Hanukkah: History and Traditions
2024-11-25
Hanukkah, known as the Festival of Lights, is an eight-day Jewish celebration marking the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem in the second century BCE. This period commemorates the triumph of the Maccabees over the oppressive Seleucid ruler Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who aimed to enforce Hellenistic culture and religious practices. Their victory allowed the Jews to reclaim, purify, and dedicate their temple anew to God.