Chanukah -Rabbi Cliff Cohen

Chanukah begins on December 25th this year, a significant date, as it was also the birthday of a highly influential Jew who is remembered among other reasons for a famous star. I refer of course to Franz Rosenzweig – I’m sure you knew that – whose book, “The Star of Redemption” helped to define Jewish theology for much of the last century. I am told that Rosensweig was apparently not the only famous Jew to be born on that date, but I want to tell you about a different character, an ancient deity called Mithras.

Mithras was worshipped in Persia from the fourth century BCE and continually throughout the first four or five centuries of this millennia in Rome. According to many, he was born on December 25th of a virgin whose name was Mary, had a step-father named Joseph, and was birthed in a cave where animals were kept. His birth was announced by an angel, there was a great star in the sky overhead as a sign, and there were shepherds there. The ancient texts are silent about his life between the ages of 12 and 30 but when he was 30 he was baptized in a river by a guy who was later beheaded.

Mithras had 12 disciples, he performed miracles, he cast out demons, walked on water and raised people from the dead. He was considered a great traveling teacher and master. People started calling him “the son of God”, “the way, the truth, the light”, “Messiah”, “the Holy One”, “The Good Shepherd”, “The Redeemer,” and “The “Saviour”. He delivered a sermon on a mount and was transfigured on a mountain. Eventually he was crucified between two thieves, buried and three days later he rose from the dead. His followers later wrote down his sayings so others could follow him. They celebrated Sunday as His sacred day (also known as the “Lord’s Day,”) and they celebrated a “Lord’s Supper”, a Eucharist.

Naturally, Christians dispute all this, arguing that there is little or no evidence for any of it. That is true, but outside of their own story in the sacred texts of their own religion, there is little or no evidence about Abraham or Moses or Buddha, and in particular about Jesus.

I say this not to belittle any important religious figure, but to make a different point – faith, almost by definition, is independent of evidence. The plain fact is that we “know” nothing certain about our religious figures, or for that matter about God. We choose a tradition and a path that we find comfortable, that is all, and that is everything. Moreover, it doesn’t matter which one, because the contribution that every faith makes to our needful world comes not from its mythology but from the values that it teaches, values which are largely the same in every faith.

As we celebrate Chanukah, let’s remember that there is no single path to God, and no single source of our common values. We cannot hope to better the world by demanding, as Antiochus did, that others follow our religion, nor do we serve God’s purpose by expecting others to forsake their own sources merely to acquire the same values from the books and teachers that are special to us. Instead, let’s work in a spirit of respect with all who share our values and collaborate to make our world a better place for all.