Judah Maccabee Speaks to Congress on Hanukkah
In about an hour, those of us living on America’s East Coast will be lighting the fourth candle of Hanukkah, the Jewish “Feast of Dedication.” In Israel and Kiev, they lit the hanukkiyah (menorah) about 5 hours ago. My sister Erica and her family, who live in Southern California (as do I . . . at least in spirit), will be lighting the candles will be in about 4 hours. Should one ask the question “What is the meaning and purpose of Hanukkah?” and you likely will get a story about the miracle of a single cruse (earthenware pot or jug) of oil lasting a full eight days when there was only enough for a single day. This all took place at the rededication of the second Temple in 164 B.C.E after the Hasmonean Judah Maccabee and his brothers routed the Selucid Empire in their quest for religious freedom. It’s a quaint story; it’s also no more than a legend, and sadly, paves over the true, historically verifiable miracle (nes in Hebrew) of the commemoration.
This historically true miracle is that in the years 167-160 BCE (Before the Common Era) Judah Maccabee (a priest - a Cohayn), his father Mattathias and brothers (Eleazar, Simon, John and Jonathan) successfully rebelled against and then defeated the mighty Greco Seleucid tyrant Antiochus IV Epiphanes (that’s Greek for “G-d made manifest” . . . quite an egotistical regnal name he gave himself). What made the defeat so miraculous was that Antiochus (also called Epimanes, Greek for “The Mad One”) had the world’s first professional army, whereas Judah and his band were amateur warriors, to say the least. They became the first “army” whose cause was totally ephemeral: not for land, not for largesse, not for women, but solely for religious freedom. Unlike his Seleucid and Ptolemaic predecessors, Antiochus IV hated the Jews and made their worship an all but capital offense. Judah and his brothers decided that enough was enough, and managed to beat the pants off of him and his well-paid warriors. That’s the real miracle. (Unfortunately, the Hasmoneans (Maccabees) were not nearly as skilled when it came to be leaders in peace as they were leaders during war. Eventually, they claimed the royal throne for themselves (an absolute no-no for a priest), failed miserably, and invited the Romans to come in and help keep things calm. Oops!
The Maccabees succeeded first as warriors before they got a chance to lead a nation at peace. In our own time, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the son of Jewish parents has had the chance to lead a civil government before becoming a war-time president. Trained to be a lawyer (although he never practiced), coming to early fame as a stand-up comedian and then as a popular television and movie star, he has proved himself to be one of the bravest, most charismatic leaders on the planet. Yesterday, clad in his signature camouflage sweater and cargo pants, he was visiting troops on the front lines. Today, after having been spirited out of his country and still wearing the same clothes, he is in Washington, D.C. He has already met with President Biden, Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Schumer and about an hour from now (7:00 PM EST) will be addressing a joint session of the United States Congress. Unless I am wrong (which I often am), this might be the first wartime address by the head of a government during war since Winston addressed a joint meeting of Congress on December 26, 1941.
Back then, Churchill warned Congress “You do not, I am certain, underrate the severity of the ordeal to which you and we have still to be subjected. The forces ranged against us are enormous. They are bitter, they are ruthless. The wicked men and their factions, who have launched their peoples on the path of war and conquest, know that they will be called to terrible account if they cannot beat down by force of arms the peoples they have assailed. They will stop at nothing.”
What President Zelenskyy will say is anyone’s guess. However, I have to believe it will be Churchillian in its scope and power. . He will thank us for all we’ve done to date; ask us for more funding, and teach those who do not yet understand, just how important the war in Ukraine is to not only to America, but indeed, the rest of the world.
I’m going to take a pause at this point, light the fourth candle on our hanukkiyah, have a latke or two, and watch President Zelenskyy’s speech to Congress. He will thank us for all we’ve done to date; ask us for more funding, and teach those who do not yet understand, just how important the war in Ukraine is to not only America, but indeed, the rest of the world.
Back at you in a little over 2 hours . . . .
. . . It is now 8:30 PM EST. President Zelenskyy finished his speech just a few minutes ago. Although what he had to say was pretty much what I expected, the manner in which he said it, the passion he he brought to his words were thrilling. He made his country’s gratitude for all we, the American people have done, abundantly clear. He said in no uncertain terms that not one cent of the billions of dollars of weaponry we’ve sent Ukraine should be considered a gift, but rather an investment; an investment in the furtherance of freedom and democracy, as well as in the ultimate diminution of Russia and Vladimir Putin.
Zelenskyy proved himself to be a master at holding a room and casting an emotional spell over a diverse audience. It was one of the few times in recent memory when both Democrats and Republicans cheered and applauded with the same gusto. The Ukrainian president told Congress - and the American people - that despite the fact that many, many Ukrainians would be observing the Christmas holiday in underground subway stations, bereft of both light and heat, they would nonetheless, look to the future with hope. He likened their suffering and strength to the Battle of Saratoga in the early days of the Revolutionary War. These are the words of a leader. He also compared the current fight to World War II's Battle of the Bulge.
"Just like the brave American soldiers, which held their lines and fought back Hitler's forces during the Christmas of 1944, brave Ukrainian soldiers are doing this same to Putin's forces this Christmas -- Ukraine holds its lines and will never surrender. "
Although he didn’t say anything specifically about Hanukkah, he was definitely speaking in terms of miracles. What the Ukraine, under his stellar leadership, has managed to accomplish in a war against a behemoth - one that was supposed to last but a few days or weeks - is nothing short of a miracle.
Most people are aware that Jewish people engage in doing a bit of gambling during Hanukkah, using a dreidle (a four-sided spinning top. On each face of the top is a single Hebrew letter which represents a word and an instruction on what to do with your bet. The letters nun, gimmel, hey and shin represent the words nes gadol hyah shahm, which stand for “A great miracle happened there.” In Israel, the final letter, shin, is replaced by the letter po, thereby making the message “A great miracle happened here.”
Perhaps we should use both tops this year: one to proclaim that a great miracle happened there (meaning Ukraine) as well as here . . . meaning wherever freedom and democracy fight against heartless aggressive autocracy.
Thank you for your words, your deeds, and your great leadership skills President Zelensky. You yourself are a great part of the miracle.
Indeed, you are our Judah Maccabee!
Copyright©2022 Kurt F. Stone