Hanukkah: The Festival of Light, The Feast of Dedication, A Thrilling Story of Faith and Grace
The story surrounding the Jewish Festival of Lights, is filled with intrigue, fear, war, and then of course, victory. The celebration of that victory gives us the miracle now known as Hanukkah, when a one-day supply of sacred oil to light the Temple Menorah lasted eight days. And eight is significant number in the Jewish heritage because it is, as Moses directed, also the number of days old an infant must be for circumcision. It’s one of many signs that nothing happens without God’s knowledge or Divine direction. But Hanukkah has a lesson for us all: that God is working even when it seems He is not. On this episode of Lighthouse Faith Podcast, Rabbi Motti Seligson, with Chabad Lubavitch, explains how the leader of the Chabad Lubavitch, named the Rebbe, began a campaign in 1973 to elevate the celebration of Hanukkah, to educate not only Jews but the whole of America and the world about the Feast of Dedication. This conversation was recorded in 2021, when Hanukkah began extremely early, on November 28. This year it begins three weeks later on Sunday, December 18th. Rabbi Seligson’s explanation about why there are different dates still holds true today.