Chanukah, festival of Lights*
Festival of Lights Encourages a Celebration of Cultural Identity
As Paula Marcus took an evening stroll last winter with her husband and son during their holiday visit to Jerusalem, they were stunned by the beauty they witnessed before them. In the front of virtually every home, people had built a glass case in order to display their menorahs during the Festival of Lights. "What was so incredible was the quality of the light that the menorahs gave off because in Israel, there’s a strong tradition associated with oil, so they use oil rather than candles over there, and the glow of the oil-lit flames was just beautiful," she said.
When asked to describe the spiritual aspects of this winter celebration for those of the Jewish faith, she said, "Chanukah is called the Festival of Lights because it gives us a chance to celebrate our heritage, our cultural identity, who we are. It can be compared with using lights to decorate trees for Christmas and the lighting candles for Kwanzaa--it’s all about looking at light at times of darkness." Marcus, who is the cantor for the Temple Bethel, will be performing the Chanukah ceremony at the Kuumbwa Jazz Center [in Santa Cruz] on Dec. 5 from 3:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
What is Chanukah?
Chanukah commemorates the physical and spiritual victory of the Jews against the Greeks almost 2,000 years ago. Chanukah means rededication and the symbols and rituals of the holiday demonstrate an annual renewal of Jewish faith and practices. The story can be found in the Second Book of Maccabees, the last historical book of the Old Testament.
The Temple on Mount Moriah in Jerusalem, the center of Jewish observance, had been taken over by the Greeks for the worship of their gods almost 2,000 years ago, and since Israel was under Greek rule, many Jewish practices had been outlawed. The Greeks destroyed sacred scrolls, books and the inside of the Temple.
The Jews were first led to revolt against their oppressors by Mattathias and his five sons. Eventually, Mattathias was succeeded by his son, Judah Maccabee, and Judah’s army was known as the Maccabees, which means "strong as a hammer". Judah was a natural, fierce leader, and two years later, after many battles with the enormous army of the Greek king, on the 25th day of the month of Kislev, the Jews reclaimed the Temple from the Greeks, and rededicated it as their place of worship.
This sacred space is enclosed with a corridor of stones leading away which represents a Bora. The Bora was a traditional meeting ground of Aboriginals which in this ritual is another connection to their ancestry and spirituality. Connecting with the land has been a vital part of Aboriginal spirituality despite the catholic prominence. Source 1 also ties in with Christian beliefs as well as Aboriginal spirituality with it’s references to “God the creator” and the recollection of Jesus being the light of the world. A candle is placed to acknowledge the light Jesus brought into the world which shows the deep connection to Jesus and Christmas which celebrates Jesus birth. At the centre of the Murri people’s worship place a coolamon which is an area a baby could be placed is created to symbolism Jesus’s Manger. Through source 1 it is shown that religion and spirituality can go side by side in contemporary society by
Judaism is one of the oldest religious practices all over the world. It literally gave a start to two the most popular religions nowadays: Islam and Christianity. It seems that everybody must be familiar with the basics of this religion, though it is not true. The majority of people know only a few attributes or ceremonies that Judaism is using until modern times, such as Menorah (the candelabrum with seven branches), Star of David (traditionally known as the symbol of Judaism) and, let’s say, the Bar Mitzvah ceremony. What people are missing (apart from the associations) is how truly symbolic all of them are in the practice of Judaism. Bar or Bat Mitzvah, for example, present practically the basis of Jewish culture and religion. The idea of how and why it became so important is what we will try to look through.
This is the most significant time of the Jewish year, as it marks the chance for repentance and forgiveness in the eyes of God. During the High Holidays, Jews cleanse their souls and get the chance to start fresh with an unburdened conscience and the intention of doing better in the coming year (Layton, 2014). Before Rosh Hashanah begins, members of this Jewish tradition make amends for the wrong doing that may have occurred during the previous year. Rosh Hashanah allows for reflection and setting forth a path of ethical and spiritual purity for the New Year (Rosh Hashanah, 2014). The phrase Rosh Hashanah literally translates to "Head of the Year."
...e Menorah Journal And Shaping American Jewish Identity: Culture And Evolutionary Sociology. Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal Of Jewish Studies, 30(4), 61-79. doi:10.1353/sho.2012.0095
During the Holocaust, Jews were forced to live in ghettos. The conditions there were horrifying and harmful. To distinguish the Jews and the non-Jews, the Nazis forced Jews to wear Star of David on their clothes. If they tried to escape, a death penalty was enforced on them.
birthday of the world. according to Jewish tradition, all peoples and nations are judged on Rosh Hashanah, not just Jews.
The Nazis were killing thousands of Jews on a daily basis and for many of the Jewish people death seemed inevitable, but for some of the Jewish population they were not going to go down without a fight as Jewish resistance began to occur. However, the Jewish resistance came in many different forms such as staying alive, clean and observing Jewish religious traditions under the absolute horrendous conditions imposed by the Nazis were just some examples of resistance used by the Jews. Other forms of resistance involved escape attempts from the ghettos and camps. Many of the Jews who did succeed in escaping the ghettos lived in the forests and mountains in family camps and in fighting partisan units. Once free, though, the Jews had to contend with local resident and partisan groups who often openly hostile. Jews also staged armed revolts in the ghettos of Vilna, Bia...
Jerusalem offers sacred sites to both religions. The Temple Mount (Haram Al-Sharif) is believed to be the site where Solomon built his temple to house the Ark of the Covenant. The Ark housed the original ten commandments given to Moses by god. These commandments were god’s laws passed down to the Israelites on their journey to the promised land. For Muslims, this site is where the Prophet Muhammad left earth to travel to heaven to converse with god. This used to be their direction of prayer before God instructed Muhammad to face Mecca instead. Mecca is now the holiest site in Islam. The wailing wall is also a source of contention for Muslims and Jews. Here we see a wall that is believed by Jews to be the site of the second temple built by ancient Jews. This spot is also revered by Muslims, as Muhammad is said to have ties his winged horse to it on his night journey into heaven. These sites have been prone to conflict for ages. There are two reasons for this, the first is easy to understand. Sacred sites allow a group of people to be closer to god, it can allow them to feel closer to the divine. When these sites are also points of contention, fighting follows. The second has a more insidious design. Political actors use these spaces to control a populace, or a set of believers. With this control they can use it to their own ends for their true reason, and that is
Ezekiel lived in a time of international crisis and conflict. Assyria was the world power in the area under the rule of Tiglath-pilesar III. In 724 B.C Israel raged war upon Assyria, and Israel was no match for Assyria. In 627 B.C the last of the able Assyrian rulers, Ashurbanipal died. Following the death of Ashurbanipal, Babylon under Nebuchadrezzer II wanted independence from Assyria. In 614 B.C the Assyrians under Nineveh surrendered to the rising Babylonians. In 605 B.C the Babylonians defeated the Egyptians and established themselves as the leading power in the area. During all of this warring, Judah allied itself with Babylonia and kept her independence. However, in 597 BCE, after failing to continue their payment of tribute, Babylonia besieged Jerusalem. Nebuchadrezzer II, king on Babylonia, installs a puppet king, Zedekiah, in order to keep the Judeans in line. Nevertheless, Zedekiah rebels also. In 586, Babylonia exiles the most of the rulers and people of Judah to Babylonia, leaving only the poorest, and decimates Jerusalem, including the temple. Since the people believed the “Zion Theology,” which said Jerusalem is God’s choice of Zion and the monarchy comes from David, exile left the Judeans completely lost. The responses varied among the exiled Judeans, since they assumed that they were safe, after the temple wasn’t destroyed during the first destruction of Jerusalem and the fall of Israel. One response was lament, a feeling or an expression of grief, over their loss. Another was anger towards the Babylonians. A further response was anger toward neighbors who failed to aid them. Moreover, some Judeans turned to Marduk, chief god of the gods of Babylonia, figuring that he overpowered Yahweh, the god of the Judeans. Finally, the Judeans thought judgment had befallen them for their sins against Yahweh and Yahweh revoked his protection of Jerusalem. The Judeans remained in exile, until 538 BCE.
However, after many years the Jews were given permission by the Persians to return to Jerusalem where they proceeded to build the second temple. During the time when the Roman rule came, the Jewish people were waiting for the Messiah to arrive. There was an uprising of zealots that opposed the Roman militants. There was a destruction of the temple and the only remaining part of this temple is the Western Wall. Another interesting factor is that the status of being Jewish is not only religious, but also ethnic. That is to say, one can be ethnically Jewish despite not holding these religious beliefs.
Christmas was originally called "The Feast of the Nativity of Jesus". The word "nativity" comes from the Latin word Natalis, meaning birthday. The observance probably does not date earlier than 200 AD and did not become widespread until the 4th century. The actual date of Jesus birth is unknown but what is known is that Christian leaders in 336 A.D. set the date to December 25 in an attempt to eclipse a popular pagan holiday in Rome. The date of Christmas coincides closely with the winter solstice in the Northern hemisphere, a time of rejoicing among many ancient cultures. Christmas, as the great popular festival of Western Europe, dates from the Middle Ages.
...l present in the lamp stand is a representation of the Holy Spirit which provides light in our lives. This Holy Spirit is given to us as a mercy gift from God. Without this oil in us, our lamps will fade away slowly. Even though the church at Ephesus was doctrinally correct they lacked love. Without love in us we can expect to be judged same way as Israel was judged (Beckham, n.d.).
The people of Israel heard of Holofernes destruction of the west nations and then feared him. They were worried because they just recently moved to Judea and their temple had been declared sacred after they moved. The Israelites then prepared for war and started to pray out to God. They cleansed themselves of all sins before the altar of their Lord. They prayed that God was to not give up on their people and land.
In order to explain, this we need to go back to the very beginning of this creepy holiday. Long ago, a people known as the Celts celebrated a holiday they called Samhain. The Celts lived two thousand years ago in what is now Ireland, the United Kingdom, and Northern France. Celts began each new year on November first; This is the day that ends the harvest and marks the beginning of winter, cold and hard, which many then feared they had not stored enough food to survive. With that in mind it is no small wonder that this time of year was often associated with death. So the day before, Samhain , Celts believed that this world and the Deadworld boundaries blurred and th...