c. 1998 Religion News Service

(Rabbi Rudin is the National Interreligious Affairs Director of the American Jewish Committee.)

UNDATED _ This is a warning: Don’t be deceived by the joyous holiday trappings that surround Hanukkah, the ancient 8-day Jewish festival of light, which begins on Sunday evening, Dec. 13th.

Forget about the family candle-lighting ceremony, gift giving, happy songs,special foods, and children’s games. That’s Hanukkah’s outer layer.

Beneath this cheery surface, however, is a throughly familiar story of guerrilla warfare, intense religious commitment, and harsh imperialism. Even though the Hanukkah events took place in the land of Israel more than 2,160 years ago, the historical account sounds like a 1998 TV news report.

Antiochus IV, a tyrannical Middle East ruler with a large army, is not satisfied with simply occupying vast areas in that part of the world. Like so many despots in history, he seeks total control over his restless and independent-minded subjects, especially the Jews.

Antiochus systematically tramples religious sensibilities in a series of provocative actions sure to incense traditional Jews. The emperor wants to do away with what he calls the”nonsensical”opposition to his anti-Jewish edicts.

Since Antiochus considers himself the earthly embodiment of Zeus, a statue of Zeus is placed in Jerusalem’s Holy Temple so sacrifices can be brought to the god. Ritual circumcision is forbidden along with the public study of the Torah. Adherence to kosher dietary laws is banned and sacrifices of pigs become commonplace. Statues of various gods appear even in rural areas of ancient Israel.

However, it is not only Antiochus’ ruthless actions that weaken Jewish life. An even greater threat comes from the glittering, attractive Hellenistic civilization tempting some Jews to abandon their faith and cultural traditions. Many Jews shed their Hebrew names for Greek-sounding ones and Jewish men sew foreskins on their genitalia to prevent embarrassment when they appear naked in the gymnasiums that honeycomb the land. It’s not surprising since some members of every minority group always want”to pass”and be accepted by the majority population.

Clearly, Antiochus is no advocate of what we today call”religious pluralism.”Instead, he demands absolute political, religious, and cultural uniformity within his large empire. In such a tinderbox, one small spark can set off a massive firestorm of rebellion.

That spark comes in 168 B.C. in the small town of Modin which is near modern Israel’s Ben-Gurion International Airport. One of Antiochus’ officers demands the Jews of the Modin area bow before an idol as an act of submission to the emperor. When one man steps forward to worship the idol, Mattathias, an elderly Jewish priest, is so enraged he kills his fellow Jew along with the emperor’s officer.

Following the two assassinations, Mattathias utters the inspiring words that become the battle cry of the Jewish revolt against Antiochus:”Whoever is zealous of the Torah and maintains the covenant of our fathers, let them follow me!”By his precipitous actions, the aged priest suddenly becomes a fugitive and is forced to flee Modin. He and his five adult sons”fled into the mountains.” One of the sons, Judah, emerges as a gifted military leader, and for three years the small band of Jewish guerrillas fights a hit-and-run campaign against Antiochus’ large standing army that even includes armed troops mounted on elephants, the modern equivalent of tanks. Not unlike George Washington and countless other military figures, Judah’s smaller and more mobile force gains victory over an imperial army.

Three years after Mattathias’ bloody act of defiance, the Jewish capital city of Jerusalem is recaptured and every vestige of Antiochus’ rule is destroyed, including the hated statue of Zeus. The Holy Temple, cleansed of idolatry and pigs, is rededicated to the worship of the God of Israel. The Hebrew word, Hanukkah, means”dedication,”and the holiday has been celebrated ever since as a reminder of the high price that religious loyalty sometimes extracts.

In modern terms, Hanukkah is an annual celebration of the right of every people, no matter its size, to maintain its own religious and cultural traditions, free of government control and interference. Scholars point out that had Mattathias and his followers lost their struggle with Antiochus, Judaism would probably have disappeared. And scholars further argue that had there been no vibrant Judaism 165 years later, there might not have been a Christian religion which has its roots deep within the Judaism of ancient Israel.

So during this holiday season, Jews and Christians should both give a cheer for the victory of Mattathias and his faithful sons.

DEA END RUDIN