful for his love and sacrifice so we could be forgiven our our follies and be made whole like him. I am truly blessed with my small family and with friends and most importantly with the knowledge of the true and everlasting Gospel of Jesus Christ in my life. I love you all and wish you a very Merry Christmas and a very Happy Hanukkah!
Recipe for your eating enjoyment: Potato Latkes-Frying latkes in oil is to remind us of the miracle of the oil that burned for eight days.
Ingredients- 6 large potatoes, 2 small onions, 2 eggs, 4 tablespoons of flour, 1 tsp. of salt, oil
1. soak the potatoes in a bowl of water for about half and hour. then drain and peel.
2.grate the potatoes and onions. put them into a large bowl, pouring off any extra liquid.
3.add the eggs, flour, salt. let the mixture sit for a few minutes to thicken.
4.heat several tablespoons of oil in a large frying pan. drop the mixture by the tablespoon, and flatten with a spatula.
5.when the latkes are brown on the bottom, turn them over. when the other side is brown, remove them and drain on paper towels. serve with applesauce. makes about 18.
