22/12/2024
Chanukah, will the Festival of Lights connect Jews and Messianic Jews?
There are far more important connections between Messianic Jews and Rabbinic Jews
during The Festival Lights, Chanukah than just the fact that this festival is in December, [one of the most sacred months for Christians and Messianic Jews.s
A question was asked by Rabbi Yeshua - Jesus that I believe can only be understood in the
light of the events of the time of the Maccabees.
What did Rabbi Yeshua - Jesus mean by the question :
"And he saith unto them, Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath days, or to do evil? to save life, or to kill? But they held their peace." [Mark 3:4}
I believe that the Scribes and Pharisees remained silent.... because they knew their own history quite well......
.. Book of Machabees 1, chapter two :
" And it was told to the king's men, and to the army that was in Jerusalem in the city of David, that certain men who had broken the king's commandment, were gone away into the secret places in the wilderness, and that many were gone after them. 32 And forthwith they went out towards them, and made war against them on the sabbath day, 33 And they said to them: Do you still resist? come forth, and do according to the edict of king Antiochus, and you shall live. 34 And they said: We will not come forth, neither will we obey the king's edict, to profane the sabbath day. 35 And they made haste to give them battle.
36 But they answered them not, neither did they cast a stone at them, nor stopped up the secret places, 37 Saying: Let us all die in our innocency: and heaven and earth shall be witnesses for us, that you put us to death wrongfully. 38 So they gave them battle on the sabbath: and they were slain with their wives, and their children, and their cattle, to the number of a thousand persons. 39 And Mathathias and his friends heard of it, and they mourned for them exceedingly. 40 And every man said to his neighbour: If we shall all do as our brethren have done, and not fight against the heathens for our lives, and our justifications: they will now quickly root us out of the earth.
41 And they determined in that day, saying: Whosoever shall come up against us to fight on the sabbath day, we will fight against him: and we will not all die, as our brethren that were slain in the secret places. 42 Then was assembled to them the congregation of the Assideans, the stoutest of Israel, every one that had a good will for the law. 43 And all they that fled from the evils, joined themselves to them, and were a support to them. 44 And they gathered an army, and slew the sinners in their wrath, and the wicked men in their indignation: and the rest fled to the nations for safety. 45 And Mathathias and his friends went round about, and they threw down the altars: " [i Machabees chapter two]
It seems to me that the general tendency to "turn the other cheek" is not meant to be a moral absolute that should include simply allowing evil people, such as the Greco - Syrian armies in the time of the Maccabees... or a Hamas or Hezbollah terrorist in 2023...... to be free to kill us and take our children to be slaves or hostages... ......... In other words.... I believe that this question by Rabbi Yeshua - Jesus hints that a true Christian could be a soldier in the I. D. F. .... or the USA army....... or a police officer... and could even kill an evil doer.... even on the Sabbath..... if they are threatening lives or damaging property........
