The first name of the Jewish celebration called Hanukkah falls
on December 9 this year. Hanukkah commemorates the rededication
of the Temple in Jerusalem following its desecration by the Greek
King of Syria, Antiochus Epiphanes in 164 B.C.
At that time, according to legend, the one-day supply of oil the
Jews had for the menorah miraculously kept the lamp lit for eight
days. Since then the menorah for Hanukkah celebrations features
nine branches and candles instead of the customary seven.
The story of the daring Jewish zealots and their war against Antiochus
is recorded in the First and Second Books of the Maccabees. These
books are not part of the Jewish Bible but are found in Catholic
Bibles containing the apocrypha. According to the First book of
the Maccabees, Judah proclaimed an eight day festival to be celebrated
with mirth and gladness. The name Hanukkah did not appear until
several hundred years later in the Talmud.