2. The Miracle of Chanukah.
Yehuda and his
men, with the
help of Hashem,
were about to
complete a great
victory, a triumph
that lives on as
the miracle of
Chanukah….

3. After the death of Alexander the
Great, conqueror of the world and
friend of the Jewish people, his
Empire was divided among his
generals. Eretz Yisroel (the land of
Israel), - the Kingdom of Judea - was
added to the Empire of Antiochus III.
The year was 165 BCE…

4. He was not content to accept the
taxes and loyalty of the Jews. He
wanted the Jews to lay aside their
Torah and, in their place,
substitute the Hellenistic Greek
culture and Grecian idols.
When Antiochus became King of the
Syrian-Greeks

5. He was joined by his sons and other
Jews.
They gathered weapons and fled for
the mountains.
There they kept Shabbos and all of
the Mitzvos.
They even managed to play dreidel
secretly.
Matisyahu!

6. They had gone to the Beis Hamikdosh
and placed a pig onto the Mizbaich as a
Korbon.
Then they overturned tables and
Mizbachos and knocked down the
golden Menorah.
The Beis Hamikdosh was destroyed.
Meanwhile the Greeks had
taken over Israel.

7. At that time there was a holy Tzadik
called Matisyahu who used to be a
Kohen Gadol, he with his five sons
fought against the Yevanim.
“Mi La’Hashem Ayli
(Whoever is for Hashem, let him come to me),"

8. Maccabbees!
• They were led by Matisyahu's oldest son
Yehudah.
• These Jews got the name Maccabbees,
which means "hammers," in
• Hebrew because they fought with the power
of hammers. Antiochus sent a massive army
of 40,000 men to fight the Jews.

9. On the 25th day of Kislev
• They marched into the Holy City and
immediately made their way to the Beis
Hamikdash where they saw a sight that
left them shocked and angered. Idols,
and impurity were everywhere. They
rummaged through the ruins seeking at
least one flask of pure olive oil with
which to light the makeshift Menorah
they hastily put together.

10. Flask after flask they found
• Every one of them defiled. Finally -
another miracle! One small jug,
sufficient for only one day, remained
with the seal of the Kohain Gadol
intact! Quickly, with trembling hands,
they poured it into the Menorah and lit
it. It would be eight days before they
could manufacture more oil for the next
lighting, but meanwhile, they lit what
they had.

11. For eight days they burned. Those eight
miraculous days were chosen as the
eternal symbol to commemorate the
ness of Chanukah - the eight day long
Festival of Lights, where we light the
Menorah each evening, publicizing the
miracle Hashem performed.
The flames of the Menorah burned
and burned …..