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Chanukah is my favorite Jewish holiday. But not because of presents or latkes or even doughnuts (and I luuuv doughnuts)…it is actually because of Curious George. When my children were little they loved Curious George. We read his books, a stuffed George sat prominently on each of their beds, and we listened to the movie soundtrack on our way to school. One song, in particular, is my favorite, the Jack Johnson and Ben Harper collaboration of My Own Two Hands. The gist of the song: we can change, we can repair, we can nurture all in our lives, all in our world with our own two hands. So, this is my anthem for Chanukah because this is the real story. This is the real miracle.
The story of Chanukah is not (spoiler alert) about oil lasting for eight days. It is a miracle of a small band of Jews overcoming and defeating a major military force in the face of unimaginable odds. A force determined to persecute and destroy but beaten back. This is the miracle we celebrate, the miracle of the human spirit. We recite and sing of miracles on two specific Jewish holidays, Chanukah and Purim. We sing Al Hanisim, “For the miracles, and for the salvation, and for the mighty deeds, and for the victories, and for the battles which God performed for our ancestors in those days, at this time.” I believe it is no small coincidence that in both holidays God is an implicit character at best. Rather with God in their hearts and peoplehood as their intention, this group of Jews created and willed this miracle with their own two hands.
We do not sing this on Passover when our people were freed from slavery and crossed the parted sea. We do not sing this on Shavuot when we receive our Torah. We do not sing this on Rosh Hashanah as we celebrate the birthday of the world. No, we sing this to celebrate Jewish people standing and creating for themselves in concert, in covenant, in direct relationship with God. The real light is only represented by the candle…the real light is the light that burns inside of each and every one of us. We have that power, with our own two hands to create miracles.
But with that comes the same power to extinguish light with our own two hands. If the power is really ours then we have a responsibility to remember the past, nurture the present and inspire the future…we must not let the light go out, and we must bring more light in. So as we say goodbye to Chanukah, let’s take with us, in our minds and in our hearts and in our souls that any real miracle is in our own two hands.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi David Eshel
Rabbi David Eshel