It's beginning to look a lot like...
Rarely do I get off the topic of St. Louis Real Estate in this blog. However, with the Christmas holiday almost upon us, I thought I would take a moment to address the topic of religious holidays. Anyone who watches or reads the news knows that the media is making a stink about the way we all express ourselves during the holidays. More and more, those from the left proclaim that "Merry Christmas!" fails to recognize that the church and state are seperate. On the right, we have those pundits who declare that saying "Happy Holidays" somehow betrays the Christian religion.
As a Christian, I celebrate Christmas. I don't simply put up a tree and give gifts to my beautiful wife and three girls, I truly celebrate the birth of Christ. The Christian belief, after all, is that God took on the form of man in order to save mankind from sin -- this is worth celebrating, if you believe that it is true.
As I meet those around me who I know believe as I do, I greet them with a confident, "Merry Christmas." And those who I know follow Judaism, I respectfully say "Happy Hannukah!" After all, Hannukah is the time when Jews all over the world celebrate the preservation of the Jewish religion against assimilation into the culture.
The story of Hannukah begins in the reign of Alexander the Great. Alexander conquered Syria, Egypt and Palestine, but allowed the lands under his control to continue observing their own religions and retain a certain degree of autonomy. Under this relatively benevolent rule, many Jews assimilated much of Hellenistic culture, adopting the language, the customs and the dress of the Greeks, in much the same way that Jews in America today blend into the secular American society.
More than a century later, a successor of Alexander, Antiochus IV was in control of the region. He began to oppress the Jews severely, placing a Hellenistic priest in the Temple, massacring Jews, prohibiting the practice of the Jewish religion, and desecrating the Temple by requiring the sacrifice of pigs (a non-kosher animal) on the altar. Two groups opposed Antiochus: a basically nationalistic group led by Mattathias the Hasmonean and his son Judah Maccabee, and a religious traditionalist group known as the Chasidim, the forerunners of the Pharisees (no direct connection to the modern movement known as Chasidism). They joined forces in a revolt against both the assimilation of the Hellenistic Jews and oppression by the Selucid Greek government. The revolution succeeded and the Temple was rededicated.
According to tradition as recorded in the Talmud, at the time of the rededication, there was very little oil left that had not been defiled by the Greeks. Oil was needed for the menorah (candelabrum) in the Temple, which was supposed to burn throughout the night every night. There was only enough oil to burn for one day, yet miraculously, it burned for eight days, the time needed to prepare a fresh supply of oil for the menorah. An eight day festival was declared to commemorate this miracle. Note that the holiday commemorates the miracle of the oil, not the military victory: Jews do not glorify war.
So as a Christian, I celebrate with those who follow Judaism. I celebrate because I believe that God preserved and continues to preserve the Jewish people.
As a religious tolerant country, we can respect the religous celebrations of those around us. We can do this whether we believe in the religion or not. So to those of you who, like me, are celebrating the birth of Jesus, I say, "Merry Christmas!" To those of you who are remembering the courage of the Maccabees, I say, "Happy Hannukah!" And to those of you who follow neither tradition, I hope that your December will be filled with love and happiness as you take a bit of time to visit with family and friends.
As a Christian, I celebrate Christmas. I don't simply put up a tree and give gifts to my beautiful wife and three girls, I truly celebrate the birth of Christ. The Christian belief, after all, is that God took on the form of man in order to save mankind from sin -- this is worth celebrating, if you believe that it is true.
As I meet those around me who I know believe as I do, I greet them with a confident, "Merry Christmas." And those who I know follow Judaism, I respectfully say "Happy Hannukah!" After all, Hannukah is the time when Jews all over the world celebrate the preservation of the Jewish religion against assimilation into the culture.
The story of Hannukah begins in the reign of Alexander the Great. Alexander conquered Syria, Egypt and Palestine, but allowed the lands under his control to continue observing their own religions and retain a certain degree of autonomy. Under this relatively benevolent rule, many Jews assimilated much of Hellenistic culture, adopting the language, the customs and the dress of the Greeks, in much the same way that Jews in America today blend into the secular American society.
More than a century later, a successor of Alexander, Antiochus IV was in control of the region. He began to oppress the Jews severely, placing a Hellenistic priest in the Temple, massacring Jews, prohibiting the practice of the Jewish religion, and desecrating the Temple by requiring the sacrifice of pigs (a non-kosher animal) on the altar. Two groups opposed Antiochus: a basically nationalistic group led by Mattathias the Hasmonean and his son Judah Maccabee, and a religious traditionalist group known as the Chasidim, the forerunners of the Pharisees (no direct connection to the modern movement known as Chasidism). They joined forces in a revolt against both the assimilation of the Hellenistic Jews and oppression by the Selucid Greek government. The revolution succeeded and the Temple was rededicated.
According to tradition as recorded in the Talmud, at the time of the rededication, there was very little oil left that had not been defiled by the Greeks. Oil was needed for the menorah (candelabrum) in the Temple, which was supposed to burn throughout the night every night. There was only enough oil to burn for one day, yet miraculously, it burned for eight days, the time needed to prepare a fresh supply of oil for the menorah. An eight day festival was declared to commemorate this miracle. Note that the holiday commemorates the miracle of the oil, not the military victory: Jews do not glorify war.
So as a Christian, I celebrate with those who follow Judaism. I celebrate because I believe that God preserved and continues to preserve the Jewish people.
As a religious tolerant country, we can respect the religous celebrations of those around us. We can do this whether we believe in the religion or not. So to those of you who, like me, are celebrating the birth of Jesus, I say, "Merry Christmas!" To those of you who are remembering the courage of the Maccabees, I say, "Happy Hannukah!" And to those of you who follow neither tradition, I hope that your December will be filled with love and happiness as you take a bit of time to visit with family and friends.
posted by Russell T. Nolting at
4:10 PM
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