The Holiday season is here, and for different religions, it means different occasions. Christmas is the most popular one; however, the Jews celebrate it in a much different way. That said, the holiday season definitely remains to be a joyful and happy event for everyone.
Hanukkah, or the Jewish Festival of Lights, happens for eight straight nights, starting on "Kislev," somewhere between November and December. It is not as exact as Christmas, which falls always on the 25th of December using the Gregorian calendar. This is because Hanukkah follows a Hebrew calendar.
This Jewish Festival of Lights is also called the Feast of Dedication. Hanukkah translated into English is actually "rededication," which commemorates to the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. During the actual holiday, Jews spend it much like Christians do, with prayer, gifts, and food. Perhaps the only stark difference is the ritual lighting of candles observed during Hanukkah.
Historically, Hanukkah comes from all the way back to even two centuries before Christianity. According to legends, the Maccabees, who were the Jewish rebel army, had finally risen up against the Greek-Syrians, especially their King Antiochus. The King had apparently taken over the Second Temple in Jerusalem and had ordered his men to instead build an altar dedicated to Zeus.
Following the King's invalidation of the Judaism, he banned circumcision and sacrificed pigs to the altar. The revolution that was led by Judah Maccabee took three years before they could reclaim Jerusalem. After having been seized by King Antiochus, the Jews wanted to rededicate the temple. There, according to the Talmud, Judaism's bible, only pure olive oil is allowed and as long as it is with the seal of the high priest.
Sadly, they only had a container of olive oil, which by estimation, would only last one day. The next supply of oil would come after eight days. However, that one container of oil was miraculously enough for all eight days. This explains the eight days, or nights, of Hanukkah.
This year, Hanukkah started on Tuesday, Dec. 12 and will end on Wednesday of next week, Dec. 20.
