Christmastime, Jewish people celebrate Hanukkah (meaning deliverance) to commemorate a historic struggle for their religious freedom. Hanukkah is celebrated around the time of the winter solstice, when the year's decline into darkness ends and the days begin to lengthen again. It is a joyous eight-day-long period, marking the climax of three years of Jewish resistance against the Syrian Greeks, some twenty-one centuries ago.
Central to the Hanukkah celebration is the menorah - an eight-branched candelabra used in Jewish worship. The menorah symbolizes the eight days that a meager amount of oil (sufficient only for a day) in the reclaimed holy temple of Jerusalem miraculously kept burning for eight days. The Jews then saw this as a clear sign from God that their faith was enduring and they have celebrated the 2,000-year-old miracle ever since
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Modern-day Jews celebrate this Miracle at the Temple, the transformation of spiritual darkness into light, with the ritual lighting of candles in every home. For this purpose, they use a special Hanukkah menorah, which has nine lamps or candle branches. The night light, typically located in the center of the menorah and raised slightly above the others, is designated the shammash (server light) whose sole purpose is to provide the flame for kindling the other holy lights (four on each side).
Every evening during the eight days of Hanukkah, the family gathers around the menorah. The father or mother lights the shammash, after which the family recites three traditional blessings. On the first night, the wielder of the shammash lights the taper farthest to the right; then all family members join in singing a religious song. And on each succeeding night, they add another light to the first, symbolizing the new day. Finally, the ritual is capped with gift-giving. Candles are put in the menorah from right to left (as in Hebrew reading) but lit from the left, so the one put in last is lit first.
This Jewish ritual is similar to the Catholic novena prior to Christmas Eve that is capped with the family Noche Buena and exchange gifts. Now, we can celebrate Christmas at home just like the Hanukkah way by making your family's menorah.
From the simplest clay oil lamps to freestyle or geometric ways, artisans from different countries interpreted the menorah, retaining the candelabra's basic components - eight candle holders or oil cups, arranged in a uniform fashion on the same level (they do not have to be connected), with a ninth (shammash)at the center.
According to a notable writer, "This merger of art and religion dates back to the Bible. Bezalel, the first Jewish artist, was called upon by Moses to construct the first menorah, following the instructions Moses received from God on Mount Sinai. Rabbinical teachings also encourage the creation of beautiful and well-designed ceremonial objects."
Now, start making your menorah and reap the blessings of Christmas or see a miracle of lights, like what occurred in Maccabee, Jerusalem some 2,000 years ago.
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