Shalom Aleichem,
I can’t believe it’s almost December! It seems like just yesterday that we were celebrating Sukkot in the lovely summer weather. Since then, the days have grown a little colder and darker. We could allow the cold to chill us and the dark to get us down, but the upcoming celebration of Chanukkah helps us not to go there. We can taste the latkes, sing the songs, and spin the dreidel.
What is Chanukkah about? Jewish tradition tells us that it’s not actually about the above, even though they are what we love about Chanukkah. Rather, Chanukkah is about miracles. We can’t escape this theme, even if we try. Why do we light the chanukkia or menorah? We learn that it is for no other purpose than pirsum hanes, in order to “publicize the miracle” -- the miracle of the battle of the few over the many, and the oil that was supposed to last for one day but that lasted for eight. In the Amidah prayer we add a special insert -- v’al hanisim -- that speaks of the miracles that happened at this auspicious time. And of course, we spin the dreidel with its Hebrew letters - nun, gimmel, heh, shin (an acronym for the Hebrew nes gadol hayah sham – “a great miracle happened there.”) Or, if you’re in Israel, you’ll find dreidels with nun, gimmel, heh, pey (an acronym for the Hebrew nes gadol hayah po – “a great miracle happened here.”)
We could ponder the big question, “Do miracles really exist?” However, I think that this ultimately depends upon how you define miracles. This upcoming Chanukkah season, I invite you to go beyond this question. Here is a Chanukkah practice to try. On each night, as you enjoy the light of the candles, take a moment to reflect upon and share about the different miracles in your life. This Chanukkah, may your home be full of comforting warmth, meaningful light and little miracles.
-- Rabbi Mark
