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As names tend to capture the essence of the subject described, it is instructive to consider the name of our holiday.  Noting that "Chanukah" means "dedication" or an

"initiation" of something for an intended purpose, the Midrash weaves the term Chanukah into a few critical "dedications" in Jewish history:

How many dedications [Chanukahs] were there? Seven, and they are: The dedication of Heaven and Earth…the dedication of the wall [of Jerusalem] … the dedication of the returning from the Exile … the dedication of the Priests that we commemorate through our lighting … the dedication of the World to come … the dedication of the princes of the Mizbeach … and the dedication of the Mikdash …

Psikta Rabti [Ish Shalom] 2

וכמה חנוכות הם? שבע חנוכות הם, ואילו הן: חנוכת שמים וארץ שנאמר ויכולו השמים והארץ (בראשית ב' א') ומה חנוכה היה שם ויתן אותם אלהים ברקיע השמים להאיר (בראשית א' י"ז) וחנוכת החומה שנאמר ובחנוכת חומת ירושלים (נחמיה י"ב כ"ז) וחנוכת של [עולי] גולה שנאמר והקריבו לחנוכת בית אלהינו דנא וגו' (עזרא ו' י"ז) וחנוכת הכהנים זו שאנו מדליקין וחנוכת העולם הבא שנאמר אחפש ירושלים בנרות (צפניה א' י"ב) וחנוכת הנשיאים זאת חנוכת המזבח (במדבר ז' פ"ד) וחנוכת המקדש מה שקראו בענין מזמור שיר חנוכת הבית לדוד. 

פסיקתא רבתי [איש שלום] פיסקא ב

The first "chanuka" was that of the world's natural phenomena, designated for the purpose of maintaining the order and consistency of God's creation.  During creation itself, the laws of nature were yet to be fixed, and as a result the world was an unpredictable place.  The establishment of natural forces solidified the fact that He fixed them in place forever, a decree that is never transgressed (Tehilim 148).  This was a critical moment in creation: both consistency and ubiquity of natural law are fundamental to science and human understanding.  Without fixed laws of nature, there would be no science to speak of and no basis for human beings to understand, and thereby shape, the natural world.

The next chanukah was the dedication of the walls of Jerusalem in Sefer Nechemia, which symbolized the first truly autonomous act the Jews were able to effect upon returning from the Babylonian exile.  Despite having won the right to rebuild their homeland, the Jews had continuously faced disruption from within and without, which prevented the establishment of the true security (Ezra, Ch. 4).  Dedicating the walls was a game-changer in the politics of the region: the capital was secured and Jewish sovereignty was restored.

The dedication of the נשיאים, the tribal princes, was the culmination of the building of the Mishkan, and set the wheels in motion for the new place of worship to fulfill its purpose.  The Ramban notes that this was the culmination of the entire experience of the Exodus, the moment that allowed the newly formed nation to fully transition from exiled slaves to a people redeemed in the true sense of the term - a people freely serving God.  Likewise, the final journey into the land of Israel was only complete with the building of the Beit Hamikdash.  The same can be said of the culmination of the Babylonian exile. 

Our holiday of Chanukah, which the Midrash terms the chanukat haKohanim, also commemorates a watershed moment in Jewish history, one that is comparable to the other chanukot described above.  Most simply, political sovereignty was returned to the Jewish state in the form of Hasmonean rule.  But the real paradigm shift was cultural, not political.  

The Haftarah of Shabbat Chanuka describes the famous vision of the menorah of Zecharia (Zecharia, Ch. 4).  In his vision, Zecharia is shown a menorah of singular description.  This was no ordinary candelabrum, nor was it simply a vision of the seven-stemmed lamp used in the Beit Hamikdash.  It was fully equipped with a circular fuel basin, lamps, and tubes to siphon the oil to the wicks.  Even the source of the fuel itself, the olive trees, was attached to the menorah at its sides.  As expressed in Rav Hirsch's teachings on the Haftarah, it was a self-contained system, "a candelabrum which, independent of everything else, bears and maintains everything that is required for giving light."

It was this independence that was the turning-point in Jewish destiny.  On Chanukah, we celebrate the strength of spirit that only comes from pure immersion in Jewish experience, an encounter that looks no further than the Torah itself to provide the kindling for the illumination of the world around us.  Like the other chanukot in history, the victory over the Greeks marked the initiation of a new era, one in which we are able to take pride in our ability to be culturally and morally self-sufficient.  On Chanukah, we celebrate our Torat Hashem that is temimah in the full sense of the term - perfect and fully equipped to provide the fuel we need to be the light for the nations envisioned by our prophets.