Antiochus IV arrogantly added
Epiphanes
to his name, which means, “manifest god.” |
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Against all odds, a small band of faithful Jews, led by Judah the Maccabee (our 69th great-grand-uncle), defeated one of the mightiest armies on earth, drove the Greeks from the land, reclaimed the Holy Temple in Jerusalem and rededicated it to the service of God. When they sought to light the Temple's Menorah (the seven-branched candelabrum), they found only a single cruse of olive oil that had escaped contamination by the Greeks. Miraculously, they lit the menorah and the one-day supply of oil lasted for eight days, until new oil could be prepared under conditions of ritual purity. To commemorate and publicize these miracles, the sages instituted the festival of Chanukah. |
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