Ohio Jewish Chronicle, 1968-12-12

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Vol. 46, No. 51
THURSDAY. DECEMBER 12,1968 - 21 KISLEV
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Hisloiy And Customs Of Chanuloih
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Chanukah, celebrated this year from Dec. 16 to 23, Is known as the "Festival of UghtV a named rooted In -the practice of lighting ' candles on eight successive nights. The name oftheboli- day~"ded|catlon" in He¬ brew—steins from Judahthe , Macaebqe's rededicatlon about 165 BCE of the Se¬ cond Temple in Jerusalem. The festival also marks Ms vlGtoi7 some three years earlier over the Greek king Antlochus Eplphanes, a ty¬ rant of the House of Seleu- cus who had^Iundered the Temple while seekingtofor- clldy Hellenize Judea.
His cruel excesses agsdnst the Jews which included ef¬ forts to compel them to par¬ ticipate in pagan rites Ignited the Hasmonean up-rising. The Hasomoneans were a piriestly dynasiy founded by MattatMas of Modhi, and his five sons, Judah among them, led the popular rebellion in Palestine against Antlochus. THE CELEBRATIONtakes fiSce between Kislev 25 and Tevet 2 «i the Jewish ca¬ lendar. The foundadon of this is the'tsrsn Macca- bees^ 4:59: "Ahd Judah and. his brethren and fhe whole oongregatilon of Israel or¬ dained that t"" days of the
dedicatlm ^f the altar should be kept in their seasons .i^om year to year for eight days from the 25th day of Ki8l^v."-ThlB became em¬ bellished by the Talmud (Shabbat 21b} which states that the festival continued for eight days because the oil discovered in the Temple, .though enough for only.one day, burned miraculously for eight until new supplies were located.
Chanukah candles are lighted in an eight-branch candelabrum known asame- norah from a ninth candle known as theshammash.The Maoz Tzur (Fortress Rock), a song believed composedly Mordecai, a 13th Century liturgical poet, is sung. This practice originally took place in the Ashlcenazi rite only, Sephardim also recite the 30th Psalm.
IN THE synagogue the de¬ dication - offering ofthe princes (Numbers, 7:1-8:4) is read from the Torah, and In the Uhifgy the mil Hallel (PsalmsillS-llS) Isrecited. The Qh^' sentence of AI- Ila Nls^im, 'the Chanukah^ special prayer, is inserted mfba 'Amldah (aa well as- 'cpra^^lafter 'meals) and re¬ calls' 'th|' Temple miracle.
Candled are inserted on
successive nights,- an^addi- fional one added nightly, from right to left, whUe the light¬ ing itself is from left to right. The menorah is fra- ditlonally placed in a pro- mhient place, to symboli¬ cally "advertise theml-
ORIGINALLY the menorah at Chanukah, which Is anjm- Biblical htdlday, was an cdl lamp. But over the years it, assumed the design, of the seven - branched candela-/ brum which was used in the Temple. In recent years ar- tists and craftsmen have . created a wide' varieiy of menorah forms.
On the first Sabbath of ' Chanukah the prophetical portion read is Zechariah 2:14-4:7 which includes the verse: "Not tty might nor by power, but by My spirit, said' the "Lord o^;-Hosts." This emphasis is seen as a rabbinical desire to play dowp the military f&cet of Chanultah and'to focus onthe facet of the survival of re¬ ligious values threatened, by- pagan and Idolatrous forces. . ONE 0F,the,&mlly;"cus-.,-.?a|!4^.B^n^ toms of 9b«iukah is to pass evenings athomesplnningthe Chanukah top—"dreidel" or "trgpdel" in Yiddish. It bears the initials of Uie He¬
brew phrase "A great mi¬ racle happened there;" in Israel the word "here" is is substituted for "there". One of the principal customs is the exchanging of gifts including money (Chanukah "gelt").
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TEL AVIV (WNS) —The Kol Israel radio broad¬ cast ,an Interview with an 18-year-oId fraqui Army deserter in which Ite said: fra^ troops in Jordan were supidying El Fatah and other Arab guerrilla groups with arms and transportation for incuirsiqns against Israel. The s(fldier called cm frai^ troops to desert t6 Israel where, he, said, they would be ' welcomed.
MOSCOW (WNS)—The Great Synagogue in Odessa, the Black Sea port* s last functioning synagogue, was burned to the ground in what tiie Soviet Government's Novosti news agency said was - a fire- caused by a "short circuit in electrical wiring in Matzoh baldng" facilities. Odessa has one of Russia's.laigest Jewish communities.
NEW YORK (WNS)—The National Committee for Labor  Israel,  the  American fkind-raising aim (tf. Histadrut, Israel's labor federation, has set a goal of $6 mUIion for its 1969 campaign.
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Mrs. Joseph Schwortz
Israel Bonds To Honor Schwartz
,.Jerome Schottenstein, ^das Achim State of Is- chairmao. an¬ nounced that ..Mrs. Joseph- L. Schwartz, immediate pas£ Women's Division chairman at the Columbus State of Israel Bond Campaign will be honored at the Agudas Achim Social HaU at tite Congregation's drive to pro¬ vide investment catpital for Israel's Development Budget through purchases of State of I^rebl; Bonds. The drive, which will take the form of a dessert reception, wUl be held the first night of Hanu- hkah, Sunday , December 15, at 8 p.m.
Quintet To Entertain Donors
Halm Shelef and his Tel Aviv Quintet wUl entertain at the 40Ui annual Hadassah Donor Dinner on Saturday, January 18, at Congregation
CHARITY NEWSIES DRIVE SATURDAY
This year's Charity Newsle president, Bert Charles, left, and his drive-chabrman. Gene Scholz, happily point' out the fact that the 62nd annual Newsies newspaper sale will be held this Saturday, Dec. 14, throughout FVanklin County, when they and over ISO other mem¬ bers will once again attempt to raise fkmds to clothe needy school-age chQdreh. Last year alone, tlie New¬ sies outfitted 8358 chlldrra firom 2423 families tWth 75,479'^artlcles of brand new cl<f^inB.At, by chance^ ttie Newsies n)lss you tUs Satin^^, idonatlons can be mailed to the .Charity Newsies, 716 S. High St., Co- lumbus, Ohjlo 43206.
Tifereth IsraeL
The Tel Aviv Quintet has appeared throughout Israel, as well as their native Tel Aviv. They started on tite luxury passenger liner Slia- lom. In New York they have appeared at such places as Grossinger's and in Quebec they performed theSte.Aga- the and also appeared at the Natural Gas HospitaWy Pa- villion at E^po in MontreaL Titeir repertoire consists at a stock of international folk music and dance. They in¬ clude the musical culture of Israel, Russia, Greece, the Hassidim and the Yem¬ enites in their sliow.
A gouirmet dinner catered by Executive Catei^rsi will be served. Dancing to' the music of Henty Cincione and his Flytown Brass will com¬ plete tiie evening. The mini¬ mum pledge to attend this year's Donor l^inner is $30.
Group donor chafrmenare Mrs. Albert Tyroler and Mrs. Samuel Portman, Chai; Mrs. Barry Goodman, Liloh; Mrs. GirardLeio', Mitzvah; Mrs. Faye Smith and Miss Miriam Cohen, Jessie Samp- ten Mrs, Norman Levine, Sbcdom; Mrs. Al Mlchaelson and Mrs. Walter Stem, Szol^ and Mrs. Lee Ross, ZIona.
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Best Wishes For A Joyous And Happy Chanukah