Festival of Lights and Miracles: Hanukkah

Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights and Miracles, symbolizes the victory of light over darkness, good over evil, and God's eternal love for the Israelites. During the Hanukkah Festival, by increasing the number of candles lit by one each evening, we remember that our purpose in life is to spread the light of love and kindness around us and to the world creating ripples, just like the lights of Hanukkah that increase each night.

Every day during Hanukkah, with the exception of Shabbat, after the stars come out in the evening, all the family chanting prayers and songs joyfully, light the candles of the nine-branched Menorah (Hanukiah), the symbol of Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights. However, on Friday afternoon, we light the Hanukkah candles before Shabbat candles are lit.

Every evening, the candle at the very left when facing the Hanukiah is lit, according to the person who is lighting the candles. This is the new day's candle. When Beit HaMikdash had been saved and cleaned, the oil found there was only enough for one day. However, due to the miracle, for which we celebrate the Hanukkah Festival, it continued to burn for eight days. So a new miracle was being witnessed each night the oil kept burning. Therefore when lighting the candles, every night the new miracle is celebrated first by lighting the new day's candle. Then moving to the right the candles of previous nights are lit.

During Hanukkah, like the other holidays and festivals of the Jewish calendar, besides remembering and celebrating, we also try to learn about the history, think about how these have affected our lives today, exchange ideas about it with our family and friends, prepare for the holiday spiritually, thus bringing the light of Hanukkah into our own, our house, and our lives.

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