Chanukah
One of the reasons that Chanukah, a Festival initiated by the Rabbis, is so very special is that of all our Festivals, Chanukah is the only one that took place in the Land of Israel. All the others initially took place outside of Israel in either Egypt, Jordan, or Iran.
Passover in Egypt. Shavuot and Sukkot in Jordan. Purim in Iran.
The Chanukah revolt started in the village of Modi’in where Mattathias and his five sons lived. A Senior Citizens can travel to Modi’in from Nahariya by train for a round trip fare of 48 shekels. Travel is direct, no changing, and takes 2 ½ hours. Go back to your roots. Modi'n has the highest IDF enlistment rate of any city in all of Israel.
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On Chanukah Jews the worldwide, usually children but not always, play a game with a 4-sided spinning top called a Dreidel דרײדל in Yiddish and Sevivon סביבון in Hebrew.
There is a Hebrew letter printed on each of the dreidel's four sides.
These four letters form the acronym of the phrase:
נס גדול היה שם
“Nes Gadol Hayah Sham”
"a great miracle happened there," a reference made by Jews living outside of Israel to the Chanukah miracle that transpired within the Land of Israel.
In Israel, however the reference is modified to “a great miracle happened here", substituting the Hebrew letter Pay פ for the letter Shin ש on the Sevivon…not there, but here.
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A special commemorative section is added to the Amidah prayer and the Grace After Meals during the eight days of Chanukah and also during Purim. Both Festivals are extra-Biblical holidays. The added special section has the effect of commemorating the Festival.
However on Purim we read the Megillah of Esther and we also have a festive meal. On Chanukah we light candles, but we do not read from a special Book nor do we eat a festive meal.
I wonder why? My guess is that when the Maccabees were fighting against the Greek-Syrians they were also fighting against fellow Jews…Jews killing Jews, something not to celebrate.
Yemenite Jews had it as a custom to read the Scroll of Antiochus after the haftarah reading on Shabbat Hanukkah
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RAV KOOK ON CHANUKAH (Adapted from Chanan Morrisson)
The Jewish Home
The conflict between the Maccabees and the Hellenists was not just a military struggle for political independence. The essence of the conflict was ideological, a clash between widely divergent cultures. Greek culture emphasized the joys of life, physical pleasures, and the uninhibited expression of human imagination in art and literature. As a result, the Hellenists fought against the Torah of Israel, whose focus is on purity and sanctity.
One aspect of the mitzvah of lighting Chanukah lights is quite unusual. Unlike most mitzvot, the obligation to light is not on the individual but on the home (איש וביתו). Only if one wishes to fulfill the mitzvah more fully does every member of the household light. Why is this?
The average Jew may not exemplify the ideals and beliefs of the Torah in his everyday life. But in his family life, one may sense the special light of Israel. Purity, modesty, and other holy traits are manifest in every Jewish home faithful to a Torah lifestyle. Therefore, the basic obligation of Chanukah lights — which represent Judaism’s victory over the corrupting influences of Greek culture — is not on the individual, but the home: ish uveito, איש וביתו.
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Jewish Nationalism (adapted from Chanan Morrison)
To question whether Jewish nationalism is a genuine Torah value reveals a superficial knowledge of Torah. The real question is whether the ultimate Divine goal is quantitative — the elevation of all of humanity through Israel and its Torah — or qualitative — the incomparable segulah quality of Israel.
In a metaphor Rabbi Yehudah HaLevi’s sees Israel as the “heart among the nations. Is the heart subservient to the other organs of the body, as it provides them with life-giving blood? Or is the heart the central organ, protected and sustained by the rest of the body? Both of these positions are legitimate; “Both views are the words of the Living God” (Babylonian Talmud Eiruvin 13b).
This is the basis for a true understanding of nationalism in Israel. It transcends the usual form of nationalism as it is found among other nations. This unique national love is based on the ultimate Divine goal that can only be fulfilled through the Jewish people. While Jewish nationalism contains elements common to regular nationalism, it is of a completely different order.
(Silver from the Land of Israel. pp. 120-125)
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THE NEGLECT OF JEWISH HEROINES
Are Women obligated to light the Chanukah Menorah? After all they played a major role in making the Chag happen.
First, the Halachah (adapted from Reuven Spolter, Women and Chanukah Lighting):
· Single women and widows who do not live in a household with an adult must certainly light Chanukah candles on their own.
· If one's husband is not home to light, a woman must light for the household.
· Regarding married women lighting for themselves, I'll leave you with Rav Aaron Lichtenstein's (Rosh Yeshivah and Halachic authority) words:
In the house of Rav Soloveitchik of blessed memory, it was the custom that the women did light, and that is how I practice in my house. As we have seen, according to the simple Halachah, women have the identical obligation to light as men. He who is of the opinion that the law is different – let him bring proof to support his position.
Women have a connection to Chanukah because of Judith, the heroine of the Book of Judith. This is an apocryphal book. It has exactly the same status as the Books of the Maccabees. Judith is a Jewish woman who single-handedly saves her people by killing an enemy general, Holofernes. She is part and parcel of the victory of the Maccabean revolt. Judith represents the heroism of women throughout Jewish history. By celebrating her, we seek to remedy the neglect of Jewish heroines.
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Rock of Ages: THE TRANSFORMATION OF CHANUKAH
This is a takeoff of an Opinion piece written by Eli Kavon, and published in the Jerusalem Post on December 9 , 2015.
The celebration of Chanukah in Israel differs from how Chanukah is celebrated outside of Israel. For example, for many families in the USA, Chanukah is an ersatz form of Christmas where the emphasis is on giving gifts to children and family members so that they do not feel deprived or left out from the joy experienced by their Gentile neighbors and relatives. Chanukah in the USA is a reflection of the passivity of the Diaspora Jew.
However to their credit, the assimilation of the Diaspora Jew is not complete: Gifts are often wrapped in blue paper, not red, and where the gift paper has a theme, it is of dreidles and brightly lit Chanukah menorahs, no Santa's or his elves, Rudolph's or Frosty's. In more progressive homes, the Chanukah Bush substitutes for the offensive Christmas tree; we can only go so far, but excuse our red and green poinsettia, please.
In Israel, Chanukah has been transformed from a minor holiday into a central pillar of our Hebrew calendar. The kids are off from school. Jelly donuts vie with latkes for popular consumption, and are an easy winner. Whereas Judah Maccabee did fight for religious freedom, he also fought to regain Jewish sovereignty over our Land. That makes him a Zionist, a religious one at that. In a country where so many have served and are serving in the military, the theme of the Maccabees and their victories resonate throughout the Land.
Today, we are not fighting for our statehood. We've done that, time and again; now we fight to keep it, and we fight hard. It's real; nothing ersatz about our Israeli Chanukah. In Israel, Chanukah is a major holiday that celebrates Jewish triumph. So let's sit back, relax have another latke and maybe a Goldstar, maybe two. I will.
I Have a Little Dreidel - Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel
The acapella group performing the video is Shir Soul. Tzippi and Neil Shore’s son, Jesse is the guy on the right side of the table (as viewed in the video)…Wow!
Chag sameach, חג שמח
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The Talmud (Menahot 28b) states that it is prohibited to use a seven-lamp menorah outside of the Temple. The Chanukkah menorah used for the holiday has eight main branches, plus the raised ninth lamp set apart as the shamash (servant) light which is used to kindle the other lights. Most call this type of menorah a Chanukiah.
QUESTION: DO WE CALL IT A MENORAH OR A CHANUKIAH?
I am what many people call a “Modern Orthodox Jew”. Among other things, this means I celebrate Israeli Independence Day and Jerusalem Day and at these times I say the Hallel celebratory prayer while in the synagogue. This is in contrast to fellow co-religionists who are saddled with their own spiritual dogma and are unable to add religious holidays to the Jewish calendar or do not recognize the religious significance of the State of Israel.
However when it comes to calling the festive candelabra of Chanukah a “Menorah” or a “Chanukiah”, their erstwhile positions that are frozen in dogma thaws out a bit…it is a “Chanukiah” and nothing else will do.
If they only knew that the Chanukiah is a late 19th century term, coined no less than by a woman (Oy,Vey), Hemda Ben-Yehuda (1873-1951), I’m sure that their Chanukiyah would morph back into being a Menorah.
Joseph Trumpeledor, 1880-1920
One of the major aspects of Chanukah is the spiritual and physical battles that the Maccabees fought. We commemorate their success year after year. The Jewish people have fought many battles in our long history.
Rav Kook understood that powerful bodies were needed for the Jewish People to succeed in the holy endeavor of rebuilding the Land of Israel. He lived in Israel at the time of Trumpeledor and Jabotinsky when you had to be physically strong.
As per Rav Kook: Jews are not to be weaklings whom everyone can push around at will. We need not be ashamed of our bodies. We must be strong to learn Gemara and strong to build the Land.
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DAY OF NICANOR
The historical star of Chanukah is Judah Maccabee. He s not mentioned in the Talmud, but he led the revolt and is famous for taking Jerusalem and restoring the Temple. We often look at his achievement as a single event. But Judah had to fight many battles before and after his claim to fame. He not only fought against the Seleucids monarchy, but against other Jews who lived in individual Hellenized cities. In reality it was a civil war, Traditionist Jews versus Reformist Jews..
One of Judah’s most important victories was against the Seleucid general Nicanor. This victory was took place on the 13th of Adar, and was celebrated as the “Day of Nicanor”. We should reinstitute it instead of the “Fast of Esther”.
He rescued Jewish populations that were under attack and brought them to safety in Jerusalem. He destroyed the altars and statues of pagan gods in Ashdod. Often he was not only fighting against Greek-Syrian troops, but against Hellenized Jews. Finally when the war against external enemies came to an end he had to deal with internal struggles between his party and the Hellenist party.
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COMMEMORATION
A special commemorative section is added to the Amidah prayer and the Grace After Meals during the eight days of Chanukah. It has the effect of commemorating the Festival for now and for all generations come:
וְעַל הַנִּסִּים וְעַל הַפֻּרְקָן וְעַל הַגְּבוּרוֹת וְעַל הַתְּשׁוּעוֹת וְעַל הַמִּלְחָמוֹת שֶׁעָשִׂיתָה לַאֲבוֹתֵינוּ בַּיָמִים הָהֵם בַּזְּמַן הַזֶּה
And for the miracles and for the wonders and for the mighty deeds and for the salvations and for the victories that you wrought for our ancestors in their days and in this day
בִּימֵי מַתִּתְיָהוּ בֶּן יוֹחָנָן כֹּהֵן גָּדוֹל חַשׁמוֹנַאי וּבְנָיו כְּשֶׁעָמְדָה מַלְכוּת יָוָן הָרְשָׁעָה עַל עַמְּךָ יִשְׂרָאֵל לְהַשְׁכִּיחָם תּוֹרָתֶךָ וּלְהַעֲבִירָם מֵחֻקֵּי רְצוֹנֶךָ
In the days of Mattathias son of Yohanan the high priest, the Hasmonean, and his sons, when the evil kingdom of Greece stood against your people Israel in order to make them forget your Torah and violate your laws.
אַתָּה בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ הָרַבִּים עָמַדְתָּ לָהֶם בְּעֵת צָרָתָם רַבְתָּ אֶת רִיבָם דַּנְתָּ אֶת דִּינָם נָקַמְתָּ אֶת נִקְמָתָם
You, in your enormous mercy, stood up for them in their time of great need, upheld their cause, judged their case, and avenged their oppressors.
מָסַרְתָּ גִּבּוֹרִים בְּיַד חַלָּשִׁים וְרַבִּים בְּיַד מְעַטִּים וּטְמֵאִים בְּיַד טְהוֹרִים וּרְשָׁעִים בְּיַד צַדִּיקִים וְזֵדִים בְּיַד עוֹסְקֵי תוֹרָתֶךָ
You delivered the mighty into the hands of the week, the many into the hands of the few, the impure into the hands of the pure, the wicked into the hands of the righteous, and the degenerates into the hands of those who cling to your Torah
וּלְךָ עַשִׂיתָ שֵׁם גָּדוֹל וְקָדוֹשׁ בְּעוֹלָמֶךָ וּלְעַמְּךָ יִשְׂרָאֵל עָשִׂיתָ תְּשׁוּעָה גְדוֹלָה וּפֻרְקָן כְּהַיּוֹם הַזֶה
And you made for yourself a great and holy name in your world, and performed a great salvation and miracle for your people Israel, as you do today
וְאַחַר כֵּן בָּאוּ בָנֶיךָ לִדְבִיר בֵּיתֶךָ וּפִנּוּ אֶת הֵיכָלֶךָ וְטִהֲרוּ אֶת מִקְדָּשֶׁךָ וְהִדְלִיק נֵרוֹת בְּחַצְרוֹת קָדְשֶׁךָ וְקָבְעוּ שְׁמוֹנַת יְמֵי חֲנֻכָּה אֵלּוּ לְהוֹדוֹת וּלְהַלֵל לְשִׁמְךָ הַגָּדוֹל
And afterward, your children came to the Holy of Holies in your House, and they cleansed your Palace and purified your Temple and they kindled lights in the courtyard of your Sanctuary and they established these eight days of Hanukkah to give thanks and to praise your great name.
The question is: Why is it incumbent upon to say this prayer for all generations?
As Adapted from Rav Kook: The Answer has to do with the conflict against the ancient Greek culture known as Hellenism. Despite the disastrous short-term effects of Hellenism, this cultural philosophy ultimately has bestowed great benefits on civilization.
There are some who believe that as a basic rule of life the challenges that confront us and threaten our beliefs and way of life will in the end invigorate the sources of truth. Greek wisdom, after it has acknowledged the Divine nature of Torah, will serve to further honor and strengthen the Torah and its ideals. This aspect of ancient Greek culture will defend and enhance the Torah in the future.
For me the answer lies not in Hashem “delivering the mighty into the hands of the weak” or “and the wanton sinners into the hands of those who occupy themselves with Your Torah” and for cleansing the Temple. For me the answer is to militarily crush our enemies who seek to physically and/or spiritually destroy us.
Interesting enough the prayer does not refer to the miracle of the oil, but on military victories.
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RAV KOOK: LIGHTING THE MENORAH
Before lighting the Chanukah lights, we recite the blessing, “Who sanctified us with His mitzvot and commanded us to kindle the Chanukah light.”
Rav Kook asks: Why does the blessing refer to a single light?
The lights of Chanukah are a metaphor for the blessings of enlightenment that the Jewish people bestow to the world. When you light, you advance that specific light which corresponds to the inner makeup of your soul. When this happens, the entire people of Israel are enriched. However, your specific light may be different from mine. Sometimes they may be in conflict.
But these conflicts will not exist forever. In the future it will become clear that all of the different lights share a common root, and are really one single light. Therefore, the blessing of Chanukah, which also encompasses the future potential, speaks of a single “Chanukah light.” (Adapted from Rav Kook by Chanan Morrison).
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Chanukah is also known as the Festival of Lights. By 165 BCE, our revolt against the Seleucid monarchy was successful. The Temple was liberated and rededicated. Judah Maccabee ordered the Temple to be cleansed and a new altar to be built in place of the polluted one.
According to the Talmud (Shabbat 21b), unadulterated pure olive oil with the seal of the Kohen Gadol was needed for the menorah in the Temple. The menorah was required to burn throughout the night every night. Only one flask was found, and it had only enough oil to burn for one day, yet it burned for eight days. It was enough time to prepare a fresh supply of kosher oil for the menorah. Because of this an eight-day festival was declared by our Sages to commemorate this miracle.
In the First Book of Maccabees an eight-day celebration of songs and sacrifices was proclaimed upon re-dedication of the altar, and it makes no mention of the miracle of the oil.
Where is the miracle of the oil mentioned?
Check out the "Scroll of Antiochus".
This photo is of a button-size seal or bulla.
In Aramaic it says as, best as I can make out: “pure for Hashem”, דכא ליה
One can speculate that it is the seal of a Kohen, and was once attached to a jug of pure olive oil.
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