How the Scrooges Stole Chanukkah (Or Tried To, At Least)

There are those who would "debunk" the miracle of Chanukkah--the one-day supply of oil that ended up fueling the Temple menorah for a full eight days--in a bid to tell the "truth" about the festival (that it's really about an internecine squabble between Hellenized Jews and traditionalist Jews and has nothing to do with the Jews' ongoing quest for religious freedom--as if that's a message that will draw young people to Judaism and help perpetuate non-Orthodox versions of the faith).

All I have to say about a Festival of Lights that rejects and is devoid of the miraculous (and, by extension, the lights) is this: Bah, humbug!



Update: 2,000 year old coin from Maccabean revolt found in Jerusalem