Hanukkah, or Chanukah, is a Jewish spiritual holiday that celebrates the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. In the second century B.C.E around the year 165, the Seleucids or Syrian Greeks, ruled over the Jewish Holy Land and tried to force cultural and spiritual assimilation on the Jewish peoples. However, under the leadership of Judah the Maccasbee, a small army of Jewish people were able to defeat what was, at the time, one of the greatest armies on earth and retake their city. With the Greeks driven away, the Holy Temple in Jerusalem was rededicated in service of God. But when the Jewish people went to light the temple’s Menorah, they found only one pot of olive oil that was still uncontaminated by the Greeks. Through steadfast faith and a miracle from God, the oil lasted eight days, the time needed for new oil to be purified under the needed ritual conditions.
Hanukkah is always an eight day celebration in remembrance of the reclaimed Holy Temple and of God’s miracle. Hanukkah is held on Kislev 25, a month on the Babylonian calendar, every year. This means that on the Gregorian calendar the holiday falls sometime between the end of November and the beginning of January. This year it was held from December 14th to December 22nd.
During modern Hanukkah celebrations, the Festival of Lights is celebrated through candles, food, family, friends, and games. Throughout the eight days of Hanukkah, the candles of the Menorah are lit one by one, adding a new lit candle for every day of the celebration, ceremonially bringing in new light day by day. This is symbolic of the Holy Temples Menorah and is often accompanied by prayer or song. Hanukkah is also celebrated through food. Foods like Latke (pancake) and Sufanya (doughnut), which are fried in oil, are served in remembrance of the miracle of the oil. Along with this, it is customary to play with a dreidel, a four-sided top with Hebrew letters inscribed on it. The game is played most typically for a pot of coins, nuts, or other food which is lost or won based on the letter the dreidel lands on. Hanukkah is a time for joy, family, and dedication.
Sources
https://reformjudaism.org/jewish-holidays/hanukkah
https://www.chabad.org/holidays/chanukah/article_cdo/aid/102911/jewish/What-Is-Hanukkah.htm
https://www.chabad.org/4592151
