Scripture: John 10:22-24
Then came the Festival of Dedication at Jerusalem. It was winter, ed and Jesus was in the temple courts walking in Solomon’s Colonnade. The Jews who were there gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”

Thought for the Day: Chanukah is a festival of Thanksgiving, so it is more than a little appropriate that the American holiday and the Jewish celebration occur at the same time this year. Also, it will probably surprise none of you to learn that I love Chanukah, not simply because of my Jewish heritage, but also because it has its roots in a revolution against assimilation.

The events remembered during the festival of lights occurred about 150 years before Jesus was born. He definitely celebrated Chanukah, and it is possible (perhaps even likely) that the account of Jesus on Solomon’s porch given above occurs during Chanukah. I wonder what Jesus might have been thinking as he walked the Temple grounds, remembering an earlier empire that his ancestors resisted with all their might, just as he and his followers were resisting the Romans?

Just as the Greeks had despoiled the Temple a century earlier, the Romans now despoiled the Temple in the same manner. While giving thanks to God for past deliverance, I don’t think it’s too much of a stretch to imagine Jesus praying to God for deliverance once again, and giving thanks for the courage, fortitude, foresight, and wisdom necessary to oppose assimilation in all its cunning disguises—like, say, a shopping frenzy called Black Friday.

Prayer: Remind me, holy God, that my life is dedicated to you, and to you alone. Thank you, most loving God, for the gifts you have given me that help me resist assimilation by the Empire; gifts that help me remain fully loyal to Your principles of love, compassion, and forgiveness. Amen.