A Great Miracle Happened (W)here – Eleasa
INCOMPLETE WORK This series about the battles of Hanukkah is ending; today is the 8th and last day of the holiday and this will be…
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A Great Miracle Happened (W)here? – Adasa
JEWISH AMERICAN OR AMERICAN JEW? With recent tragedies in Jewish communities around the world, this question of Jewish identity is very current. These same themes…
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A Great Miracle Happened (W)here? – Capharsalma
THE TRAP After the turmoil in the Seleucid government settles down, focus is again returned to Judea. The new emperor, Demetrius I, who lied and…
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A Great Miracle Happened (W)here? – Beit Zecharia
FAILURE AND LOSS The fifth battle, the Battle of Beit Zecharia, is one that Judah Maccabeus does not win. It took place between Beit Tzur…
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A Great Miracle Happened (W)here – Beit Tzur
NATURE ABHORS A VACUUM After the routing in the Battle of Emmaus, Lysias himself comes to wage war against Judah Maccabeus. He also changes tactics…
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A Great Miracle Happened (W)here? – Emmaus
DAVID VS. GOLIATH When we arrive at the third battle, there is a paradigm shift. Josephus and I Maccabees, which gave only a few sentences…
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A Great Miracle Happened (W)here? – Beit Horon Ascent
MAKE ME FAMOUS The second battle of Judah Maccabeus which occurred less than a year after the first battle is spearheaded by an ambitious fellow -…
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A Great Miracle Happened (W)here – A General’s Battle
We celebrate the holiday of Hanukkah by lighting candles for 8 nights. Why 8 nights? Some say because of the miracle of the oil -…
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Goodwill Towards Men
Alexander Yannai, Jewish king, creator of an empire unrivaled since the time of King Solomon, is a colorful figure in Jewish history. The third son…
Eight Days a Week
I recently visited the Kathisma Church in southern Jerusalem. The Katisma church was a Byzantine shrine from the 5th century. The building was octagonal with its…
