Tonight, we light the fourth candle of Hanukkah. The Babylonian Talmud preserves a renowned debate between the schools of Hillel and Shammai regarding the lights of the hanukkiyah, the Hanukkah menorah. The school of Shammai taught that on the first night of Hanukkah, we kindle eight lights and remove one light each night, kindling one light on the final night. Meanwhile, the school of Hillel, whom we follow today, taught that on the first night of Hanukkah, we kindle one light and add one light each night, kindling eight lights on the final night (Babylonian Talmud 21B). From a purely theoretical standpoint, Shammai's opinion seems appropriate. If, as the story teaches, the Temple's menorah is kindled with one jar of oil that lasts eight nights, then on each successive night, the oil in the lamp would decrease. However, the Talmud reasons that Hillel's opinion rests upon the notion that one [...]

Tonight, we light the third candle of Hanukkah. As we celebrate Hanukkah, we often neglect to acknowledge that the Maccabees' primary foes during their rebellion were not the occupying Seleucids (also known as the Syrian Greeks), but rather Jewish Hellenists—Jews who embraced Greek culture and norms. Many Jews welcomed the substantial innovations brought to Judea by the Greeks, from art and architecture to philosophy and theology to recreation and sport, with some Hellenists abandoning certain Jewish rituals and practices in order to adapt more fully to Greek custom. The principal catalysts for the Maccabean revolt, according to the books of the Maccabees, were the sale of gold and silver vessels from the Temple to cover the bribe paid by the Jewish High Priest Menelaus to the Seleucids to secure his appointment, as well as his introduction of Greek customs into Temple worship. In fact, the first book of Maccabees [...]

Tonight, we light the second candle of Hanukkah.When we think of Hanukkah, we often think of the gevurah (the strength) demonstrated by the Maccabees in their struggle against the Seleucids (also known as the Syrian Greeks). The Maccabees' resolve to challenge and outlast a superior military foe in the pursuit of religious autonomy and self-determination continues to inspire us as Jews more than two millennia later.Nevertheless, a willingness to persist, even in the face of improbable odds, is not the only strength associated with Hanukkah.Hundreds of years after the Maccabees liberated the Temple from the Seleucids and celebrated the first Hanukkah, our forebears lived in a much different world. After suffering three consecutive defeats and exile at the hands of the Romans, Jews were scattered across the Mediterranean and Asia. A holiday celebrating independence meant little to them; no amount of Jewish fervor or resolve could hope to overcome the Romans' military [...]