Today is Rosh Chodesh, the first day in the Hebrew month of Kislev. Though Hanukkah does not fall until the twenty-fifth day of the month, the brilliance of the coming festival looms over the preceding month, as we look forward to filling our darkened days with light and joy. But before we begin to decorate, cook, and celebrate in anticipation of the holiday, our people’s history implores us to consider the many blessings we enjoy as Jews prepare for the 2188th Hanukkah.
According to the books of the Maccabees, on the first of Kislev in 164 BCE, our forebears remained in caves and outposts as they waged a guerilla insurrection against the Seleucid Greeks that would result in the recapture of Jerusalem and the rededication of the Temple, twenty-five days later. Their campaign did not secure the independence of Judea, which remained at war with the Seleucids until 142 BCE.
The Jews then enjoyed 212 years of Hanukkah observances within Judea before the Romans sacked Jerusalem and destroyed the Temple. There wouldn’t be another Hanukkah celebrated within a Jewish state until 1948. Thus far, only 13% of Hanukkah celebrations, which commemorate the liberation of the Jews from the Seleucids, have taken place with an independent Jewish state!
The ability to observe Hanukkah as a celebration of Jewish independence is a true blessing, one we pray, we’ll continue to enjoy throughout our lives and for countless generations to come.
–Rabbi Josh Knobel