Source: The Christian Post, December 27, 2024
For me, as an Iranian Christian coming from an Islamic background, Christmas and also Hanukkah have special and deep meanings. As over 2 million Muslim background Iranian Christians celebrate their salvation during Christmas, Hanukkah reminds them how the past and future of the two nations, Israel and Iran, are tied together.
Hanukkah vividly commemorates the awe-inspiring victory of the Maccabees, a courageous and determined group of Jewish fighters who triumphed against the formidable Greek-Syrian army in 164 BCE. Upon reclaiming the Holy Temple in Jerusalem, the Maccabees aimed to relight its sacred menorah but discovered only a scant amount of purified oil, sufficient to keep the flame aglow for a single day. However, this oil miraculously illuminated the menorah for an astounding eight days.
In the year 2024, these eight days span from Wednesday, December 25, coinciding with Christmas Day, through to Thursday, January 2.
As we read in the Bible, the visionary Persian King Cyrus commanded and generously financed the construction of the second temple. This monumental undertaking began in 538 BC. Cyrus’s benevolence knew no bounds; he not only funded this grand edifice but also liberated the Jewish captives, urging them to return to their sacred homeland, Jerusalem, to rebuild their temple.
Because of how the Second Temple was built, everything connected to it serves as a powerful beacon of the once-thriving friendship and deep-seated alliance that bound Israel and Iran. As we are celebrating Christmas and Hanukkah, let us remember that according to the Bible, both nations will be saved. Once again, they will be friends, and both will be used in the end times to bring the good news to the world.