As usual, the twinkling candles of Hanukkah, which just concluded, provided an inspiring herald for the glorious Christmas lights beginning to appear. I’m moved, as every year, by the display of the menorah next to the crèche at PCH and Webb Way, proclaiming again our cherished religious freedom and harmony. It’s even more meaningful this year, in the wake of the Pittsburgh synagogue and Thousand Oaks massacres, and the devastating fires. In the cold, dark winter, our holidays remind us how much we love and need each other.
Honoring Hanukkah and Christmas together reminds us that the crucial victory Hanukkah commemorates is as important to Christians as to Jews. If the Maccabees had lost to the tyrant Antiochus Epiphanes, it may have meant the end of Judaism—and no Judaism means no Christianity. The Hanukkah miracle of the oil that burned eight nights occurred less than 200 years before the birth of Jesus; their long, brutal war for religious freedom and independence was fresher in the minds of Jews then, than the Revolutionary War is for us today.
I also feel deeply grateful to the tens of millions of American Christians who support Israel. It’s a miracle that since the end of World War II, so many Christians have taken it upon themselves to reverse nearly 2,000 years of anti-Semitism, and join Jews in our pride and love for the Jewish state. Because American Christian support is vital to Israel’s survival, we Christians and Jews have become true brothers and sisters under God, which is how it was when Christianity began.
Like Christmas, Hanukkah represents goodwill and faith; but it also stands for freedom and independence. As long as Christians and Jews are close, the flame of freedom will never die. Happy Hanukkah and Merry Christmas!
Rueben Gordon