Hanukkah
Human Rights
A Busy Season
December Birthdays
St. Stephen
Gifts and Presents

Hanukkah
07/12/04

Hanukkah, a Jewish festival also known as the Feast of Dedication and the Festival of Lights, begins on the 25th day of the Hebrew month of Kislev, which falls on December 5 in the Gregorian calendar this year. This festival, which continues for 8 days, commemorates the victory of a small group of Jewish nationalists, known as Maccabees, over the Syrians in 165 B.C.E. and the rededication of the Temple at Jerusalem. The Temple had been desecrated by pagan rulers and its rededication at the end of a three-year war was a most joyful event in Jewish history. According to Jewish custom, a menorah, or candelabrum, having holders for nine candles is an important element in this celebration, for it is the tradition to light one candle on the first night and one more each successive night during the festival; the ninth candle is used to light the other candles. This custom is meant to remind celebrants of the miracle that was said to have occurred at the rededication of the Temple. When the Maccabean leader entered the Temple to rekindle the eternal light that was supposed to burn there continually, he found only one small cruse of consecrated oil that had not been desecrated by the Greek rulers, but that small cruse of oil which was only enough to burn for one day, actually lasted for eight days, until new oil could be prepared and consecrated. Thus, every day of this Festival of Lights, as another candle is lit, celebrants are reminded of God’s provision and enlightenment. How to transliterate words from one language to another is often a problem, but the case of “Hanukkah” is exceptional, for there are 17 different English transliterations of the original Hebrew word, which consists of five letters. (1109)

Human Rights
07/12/10

Words having the same pronunciation but different meanings are called “homonyms.” For example, there are three English words that are pronounced the same, but are spelled r-i-t-e, w-r-i-t-e and r-i-g-h-t. To illustrate the problem foreign students of English face in understanding English sentences, I sometimes humorously explain that when driving a car in Japan, “the right side is the wrong side and the left side is the right side.” Although this sounds contradictory, there are different meanings of the word “right.” One kind of “right” is the opposite of “left” and another kind of “right” is the opposite of “wrong.” The term “human rights” refers to “something that is due to a person by law, tradition or nature.” Fifty-nine years ago, on December 10,1948, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Consequently, December 10th is called Human Rights Day and in the United States of America, that day is the beginning of Human Rights Week. Unfortunately, there is probably no country where the “human rights” of all residents without exception are recognized. To answer the question of what exactly is included in this term, there are 30 articles in that Universal Declaration, the first three of which include the following statements: “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights;” “Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion;” “Everyone has the right to life, liberty and the security of person.” During this Human Rights Week, let us consider the actual situation of those in our school, neighborhood or company whose human rights are not fully recognized and seek to remedy that situation. (1110)

A Busy Season
07/12/14

In many countries, this time of year is always very busy. There are a number of reasons why this is so. In countries in the Northern Hemisphere, there are fewer hours of daylight around the winter solstice. Also, the year in the Gregorian calendar is coming to an end and, in some cultures, there are many things that should be completed before the end of an old year and the beginning of a new one. Finally, the commercialization of Christmas as the time to decorate and give gifts has made this pre-Christmas season very busy. Although Christmas is the time when the birth of Jesus, the Christ, is celebrated, we are not certain of the day or the month or the year of his birth. It was about 200 years after Jesus was born that December 25 was chosen as the day to commemorate his birth. The reason for choosing that day is not related to scholarly research. Rather, it was the result of the church’s attempt to take advantage of the elaborate celebration of the pagan feast of Saturnalia, on the winter equinox, in honor of Saturn, the Roman god of agriculture. Consequently, included in traditional Christmas decorations and activities are some that are rooted in non-Christian traditions. Christmas is a major celebration in much of the secular world, but in the liturgical church calendar, this festival, celebrating Jesus’ birth, is superseded by the celebration of his resurrection on Easter and the manifestation of his divine nature on Epiphany, 12 days after Christmas. The church calendar begins on the 4th Sunday before Christmas. Called “Advent,” meaning “coming,” it is the season to prepare our hearts for Christ’s “coming,” and that’s what we should be doing during this pre-Christmas season. (1111)

December Birthdays
07/12/18

As noted in the previous message, we are not sure of the date of Jesus’ birth, but it is now celebrated on December 25th, a national holiday in many countries. In Japan, December 23rd is a national holiday for it is the Emperor’s Birthday; this is the 19th year of his reign. December 5th is a national holiday in Thailand, celebrating the birthday of its King, the longest reigning monarch in the world. But that day is not only the birthday of the Thai King, it is also the birthday of my wife, so our daughter, who lives in Thailand has two reasons for celebrating that day. Finally, December is also the month of the birthday of the composer of these messages. In fact, I was interested to hear from our daughter that the Thai King as well as her father reached the age of 80 this month. Fifteen years ago, when I applied for my Social Security benefits, I was surprised to be informed that my birthday was not December 16, according to their records, but December 11. I was told that I now had two birthdays, but I should always remember that when dealing with Social Security matters, my birthday is December 11. After checking old documents in my files, I discovered the probable reason for the discrepancy. Although my official birth certificate is dated December 16, a typewritten “Certificate of Birth” issued by the town office 16 years later had 3 errors in it: the spelling of the birthplaces of both my mother and my father and my date of birth. I changed all 3 of them with my pen, but I surmise that before the use of typewriters in that town office, someone did not make the small loop on the bottom of the 6 clear and it appeared like a1. The highlight of my birthday celebration this year was not only eating with friends at a Japanese restaurant and phone calls from 4 of my siblings from three different states, but the “conference call” from my three children, who live in Japan, Thailand and New Mexico in which all three of them were able to talk with both me and my wife and with each other at the same time. (1112)

St. Stephen
07/12/23

According to the church calendar followed by most Christian churches that observe feast days for the saints, the day after Christmas is the Feast of St. Stephen; but who was Stephen? His name means“wreath or crown” in Greek and he became the first Christian martyr. What we know about him is found in the 6th and 7th chapters of the New Testament book of Acts. My elder son is named Steven, but his name is spelled with a“v” instead of a“ph.” The reason is because my wife’s maiden name was Stevens. According to the story in Acts, the number of Christians became so large that the 12 apostles needed help in caring for them, so 7 helpers were chosen and Stephen,“a man full of God’s grace and power”(6:8) was the outstanding man in this group. His activities stimulated opposition and he was falsely charged with blasphemy. In his speech before the Jewish governing body in chapter 7, he noted how Jewish leaders in the past had disobeyed God and were punished. He ended with the strong accusation that the Jewish leaders of his day were just like their fathers in disobeying God and even killing the Messiah. His listeners became so angry that they dragged him out of the city and executed him by stoning. Stephen’s last words clearly reveal that this first Christian martyr had truly received the spirit of his Lord. His prayer,“Lord, do not hold this sin against them” (7:59), was very similar to Jesus’ final words from the cross (Luke 23:34). Those who stoned Stephen“laid their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul” (7:58) who was deeply impressed and later became the vigorous evangelist known as Paul (22:20). (1113)

Gifts and Presents
07/12/27

We are now in a “gift-giving season.” Although customs differ, depending on people and culture, the Christmas season, the end of a year and the beginning of a new year is a time for giving gifts in many countries. In my American Heritage Dictionary, the definition of “gift” is “something that is bestowed voluntarily and without compensation.” In some cases, however, things that are considered “gifts” are not given “voluntarily” but because of social pressure and some “compensation” may also be expected. A “present” is defined as “something presented; gift.” Thus, at times, “gift” and “present” are synonymous, but there are other meanings of “present.” It may denote the “period in time . . . between past and future” or “being at hand.” When used as a verb, meaning “to introduce” or “to bring before the public,” the accent is changed from the first to the second syllable. When giving a gift or a present to someone, it is better if the giver is present at the time of the “presentation.” The reason thoughtful, faithful Christians give gifts at Christmas time is in commemoration of God’s great gift to us, the gift of his Son and the salvation or new life gained through faith in him. One of the most repeated verses in the Bible is found in the Gospel According to John, chapter 3, verse 16: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Even in this present time, when we present presents to one another, we should recognize the presence of God. According to the New Testament Letter of James, chapter 1, verse 17, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”(1114)