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What is the Real Story of Hanukkah?
Part 3 of the historically accurate 8 Part Series
Q. What happened after the successful Jewish revolt against the Seleucid monarchy in 165 BC.
A. After the successful Jewish revolt against the Seleucid monarchy the Temple was liberated and rededicated. Judah Maccabee purified the defiled Temple of Jerusalem on the 25th of Kislev (December 14, 164 BCE). He then ordered the Temple to be cleansed, a new altar to be built in place of the polluted one and new holy vessels to be made. According to the Talmud (the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (halakha) and Jewish theology. ), unadulterated and undefiled pure olive oil with the seal of the kohen gadol (high priest) was needed for the menorah in the Temple, which was required to burn throughout the night every night. The story goes that one flask was found with only enough oil to burn for one day, yet it burned for eight days, the time needed to prepare a fresh supply of kosher oil for the menorah. An eight-day festival was declared by the Jewish sages to commemorate this miracle.
The reconsecration of the Temple became a permanent Jewish holiday, Hanukkah, which continued even after the Temple was destroyed in 70 CE. Hanukkah is still celebrated annually. The liberation of Jerusalem was the first step on the…
