Jews around the world will begin to celebrate the eight-day holiday of Chanukah tonight. We celebrate the miraculous triumph of the Maccabees, but really, we remember that whatever the odds, the righteous fight is the one worth fighting for, worth dying for, no matter the odds. So pray – for our people, our nation. And pray G-d gives our righteous President the strength and wisdom to prevail as the forces of evil surround us and work furiously to subsume free will.
Miracles do happen.
Chabad: Chanukah is the Jewish eight-day, wintertime “festival of lights,” celebrated with a nightly menorah lighting, special prayers and fried foods.
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The Hebrew word Chanukah means “dedication,” and is thus named because it celebrates the rededication of the Holy Temple (as you’ll read below). Also spelled Hanukkah (or variations of that spelling), the Hebrew word is actually pronounced with a guttural, “kh” sound, kha-nu-kah, not tcha-new-kah.
Chanukah begins on the eve of Kislev 25 and continues for eight days. On the civil calendar, it generally coincides with the month of December. Chanukah 2020 runs from Dec. 10-18.
Artist Dominic Alves captured this image of a snowy Chanukah in Brighton, UK.
In the second century BCE, the Holy Land was ruled by the Seleucids (Syrian-Greeks), who tried to force the people of Israel to accept Greek culture and beliefs instead of mitzvah observance and belief in G‑d. Against all odds, a small band of faithful but poorly armed Jews, led by Judah the Maccabee, 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 G‑d.
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.
At the heart of the festival is the nightly menorah lighting. The menorah holds nine flames, one of which is the shamash (“attendant”), which is used to kindle the other eight lights. On the first night, we light just one flame. On the second night, an additional flame is lit. By the eighth night of Chanukah, all eight lights are kindled.
On Friday afternoon, care must be taken to light the menorah before Shabbat candles are lit, and the following evening they are to be kindled only after Shabbat has ended.
A menorah is lit in every household (or even by each individual within the household) and placed in a doorway or window. The menorah is also lit in synagogues and other public places. In recent years, thousands of jumbo menorahs have cropped up in front of city halls and legislative buildings, and in malls and parks all over the world.
We recite the special Hallel prayer daily, and add V’Al HaNissim in our daily prayers and in the Grace After Meals, to offer praise and thanksgiving to G‑d for “delivering the strong into the hands of the weak, the many into the hands of the few … the wicked into the hands of the righteous.”
A closeup view of two sweet potato latkes on a white plate. The background is soft and creamy and shows off the wonderful orange colour and texture of the two latkes. The lighting is a natural light from a window behind and to the right in the image.
Since the Chanukah miracle involved oil, it is customary to eat foods fried in oil. The Eastern-European classic is the potato latke (pancake) garnished with applesauce or sour cream, and the reigning Israeli favorite is the jelly-filled sufganya (doughnut).
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TomSJr
3 years ago
HAPPY CHANUKAH TO ALL OF ISRAEL AND THE JEWISH PEOPLE ALL OVER THE WORLD!
HAPPY CHANUKAH!
The day of Obamas acceptance speech a miracle happened: the lottery in Obamas hometown drew 666.
Look at heaven’s miracle and spread the news.
If you don’t you’ll be doomed for all ETERNITY says the Bible.
Happy Chanukah to you and to everyone it applies to. Possibly the last one ever celebrated in this country if Pedophile Joe and his muslim boys get into office.
Truthhurts
3 years ago
Happy Chanukah to Pamela and all the Jewish people across the planet. Peace and love.
Same to you Sir. Hopefully, it will not be the last one mentioned by a President in this country.
V.V.
3 years ago
Chag Chanukah Sameach Pamela and to all our Jewish people throughout the world and Israel… ????✡️. May the beautiful LIGHT of Chanukah blaze through the darkness of this world and bring us all Peace.
felix1999
3 years ago
Happy Chanukah!
I have posted part of this before and added some other information to it. For those here that are Jewish, you could not have a more Jewish friendly President. President Trump genuinely loves Israel and the Jewish people. He will be the last President to have this sincere mindset. Others may come along with a sudden love for them, for political power, money and votes on the Republican side. The DEM side has already made it clear they have no love or use for the Jewish people or Israel. Whether President Trump gets one or two terms, he will be missed when his Presidency is over.
Excerpt –
Donald Trump will be grand marshal of the 40th annual Salute to Israel Parade, taking place May 23, (2004) on New York’s Fifth Avenue from 57th Street to 79th Street, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Judy Kaufthal, the parade president announced today.
“Israel has gone through a lot and it’s my honor,” Trump said.
“We are especially honored to have Donald Trump as the grand marshal of the Salute to Israel Parade,” Kaufthal said. “That he has chosen to take a public stand for Israel sends a powerful and welcome message.”
The Salute to Israel Parade is the largest single gathering in support of the State of Israel and this year’s parade will be the largest ever. The 2004 parade theme, “Israel, I care and I’m going … Let’s go to Israel now!” is intended to encourage tourism to Israel. For one day, 100,000 costumed marchers with colorful props will transform Fifth Avenue into a living pageant of beautiful and inviting Israel, as close to I million spectators cheer the 40 parade floats, 16 marching bands and dozens of entertainers.
Already regarded as a brilliant developer and real estate and mogul, Trump recently gained newfound attention and millions of fans worldwide for starring in “The Apprentice,” a TV reality show on NBC, which proved a smashing success. https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Trump+to+lead+Israel+parade.-a0117117698
Left wing FAKE news sources deny this ever happened or criticize him for it.
No photoshopping here. Those banners read correctly!
If you have a minute or two, you might find the rest of this interesting. Being close to Jewish people was something DJT grew up with. His father set the example. DJT never brags about his charity work or good deeds involving his personal life through press conferences, like others do.
I’ll take a few liberties and post this ….
DONALD TRUMP’S FATHER WAS SO DEDICATED TO ISRAEL CAUSES, PEOPLE THOUGHT HE WAS JEWISH
BY ADAM ELIYAHU BERKOWITZ
JUN 25, 2019
Donald Trump is arguably the most pro-Israel president in U.S. history and it could be that the roots of this beneficence towards the Jewish state go deep into the president’s family history.
Donald Trump is not Jewish nor does he have Jewish ancestry. His father, Fred, was a Lutheran and his Scottish-born mother a Presbyterian. In his book, The Art of the Deal, Trump, inaccurately claimed that he was of Swedish ancestry. Trump’s grandfather, Freidrich, was born in Kallstadt, which was, at the time, in Bavaria, but is now part of Germany. Trump’s cousin and family historian John Walter told The New York Times, that Donald knowingly continued this ruse at the request of his realtor father, Fred, who was a landlord and real estate investor in New York. Fred felt the claim to be Swedish would be more palatable to his Jewish tenants and business associates. This concern seemed reasonable in the period following World War II.
Whether to win favor with his Jewish tenants or not, Fred was a noted philanthropist who gave generously to Jewish causes including the Long Island Jewish Hospital. In The Trumps: Three Generations of Builders and a Presidential Candidate it was noted that “[Fred] Trump was so active in Jewish and Israeli causes that some believed that he belonged to the Jewish faith.”
This suspicion was bolstered about 50 years ago when Fred Trump donated the land for the Talmud Torah of the Beach Haven Jewish Center in Flatbush, New York.
This Trump family tradition of donating to Jewish causes took on a decidedly political twist in the 1980’s when Donald Trump donated heavily to help build new infrastructure for the Israelis removed from the northern Sinai as part of the peace agreement with Egypt. Again, in 2005, Trump generously helped resettle the Jews expelled from Gush Katif. At about the same time, Trump also donated $10,000 to American Friends of Beit El Institutions, a fund for religious institutions in Samaria.
It is well-known that Donald Trump has been a long-time friend of Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Though this is clearly a manifestation of the strong political alliance between the two countries, it has its roots in the president’s family. Fred Trump, the president’s father, became friends with Netanyahu while he was the Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations in Manhattan.
This affinity for Jews was also espoused by Fred Trump Jr., Donald Trump’s older brother, who joined a Jewish fraternity, Sigma Alpha Mu, while attending Lehigh University, even though he was not Jewish. In a strange note, several of the fraternity brothers have been quoted as saying that while in university, Fred Jr. claimed that his father was Jewish. This was incongruous as his middle name was Christ and there were no similar claims from anyone else in the Trump clan.
Though Fred Jr.’s claim to be Jewish has never been taken seriously, the president does have a family connection to Judaism. His daughter, Ivanka converted to Judaism in 2009 before marrying Jared Kushner, an Orthodox Jew. Ivanka (her Hebrew name is Yael) has said that her father supported her decision to convert “from day one”, adding that he has “tremendous respect” for the Jewish religion. Trump is blessed with three Jewish grandchildren. His respect for Judaism was so great that he made a special request from his daughter in the heat of the presidential campaign: pray for him in the synagogue during the Jewish high-holidays in order to “cover all of the bases.”
Trump’s first visit to the Holy land was in May 2017 when he became the first sitting U.S. President to visit the Western Wall. But this was not supposed to be his first visit. In 1989, Moshe Arad, Israel’s ambassador to Washington at the time, formally invited the prominent businessman for a visit in the name of Prime Minister Yitzchak Shamir. Trump wanted to come to Israel because he was considering several business deals, including building a casino in Eilat and purchasing the country’s national airline, El Al. Extensive preparations were made but whether or not the visit ever actually took place is the source of debate.
Mark Zell , chairman of Republicans Overseas Israel, acknowledges this history of Trump connection to the Jews but does not believe that the president’s policies have a much obvious source.
“Trump grew up in New York which is heavily Jewish and it is clear that he had a lot of Jewish friends and associates,” Zell told Breaking Israel News. “He grew up in this environment. He has been unfairly criticized by the left-wing for being anti-Semitic which is complete sophistry. Tragically, many people in the American Jewish community have serious identity problems which lead them to criticize the president despite how pro-Israel policies.”
“It isn’t necessary to dig in order to find some personal or vested interest for the president to be pro-Jewish and pro-Israel,” Zell said. “It is sad that this is the case, that this is what people try to do. Most politicians, especially Jewish, are cautious in their support of Israel. Donald Trump is not. He is not cautious in the least. He is true to his beliefs and his world view, part of which is that Israel is, from an objective point of view, an important ally and an asset to the security of the United States. It is clear to him that the Jewish people are entitled to a secure state. That recognition from a president is unprecedented. But what is more amazing is that he acts on this belief, unabashedly and unequivocally.”
Happy Chanukah to Pamela Geller and all her Jewish friends and followers. She is truly a great American hero whose courage I greatly envy.
sodacrackers2
3 years ago
Happy Chanukah to you, Pamela, and thank you for all you do!
k33j88
3 years ago
Happy Chanukah and a Merry Christmas to all!
MuhamMUDTheFakeProphet
3 years ago
In Yeshua of Nazareth’s time the Jewish people observed Nicanor day (Yom Nicanor). A much more direct celebration of the Jews defeat of the Seleucid bastards.
Annie
3 years ago
I love the Jewish people as well. Though true ‘Christians’ recognize Christmas in remembrance of the Jewish Messiah who came, who was crucified for our sin, and was resurrected the third day according to the scriptures. Jesus said, ‘Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up” But he spake of the temple of his body. John 2:19,21. I am not talking about Roman Catholic Traditions. I’m talking about God’s word, The Old and New Testaments. The book of Hebrews says, “How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? And for this cause He is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance. Hebr. 9:14-15. ‘Behold a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.” Matthew 2:23 This prophecy is in Isaiah 9:6-7. The baby in Bethlehem is the eternal God who became human flesh. He was born to die, and He did, but He rose again the third day. 1 Corinthians 15:1-4. That is what I celebrate this time of year and everyday. Praise the Lord!
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