The evening of Dec. 7 marks the start of Hannukah the eight-day wintertime festival of lights. Hanukkah commemorates the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem in the second century B.C., when the Jewish people rose up against Greek-Syrian oppressors in the Maccabean Revolt. After reclaiming the Holy Temple, it was rededicated to the service of G-d. When the Jewish people went to light the Temple menorah, they found only a single cruse of oil that had escaped contamination by the Greeks. Miraculously, they lit the menorah, and the one day supply of oil lasted for eight days. To commemorate these miracles, the festival of Hannukah was instituted. Special blessings are recited before the menorah is lit on each of the eight days and traditional songs are sung afterward.
