Hanukkah candles shed incredible lightness of being into the world

Rabbi Yossi Kanelsky
Dec. 7, 2007

As the holiday of Hanukkah approaches, I am reminded of a poignant story that my father, Rabbi Mordechai Kanelsky, retells about his childhood in the former Soviet Union -- a story that sheds light on this holiday and bears rekindling.

My father spent his days learning in hiding as all Jewish education was banned. But even in the darkest days of Soviet Jewry, the necessity of publicly displaying the light of the menorah was taught, and sometimes cautiously observed.

So it was that he was also taught that it was a mitzvah to make the miracle of Hanukkah public -- and this was done by proudly displaying the lit menorah in a window for all to see. Rushing upstairs from his basement, he excitedly lit the candles on his menorah. He then placed it in the window, easily visible from the street and beyond.

As his father (my grandfather) returned from work, he saw the glow in his window and was immediately concerned about the welfare of his family. He raced through the door, prepared to scold his young son, but instead saw the boy eagerly guarding his precious candles with joy in his eyes.

His father did not have the heart to disturb his son’s pleasure, so he instead went into the other room and prayed to G-d that his family would remain safe while the menorah was publicly ablaze in the window. Luckily for my grandfather, my father had been unable to find the large Hanukkah candles and had used small ones that only lasted for half an hour.

When the candles were no longer burning, my grandfather explained to his young son that it was a dangerous to do this, and that it put the family in jeopardy. However, my father was also adamant that he wanted to spread the light of Hanukkah and make this miracle known to all.

Eventually, father and son reached a compromise. My grandfather invited friends to his home so that his son’s lit menorah would be seen publicly, but from within the safety of the shuttered house. In addition, much to their joy, each guest also gave my father a bit of Hanukkah gelt to make the compromise all the more sweet for him.

Now, thankfully, we live in a country that allows us to truly spread the light of the miracle of Hanukkah. And still, the primary way to spread the light of Hanukkah, and to publicize the holiday’s miraculous basis, remains to openly light a menorah for all to see.

In making this mitzvah, Bris Avrohom of Old Bridge is sponsoring the lighting of 10 menorahs around the area. You can see these menorahs along Route. 9 North and South, at the A&P in Old Bridge, at Raritan Bay Medical Center, at the junction of routes 33 and 34 in Farmingdale and many more.

Hanukkah celebrates the concept of spreading light into a world of darkness. As we add another candle each night, we are adding to the enlightenment of those around us.

As the nightly glow of the menorah reminds us: We can bring more "lightness" into our lives; we can spread goodness throughout the dark, long nights; we can erase the feelings of sadness and anger around us; we can bring knowledge to those who remain the dark; and we can accomplish all these miraculous things through simple acts of everyday kindness and trying to make the world a better place.

Please join Bris Avrohom of Old Bridge at some or all of its public menorah lightings. Because together, we can spread the incredible lightness of Hanukkah.