Mark Huey and John McKee deliver the December 2020 Outreach Israel News update and featured article.
Chanukah
Outreach Israel Ministries and Messianic Apologetics wish you and your family a blessed Chanukah! Thank…
Mark and Margaret Huey, and John McKee discuss some of the challenges that arise for Messianic people in the month of December, involving Chanukah and Christmas. Also, update on current events, specifically involving Election 2020!
The Winter holiday season, involving Christmas and Chanukah, can be a very challenging time for those within the Messianic community. How are we supposed to best approach this time, in a way that reflects the love and salvation of Yeshua?
For most Messianics I know who celebrate Chanukah, they hear a great deal about the military exploits of the Maccabees and the rededication of the Temple. Many of them honestly take the time to flip through the Books of 1&2 Maccabees in the Apocrypha, the principal historical record that influences our understanding of the wars fought by the Maccabees. When Jerusalem was recaptured and the Temple was rededicated, much more really did take place. This goes beyond the lives of Judah Maccabee and his brothers. Sadly, too many congregations and fellowships that honor Chanukah are not that familiar with this period of complicated history—not only for what took place in the Second Century B.C.E., but how it would influence the First Century C.E.
The holiday of Chanukah, or the Festival of Dedication, is full of many customs and traditions that give our celebration great life and depth. During this time of year, we have the awesome opportunity to commemorate the work of God from some 2,200 years ago during the time of the Maccabees. If they had not fought against the Seleucid invaders of Israel, the Jewish people would have either been destroyed through war, or would have disappeared via cultural assimilation.
The subject of what Messianic Believers are to be doing for the Winter holiday season can be very controversial. On the one hand, Messianics should not really be celebrating Christmas, because it is non-Biblical and was created to be one replacement for observing the appointed times of Leviticus 23. On the other hand, should all Messianic Believers celebrate Chanukah, or the Feast of Dedication? Primarily the debate surrounds the fact that often the celebration of Chanukah can become a replacement for Christmas, and that Chanukah is not a Biblically-mandated holiday, as it is not in the Leviticus 23 list.
I could explain to you many concepts that I feel are floating around today’s Messianic movement that have been passed off as being “Hebraic,” when in actuality they are Greek to their very core.
Chanukah should be celebrated because it has important themes of salvation history that cannot be taken for granted, when God works through His people to accomplish His deliverance. Had the Maccabees not purged the idolatry from Ancient Judea, we may not be having this discussion today. The Jewish people would have been eliminated via cultural assimilation.
Why is there a nine-branched menorah used for Chanukah, when there was a seven-branched menorah used in the Temple?
