Third Night • Sparks of Light 5782
Naturally Supernatural Tamara Goldman (Grade 11) There is a famous question from the Beis HaLevi which says that when the Jews found the pach hashemen, there was enough kosher oil to last for one day, therefore the miracle of the oil was only seven days. Why, then, do we celebrate Chanukah for eight? A […]
Second Night • Sparks of Light 5782
The Miracle of Faith Gila Grauer (Grade 9) Everyone knows that we celebrate eight days of Chanukah to symbolize the miracle of the oil, and how it burned for eight days when it only should have burned for one. One of the most famous questions associated with this is, why eight? The first day […]
Introducing Sparks of Light 5782
First Night • Sparks of Light 5782
Shine Bright Like A… Jellyfish? Aviva Eizicovics and Chani Shull (Grade 10) מַ֭לְּפֵנוּ מִבַּהֲמ֣וֹת אָ֑רֶץ וּמֵע֖וֹף הַשָּׁמַ֣יִם יְחַכְּמֵֽנוּ Who gives us more knowledge than the beasts of the earth? Who makes us wiser than the birds of the sky? The above pasuk from Sefer Iyov reminds us there is much to learn from all of […]
Eighth Night • Sparks of Light 5781
Why Not French Fries? Malka Moshkovits (Grade 10) and Ms. Racheli Peretz (Young Shlicha) On Chanukah, we have many customs and mitzvot, some weirder than others. Some of them make sense on a basic level, but when you think about it, they don’t make 100% sense. One of these is the custom of eating sufganiyot. […]
Seventh Night • Sparks of Light 5781
Miracles Aviva Eizicovics and Chani Shull (Grade 9) After hearing Rabbi Grauer speak about the miracles of different holidays at the JEP (Jewish Enrichment Program) meeting a couple weeks ago, we acknowledged that there are two different kinds of miracles. They are equally important even though at times they are not so clear. The first […]
Fifth Night • Sparks of Light 5781
Our Flask of Potential Chavi Zieleniec (Grade 11) As the Chanukah story unfolds, after a victorious battle against the יוונים, the מכבים return to find the smallest portion of oil left in the בית המקדש. The amount of oil was insufficient for one full night, even more so for all eight nights! However, the oil […]
Fourth Night • Sparks of Light 5781
The Deeper Meaning Behind Maoz Tzur Lizzy Dalfen (Grade 9), Rachel Goldstein (Grade 10) and Emma Muscat (Grade 11) Every night of Chanukah, we gather together to recite brachot, light the candles and then sing songs related to our history. One of the songs we sing is Maoz Tzur. Maoz Tzur is a very unique song, as […]
Third Night • Sparks of Light 5781
Chanukah and Purim Daniela Black and Nava Edery (Grade 10) Purim was the last holiday celebrated by Jews before the world went into total lockdown because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. How does this connect to the holiday we are celebrating now? Chanukah and Purim relate in many ways, yet there is one big difference […]
Second Night • Sparks of Light 5781
Looking at the Bright Side Sasha Aaron and Tali Wercberger (Grade 10) Rabbi Jonathan Sacks z”l commented that very often we speak about the two miracles of Chanukah; the miracle of the oil and the miracle of the war. In fact, there is a third thing worth celebrating that does not get a lot of […]
