Mia Beldeb, Grade 12
Every holiday in the Jewish calendar follows a similar pattern; we repeat the same rituals every day. For instance, we shake the same lulav and etrog every day throughout Sukkot; we blow the same shofar on both days of Rosh Hashanah; and on Pesach, we read the same Haggadah both nights. Chanukah, however, differs from this pattern. Every night is treated a little differently. Every night, we perform the same ritual – lighting candles – but because we add a candle each night, the ritual is slightly changed.
Why is Chanukah treated differently than all of the other holidays? Why don’t we light all eight candles every night?
Every other holiday commemorates a physical threat that was posed to the Jewish People; however, Chanukah commemorates a spiritual threat to the Jewish People. For instance, Haman threatened to kill all of the Jewish People, and Pharoah inflicted physical pain on the Jewish People. In contrast, Antiochus and the Greeks prevented the Jews from keeping mitzvot, including Brit Milah, Shabbat observance, and Torah study. Chanukah is unique in that we celebrate the Jewish People’s ability to persevere spiritually.
Today’s Jews face several difficulties, one of which is maintaining their faith and dedication to Judaism. With so many secular influences around us, it can be very hard to find interest and passion in Judaism. We often only do mitzvot because we feel like we have to, not because we are excited by them.
We are enthusiastic about introducing change into our daily routines. When we add changes to how we do mitzvot, we become more excited and look forward to doing that mitzvah even more. Chanukah, the holiday celebrating the Jews fighting against secularism and staying strong spiritually, must be celebrated in a way that remains exciting every day. This is why we light an additional candle each night of Chanukah; it keeps the routine exciting and keeps us enthusiastic.
We see this idea in the Talmud. It says “עד שתכלה רגל מן השוק”. The word רגל has the same root word as “routine” in Hebrew (regel/ragil). In other words, Chanukah candles are permissible until they become routine for you. We must make lighting candles special each and every night of Chanukah to remind ourselves that we must find excitement and passion within all the mitzvot that we do.
Chag Sameach!
Ms. Miriam Bessin, Director of Student Life
The Gemara in Shabbat 21b asks the famous question, “מַאי חֲנוּכָּה – what is Chanukah” before discussing the origins of the holiday. After explaining about the miracle of the oil, the Gemara says “לְשָׁנָה אַחֶרֶת קְבָעוּם וַעֲשָׂאוּם יָמִים טוֹבִים בְּהַלֵּל וְהוֹדָאָה” which means “The next year the Sages instituted those days and made them holidays with recitation of Hallel and special thanksgiving in prayer and blessings.”
Why did the Sages only decree the holiday the following year and not the year that it happened? According to the Modzitzer Rebbe, sometimes, when something miraculous happens, we can’t fully process or comprehend the enormity of it right away. Only after the passage of time can one begin to understand and appreciate the significance.
The same is true for us in our daily lives. Sometimes we experience something great but don’t take the time to think about it and appreciate it properly. May we take some time this Chanukah to look back at some events that have transpired in our lives so we can truly appreciate them and offer thanksgiving as well.
Chanukah Sameach!
Our Miracles
Jordan Jesin, Vice President, Student Council (Grade 12)
I’ve always thought it was fascinating that Chanukah is a time when we can have the longest Bentching of the year. We can say Al Hanisim, Retzei V’Hachlitzeinu, Ya’aleh V’yavo, and two Harachamans, all in one go. It is truly a time to thank Hashem and to be grateful for our situation of having heating and hot chocolate in minus-20-degree weather, but I digress.
The Shulchan Aruch writes that if we forget to say Al Hanisim in Bentching, we should not go back to the beginning. Instead, during the Harachamans, we should add another one for Chanukah, which details, “ הרחמן יעשה לנו נסים ונפלאות כשם שעשה לאבותינו בימים ההם בזמן הזה ”.
Here, we request Hashem perform miracles as great as those in the Chanukah story. It is a fantastic request, but it has one problem. There is a Gemara in Masechet Berachot entailing that we should not ask Hashem to perform miracles, as they are not the natural way He allows the world to work. If this is true, why can we say these Harachamans during Bentching? Miracles are, by definition, not the natural way the world works, so we cannot ask Hashem to perform them!
The Kaf HaChaim answers the question perfectly, in my opinion. He writes that, indeed, we cannot ask Hashem to perform miracles for us – individually. We cannot ask Him to perform miracles that only benefit us at the end of the day. However, we can ask him to perform miracles for Klal Yisrael as a whole. This midrash really spoke to me, as I have been thinking about its lesson for quite a while now.
Often, when we daven to Hashem, we mostly ask Him to fulfill our wishes as individuals. We think, “I really hope I do well on this test. I really hope my boss treats me well today. I really want my fantasy team to win this week”. These are all valid wishes, but have we thought of davening for other people? Our requests to Hashem do not need to be limited; we can literally ask for whatever we want, however often we want to. We can think, “I really hope my friend does well on their test today. I really hope my friend gets into that yeshiva or seminary they want to go to. I really hope my friend does well in their basketball game today”.
Keeping this thought process about other people in mind will ultimately lead us to become more considerate of others, which we can always improve on. In this challenging time of another Canadian winter, we have to stick together as the Jewish People and hope that miracles are performed for us and the rest of the community. My parents always tell me, “Everyone has tzuris,” which is Yiddish for “troubles.” It is necessary to remember this as we celebrate this important chag of surviving through such disparate times.
May we be zocheh to care about each other as much as the Kaf HaChaim suggests, and may Hashem answer our tefilot and have our miracles performed – together.
Chag Sameach, everyone!
Support Through The Struggle
Rabbi Noah Sonenberg, Director of Judaic Studies
On Chanukah, we celebrate the victory on the battlefield of the weak over the mighty and the few over the many. Remembering this historical event provides us with the powerful message that even with odds that are strongly stacked against us, it is possible to win with the help of Hashem.
In Ramchal’s Mesilat Yesharim, he uses battle imagery to describe our experience in this world as we struggle against our evil inclination. He says that “even if a person monitors himself, it is not within his power to save himself unless the Holy One, blessed is He aids him.”
When faced with daunting personal challenges that seem insurmountable, it is tempting to give up by saying that since success is beyond our capabilities, there is no point in even attempting to try. Chanukah teaches us that as long as we engage with that struggle, Hashem will help us prevail in even the most difficult situations.
