Sacred Stories
HanukkahHanukkah is a story of the Maccabees.
The Maccabees were ruled by a general known as Antiochus who believed himself a god. When he told the people to bow down and worship him, the Jews refused and so, in his anger, Antiochus decreed it illegal to keep the Sabbath (a day or religious observation and abstinence from work) or to practice their laws. He built a temple and statue of the God Zeus and commanded everyone to worship it and sacrifice pigs in his honour. Anyone who disobeyed his laws would be killed. A Jewish rabbi by the name of Mattathias and his family refused to worship the statue as a god so they ran away into the woods in hiding so the soldiers could not find them. Soon, more Jews rebelled against Antiochus and joined the family in hiding. However, Mattathias was old and he soon died leaving his son Judah in charge. He led the Jews into a battle and they soon returned to the city. They arrived at the temple and removed the statue and cleansed the building. Once the Jews rededicated the temple, they decided to celebrate the holiday of Sukkot on the 25th of December. As Sukkot lasts seven days, this became the timeframe for the holiday, Hanukkah. |
Abraham and IsaacAbraham and his wife Sarah had wished for a child for many
years. At an old age they were granted with the birth of a son named Isaac and thanked God for his gift. The Lord spoke to Abraham and told him to travel to a mountain and make a sacrifice of your beloved son, Isaac. Abraham woke the next morning and, with a heavy heart, gathered everything he would need. Together, Isaac and Abraham travelled for three days then saw in the distance the place which he must sacrifice his son to God. Abraham took his son and climbed the mountain. Once they arrived, Abraham built an alter and arrange some wood on it. Then he took his son and tied him to the alter with rope. Abraham readied his knife to kill his only son but at that moment, an angel called down from the heavens. The angel said, “God says to you: I swear by my own name that you will be richly blessed because you did not keep your son from me.” The Angel told Abraham he would have as many descendants as there are stars in the sky and through his descendants all of the nations of the world will be blessed. Abraham freed his son and looked up to find a ram caught in a bush. Abraham took this ram and sacrificed it in the place of his son. |