Hanukkah commemorates the rededication of the Temple of Jerusalem after it was reclaimed from the Seleucids by the Jewish Maccabees in 164 bce. The story as related in the Books of the Maccabees indicates that the 8-day celebration the Maccabees observed beginning after this rededication on Kislev 25 focused on the return to Jewish practice in the temple. In later interpretations the holiday was recast as a Festival of Lights. The compilers of the Babylonian Talmud related a miraculous account of one day’s worth of oil in the reclaimed temple lasting eight days until more oil could be obtained. In Judaism after the destruction of the Second Temple, this story of the miracle, rather than the story of the sanctity of the temple, became predominant.
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies.
Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style