Most of us know the story of Hanukkah, with the Menorah and the jar of oil that lasted longer than expected. But according to Pesikta Rabbati (an early medieval Jewish collection of writings on the Jewish holidays), there is another version of story, which says that when the Maccabees re-entered the Temple after defeating the Greeks, “they found there eight spits of iron. They grooved these out, and kindled wicks in the oil they poured into the grooves.” (2:1. Trans. W.G. Braude, The Book of Legends). Hanukkah could have just been a holiday about military victory, the triumph of the outnumbered Jews against their mightier foes. But according to this source, the Maccabees follow the vision of Isaiah (2:4): “ they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.”
They found iron weapons, and turned them into vessels for light. When you light your candles tonight, try to envision that first Hanukkiah made of iron. How will you help transform aggression into light?
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