Faith

Hi dear crafty friends! Einat Kessler here with a new project to inspire you.
This week we are celebrating Hanukkah, the holiday of light and faith. Many of my non Jewish friends have been asking me what exactly is this holiday? Well...it's a miraculous story of faith, courage and light.

The best way to tell this story is first to share with you a card I made that summarize everything you need to know. 8 burning candles and the word faith are Hanukkah in a nut shell. I created this card from bright patterned paper which I then colored with Pan Pastels in fiery colors: yellow, orange and red. Before coloring I cut 8 candles out of kraft cardstock and layered them on my card as a mask. Then I colored around them creating a white candles image.

Then I colored the cardstock candles with the same colors. I added the word faith from Susan Weckesser's Painted Sentiments stamp set and the number 8 with Susan Weckesser stencil.
I adhered the candles to the card with 3D foam tape and my card was ready!

How does the card tell the story of Hanukkah you ask? Well...here's the story...

In 175 BCE, Antiochus invaded Judea.  The second temple in Jerusalem was looted and services stopped, Judaism was outlawed. Antiochus ordered an altar to Zeus erected in the Temple. He banned circumcision and ordered pigs to be sacrificed at the altar of the temple. Antiochus's actions provoked a large-scale revolt. The Jewish revolt was successful. The Temple was liberated and rededicated, it was cleansed, a new altar was built in place of the polluted one and new holy vessels were made. Olive oil was needed for the menorah in the Temple, which was required to burn throughout the night every night. The story goes that there was only enough oil to burn for one day, yet it burned for eight days, the time needed to prepare a fresh supply of oil for the menorah. An eight-day festival was declared to commemorate this miracle - Hanukkah!

Without Faith the revolt could not have succeeded, the temple would not have been freed and God would not have given the Jews the miracle of the oil. This holiday of light was created because of the faith that darkness can be overcome!

Thanks for stopping by
Have fun creating!
Einat