The Story of Hanukkah

About twenty-two centuries ago, Judea was ruled by a king named Antiochus IV, who outlawed Jewish practice and desecrated the Temple in Jerusalem. A priest named Mattathias and his sons — led by Judah, called Maccabee, "the Hammer" — rose up against him, and against all odds, they won. In 164 BCE they took the Temple back and rededicated it. That's what Hanukkah means: dedication.

Tradition tells a small, beloved miracle at the heart of it. When they went to light the Temple's menorah, there was only one little jar of pure oil left — enough for a single day. It burned for eight, until fresh oil could be made. So Hanukkah is kept for eight nights, with one more candle lit each evening, blessings and songs, foods fried in oil to remember it by, and the spinning dreidel game. In the darkest weeks of the whole year, it's a festival about light that refuses to go out.

In the Grove: we aren't Jewish, but "all are welcome here" means all — and a story about keeping the light burning through the dark is one this Grove is glad to honor.