Rabbis' Blog

We are all excited for Chanukah, probably the most popular Jewish holiday in America. Lighting candles, eating latkes, spinning dreidels and receiving gifts and Chanukah gelt is a fine way to spend eight days at the beginning of winter. So, what is the deal with lighting candles on Chanukah?

The mitzvah of lighting Shabbat candles was instituted to ensure that the Shabbat dinner should be a pleasant affair and enhance family peace and tranquility. It also serves as an appropriate way of welcoming the Shabbat and is primarily the obligation of the woman of the home.

The kindling of the Chanukah candles, on the other hand, is the core of the entire holiday! If one were to only light the candles each night as prescribed in Jewish law and not taste even one latke – he/she has observed Chanukah 100%.

The struggle between the Maccabees and the Greeks was not the typical conflict between colonizers and natives. The presence of a foreign power in Israel during that time period was not necessarily viewed as an existential threat to the Jewish community. There was a deep theological disagreement that pitted the two nations against each other as bitter enemies.

The Greek philosophy maintained that although G-d certainly created the world, the constant day to day realities of this universe are not His concern. Man is alive on planet earth to enjoy the pleasures it provides and the Creator has no interest in human behavior. They worshipped beauty, physical strength and wealth.

Judaism teaches that creation has a purpose that was communicated to us by G-d. Humanity was placed in this world with the obligation to perfect it that it should be capable of reflecting the divine. This is accomplished through behavior that is prescribed in the divine blueprint of creation – the Torah. Everything we do makes a difference to G-d and when we live life according to His wishes we forge a bond with Him. This is the translation of the word “mitzvah” -  connection.

The Jewish perspective was anathema to the Greeks – and they viewed the Jewish rejection as the ultimate referendum of their Weltanschauung – which was unbearable. So They resorted to persecution and thousands of Jews sacrificed their lives as a result. The Maccabees selflessly battled the Greeks for the preservation of the Jewish type of relationship between G-d and creation.

G-d reciprocated their sacrifice by gifting them the miracle of the oil. Although no lives were in danger and the brightly lit menorah played no role in the military victory – it was G-d’s way of sending the message that the Maccabees were on target. Your actions DO make a difference to Me and I thank you for preserving our relationship.

So when you gather around the menorah on Motzei Shabbat (Saturday night) and recite the proper blessings and sing the traditional songs, be mindful of the message of the Chanukah lights. Each mitzvah that we do, every word of Torah we learn and every prayer we recite is precious to G-d. This is the true meaning of the blessing “He has wrought miracles for our ancestors in those days and in our time.” Just as a jug of pure olive oil was found in the darkest of times – the eternal “jug of pure olive oil” – the essential bond of a Jew with G-d – remains intact with each and every one of us to this day.

Every Thursday at 7am, we have Shacharit services at Chabad. The truth is, we usually do not have a minyan in attendance. But this week, the miracle occurred and there was a full minyan throughout the service. We read the Torah and recited all the relevant prayers in the presence of a minyan. Afterwards everyone went on their way with an extra jump in their step. We made the minyan!

What is it about having a minyan by services that causes much excitement in every community? In every synagogue there is satisfaction when ten bar mitzvah aged men come together to pray and disappointment when the magic number is not reached. Especially in a small community, the joy of making it is magnified.

In this week’s parsha we learn of the birth of Binyamin, the final son of Yaakov. Immediately following his birth, the Torah counts the twelve tribes of Israel for the first time. Regardless of the fact that Binyamin was a newborn, the tribe of Israel were now complete.

When Yaakov’s family migrated to the land of Egypt to join Joseph, they were meant to be a family of 70 souls to counterbalance the influence of the 70 nations. Leaving Canaan, they were 69 and upon reaching the gates of Egypt Yocheved was born bringing the total Jewish population to 70. Only then were they able to accomplish their mission in relocating to Egypt. She was no more than a newborn and yet an integral part of the sum total.

There can be room of nine sages gathering to pray, but the arrival of a 13-year-old ignorant Jewish teenager will drastically change the dynamic of the prayer of these saintly men. Jewish perfection necessitates everyone’s participation.

Perfection is reached only through adversity. Yaakov succeeded in building the family of twelve tribes only in the face of the challenges of Lavan and Eisav. The birth of the Jewish nation evolved from a reality of harsh slavery. And in small communities, gathering a minyan is a feat accomplished only through overcoming many challenges.

There is the personal challenge each participant may have. Trust me, it’s hard to show up every time when having a minyan is uncertain. Then there may be external pressures of individuals that discourage participation in regular services. They have no malicious intension, but the effects can be real.

When despite all the challenges the minyan comes together – the satisfaction is great and the joy is palpable. Ten individuals beat the odds and made it happen.

We must always be aware that our collective strength is dependent on every individual.

Parents once came to the Rabbi with their 5-year old daughter to ask for advice in providing her with the best Jewish education. “I’m sorry”, replied the Rabbi. “You are six years too late”.

In this week’s parsha we learn of the first Jewish grandchild embarking on a journey to find a wife and to start a family. Yitzchak instructed Yaakov not to choose a wife from the local Cannanite families, rather he should travel to Charan and seek out a wife from the family of Lavan.

There is a big contrast between these two locations. Canaan was the land Avraham had lived in for 100 years and operated the greatest outreach operation to date, inspiring the world with the knowledge of G-d. It was the current domain under the influence of Yitzchak and the academies of Shem and Ever, where Yaakov had studied for decades, were located there as well. This was definitely the ideal place for Yaakov to choose to raise a family in the ways of G-d.

Charan on the other hand was a land of utter corruption and moral decay. The citizens were lazy cheats and thieves and Lavan held the honorary title of chief swindler. Was Yaakov expected to raise a family in this decrepit environment?

Above the reality of our physical world there are multitudes of spiritual galaxies populated by an infinite amount of heavenly angels. Their existence is filled with the knowledge of G-d and His service with no deviation whatsoever. However, when it came time for the Torah to be granted to a race of creatures, it was not bequeathed to the angels in heaven. Rather to physical mortals on planet Earth.

Why so? Surely the Torah would be observed in the greatest way possible in the realm of the angels. There is no risk of laziness, rebellion or malicious misinterpretation. By giving it to human beings with the power of free choice, it stands a high risk of being rejected or worse.

The answer is simple and straightforward. The true character of children is not determined by their behavior under the dedicated supervision of their parents, rather by the way they live up to their standards when living independently. When Mom and Dad are not around, it becomes clear what the child’s priorities are.

Therefore, the Torah was given to humans in this world, a reality far removed from constant G-dly awareness to prove that flesh and blood empowered with free choice would choose to follow the Torah. Dutiful angels are no big deal.

This is the lesson we learn from Yaakov raising his family in Charan of all places. The first Jewish family set the standard for Jewish education for all time. One does not need to be in a large Jewish community, saturated with synagogues, schools and kosher restaurants to succeed in imparting our glorious heritage to the next generation. Even a single family in a spiritual desert can and must thrive in their Jewishness just as the family of Yaakov did in the G-d forsaken land of Charan.

Jewish education in the small communities is the golden standard of our forefather Yaakov.