Lessons from the past

Rabbi Ammos Chorny

Before the State of Israel was born, and for much of our history, Jews were a rather submissive, pacifist people, enduring inquisitions, pogroms and genocide — never in control of our security or destiny. But it wasn’t always so!

In 167 BCE, Mattathias — High Priest and father of Judah the Maccabee — returned to Modi’in, where he refused to comply with orders from the Greek emperor, Antiochus IV Epiphanes, to offer sacrifice to the Greek gods. Thus began the Hasmonean revolt, followed by a resounding Jewish victory, the rededication of the Temple and the miracle of Hanukah.

Yet surprisingly, Hanukah is better known for the Talmudic account of the cruse of oil, which miraculously lasted for 8 days, rather than for the stunning victory over the mighty Hellenistic Greeks, plainly depicted in the Book of the Maccabees. The story of the of oil doesn’t take center stage in the Talmud until 600 years later. The sages had more to say about how to light the Menorah than why we actually celebrate this holiday.

Why? In truth, living at a time of Jewish powerlessness, the rabbis were clearly uncomfortable with Hasmonean militarism as the model of Jewish behavior. This attitude is reflected in the Haftorah selected for Shabbat Hanukkah (Zechariah 4:6): “Not by might, and not by power, but by my Spirit alone, says the Lord,” disclosing the Rabbis motivation to exclude the Book of the Maccabees from the Biblical canon altogether.

In the aftermath of the destruction of the Second Temple in the year 70 CE, the Jewish people were left without a homeland, without a military and without the ability to guarantee their own safety. For the next 2,000 years, we lived (or died) at the whim of foreign rulers, kings and tyrants. We shuddered in fear of the next crusade, pogrom or antisemitic attack, relying on the good graces of kings or governments to protect our communities, and often none was forthcoming.

For much of those 2,000 years, we were a vulnerable people, fleeing from one country to another to escape persecution. Until 1948! As Jews, we finally recognized there are times we must take up arms and protect ourselves – just as the Maccabees did.

America has certainly reflected a different experience, but antisemitism lingers on, often just below the surface, largely limited to rhetoric and discrimination; that was, until the horrific attack on the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh. We feel under attack once again. And if there is a lesson to be learned from Hanukah, it is that complacency is not an answer. We know we must be prepared to defend ourselves, but we also need to be alert never to become aggressors. In an increasingly dangerous and hostile world, that is the great challenge both Israel and America face going forward.

Of late, we seem to be reminded that the world does not deal kindly with the Jewish people. Presently, synagogues bear the cost of being protected by armed guards — costs that are both financial and spiritual. We know we must remain alert to the renewed specter of antisemitism as it rears its ugly head, in the guise of anti-Zionism or anti-Israel BDS movements. Yet, these threats are not new for us. We have been around for 4,000 years, and we are not going away anytime soon. God willing, the heroism of the Maccabees can inspire us to face whatever challenges lie ahead.

May the lights of the Hanukah continue to inspire us, strengthen our resolve and give us the fortitude to achieve a more peaceful, tolerant and compassionate world.

Hag Urim Sameyach!

Rabbi Ammos Chorny serves at Beth Tikvah.