Billy+and+Casey+Religious+Art+Project

toc = = = = =Images Citation= http://www.judaica-mall.com/products/menorah-16035m.jpg http://www.baruch-hashem.com/store/menorah.jpg

= = =Summary=

In most basic terms, the Menorah is used as a symbol of the Jewish Faith. There are two different types of Menorahs. There is a 7 branch Menorah for daily showing in temple and there is a 9 branch Menorah that is used during Hanukkah. The Jewish menorah is used as a symbol for Hanukkah and is used throughout this holiday. Duri ng this holiday, one candle on the Menorah is lit every night consecutively. Since Hanukkah is eight nights long, at the end of the holiday, all nine candles are lit. Although there are nine candles, only eight are lighted during this time. This is because the tallest candle is called the "servant candle". This candle is used to light the others. The 7 branch Menorah is the other type of Menorah. This menorah is commonly found in temples and are shown at temples almost everyday. This is since it was made to be a reminder of the commandment in Isaiah 42:6. This commandment tells the people of Israel to be a light to the nations. Also, the seven branch Menorah was lit every day by priests since it was taught that the Menorah was the "vessel that g-d used to blend the spiritual life that is to come with the physical life in this world" The menorah is a very important part of the Jewish religion and very important for Jewish traditions.

The me norah plays an important part in the Jewish faith. Its origin comes from the Torah: in Exodus 25: 31-40, God commanded the Jews to make the menorah a certain way, and described all the features of it: //"31And thou shalt make a candlestick of pure gold: of beaten work shall the candlestick be made: his shaft, and his branches, his bowls, his knops, and his flowers, shall be of the same.// //32And six branches shall come out of the sides of it; three branches of the candlestick out of the one side, and three branches of the candlestick out of the other side:// //33Three bowls made like unto almonds, with a knop and a flower in one branch; and three bowls made like almonds in the other branch, with a knop and a flower: so in the six branches that come out of the candlestick.// //34And in the candlesticks shall be four bowls made like unto almonds, with their knops and their flowers.// //35And there shall be a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, according to the six branches that proceed out of the candlestick.// //36Their knops and their branches shall be of the same: all it shall be one beaten work of pure gold.// //37And thou shalt make the seven lamps thereof: and they shall light the lamps thereof, that they may give light over against it.// //38And the tongs thereof, and the snuffdishes thereof, shall be of pure gold.// //39Of a talent of pure gold shall he make it, with all these vessels.// //40And look that thou make them after their pattern, which was shewed thee in the mount."// (Exodus 25: 31-40, King James version.) <span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">The most famous use of the menorah comes from around 165 B.C. During this time period, the Jews were rebelling against their Syrian rulers who would not let them practice Judaism. When the small Jewish force took over Jerusalem, they had to keep the menorah in the temple lit until they could get more oil. Unfortunately, they only had enough oil for one day. Magically, the oil lasted eight days until they were able to get more oil for the menorah. Because of this, the nine-candled menorah was created. (One candle for each day the oil lasted and one candle to light the others.) So, the menorah is important to Jews in two ways: it is mentioned in scripture and it is a major part of the holiday Hanukkah.

=Bibliography=

"Menorah." //Jewish Virtual Library//. American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise. Web. 9 Nov. 2009. <[]>.

I chose this site because it was reliable and had just enough, but not too much information directly on my topic. Since it is a .org site, I found that it was reliable. This site had a publishing company, the American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise which gave this site some credibility as well. But the main reason why I chose this site is because it had the pertinent information to my part of the project. It helped me form my notes and write my summary paragraph.

__Notes__ - 9 Branch ○ Used to remember the miracle of oil ○ They had a small bit of oil and it lasted for 8 days

Barnett, Adam. "The Seven Branch Menorah." //Articesbase//. Free Articles, 10 Nov. 2006. Web. 9 Nov. 2009. <[]>.

I chose this site because it had very important information and was a credible site. It was credible since it quoted scripture and had the same information I found on the other sites. It helped me form my notes and write my summary paragraph. It had the important info for my part of the project.

__Notes__ Different Menorahs: - 7 Branch ○ Used for a symbol of the Jewish Faith - Commonly found in temples - Daily symbol -Reminder of the commandment of Isaiah 42:6 -Commanded to use menorah in Exodus 25: 31-40.

Adler, David A. "Hanukkah." Reviewed by Lawrence Grossman. //The New Book of Knowledge®//. 2009. Grolier Online. 9 Nov. 2009 <[]>.

I chose this site primarily because I knew it was reliable since it is a database. It had a lot of good information about the history of Hanukkah as it relates<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> to the menorah. Also, it described menorahs as they are used today. The site had just the right amount of information on the topic. I found it by going to various library databases in the general reference category and searching for "menorah." Eventually, I found this article on Grolier and decided to use it.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">__Notes__ <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">-Jews in Judea were ruled by Syria <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">-Syrian king forced the Jews to worship Greek gods <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">-But, when they tried to force the Jews of Modin to practice the Greek religion, a priest named Mattathias started a rebellion with the famous line, "Whoever is for the Lord, follow me!" <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">-Three year rebellion, small Jew force eventually conquered larger Greek armies <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">-When they had taken over the temple in Jerusalem, they only had enough oil to last one day to burn the candles in the menorah, but the oil magically lasted eight days <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">-So, the current tradition of Hanukkah lasts eight days to commemorate

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Hanukkah- • The menorah is<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> used for th is 8-day holiday

Menorahs:

-Very important piece of Jewish Art - Important to Jewish traditions

How we got these:

Google Search: -Menorah -Menorah Significance -Hanukkah Menorah -Nine Candle Menorah -Seven Candle Menorah

MICDS Library: -Databases

=Individual Paragraphs=

Images and artifacts enhance one’s understanding of religion. Artifacts and images do so in many ways. First, images and artifacts enhance one’s understanding of religion because they can show what is important to a certain religion. For example, Cathedrals enhance one’s understanding of religion because inside of them you can see a lot of stain glass containing pictures of Bible Scenes and Saints. This shows that Saints and the Bible are very important parts of the Christian religion. Also, in the Islamic prayer rugs, mosques are pictured and the Kaaba is usually shown. This can help you understand what is valuable to them. In the Islamic religion, the mosques and Kaaba are very important. Next, images and artifacts enhance one’s understanding of religion because it can show how certain religions worship their God. For example, prayer rugs are used in the Islamic religion. This can help you understand that in this faith; people kneel and bow to their gods. This enhances one’s understanding since you can learn how they worship. Finally, images and artifacts enhance one’s understanding of a religion because it can help you understand their stories and scripture. For example, in the Jewish religion, the Menorah is a significant artifact. This is shown daily in Temple and is used for Hanukah. This piece of Jewish art can help you understand the story of when the Jews were rebelling against the Syrians and needed to keep the Temple lit. They only had enough oil for one day, but it lasted eight days. Therefore, there is a nine candle Menorah with eight candles symbolizing the eight days and one candle to light them. The menorah helps you picture and understand this story. Images and artifacts greatly enhance one’s understanding of religion.

-Casey Zuccarello

<span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Religious art enhances my understanding of religion by showing how simple and inanimate objects can have deep spiritual meaning for them. Many religious objects, if viewed by someone who knew nothing at all about religion, might think they look nice or be awed by them, but it would not have anywhere near the effect of these objects on believers. My subject, the menorah, is an entirely unremarkable object to the non-Jew. To a Jewish person, however, this symbol is representative of a major holiday in their faith because it played a large part in that holiday. Also, it is referenced in the Torah, which makes it very holy for many. An example from Christianity is the nativity. For a Christian, this scene is one of the most important events in history. There is nothing remarkable on the surface about the scene, but what gives it its beauty (to Christians) is the idea that Christ is a coming of God. Last, an example from Islam is the Kaaba. Once again, the spiritual meaning of this object makes it special, not the actual physical characteristics. Of course, this giant black square building is pretty remarkable by itself, but if you view it as the house of God then it instantly becomes one of the most important places on earth. In conclusion, many of these art pieces would mean nothing to a non-believer, but are incredibly important to someone of that religion.

-Billy Van Cleve

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