פרשת מקץ וענייני חנוכה
This week, we find ourselves in the midst of the unique, and wonderful holiday of Chanukah. The Rambam says about this holiday that it is especially dear to the Jewish people. On Shabbos Chanukah, we know that the holiness of this extraordinary festival is increased dramatically. In the Haftarah of this week’s Parsha, the Prophet Zecharia tells us about the vision he saw of a great Menorah that will be lit in the end of days, implying that the light of Chanukah has the holiness or the ability to hasten the final redemption, or at least give us an inkling of what that blissful state will be like. Having pointed out a small portion of the significance of Chanukah, I would like try to expound upon three troublesome issues found in the various pieces of Chazal about Chanukah.
Firstly, one of the opening verses in the entire Torah is “וחשך על פני תהום” – “And there was darkness over the void.” The Midrash comments on the word “darkness” that it is referring to the exile of the Greeks, that happened just prior to the Chanukah story which ended this darkness with its light. Why was the exile of Greece specifically referred to as “darkness”? What was “darker” about it than any of the other exiles? Secondly, the Midrash goes on to say that the Greeks asked for it to be engraved on the horn of a cow that they wanted no part in the Hashem of Israel. What were they referring to, and why specifically on the horn of a cow? And finally, the Ramban writes that the Mitzvah of lighting the Chanukah Menorah was a continuation of the work done in the Beis Hamkidash which also had a Menorah (albeit a six stemmed one) which was lit daily. What do the Chanukah lights have in common with the Beis Hamikdash other than the fact that they both happen to involve lighting a candle?
The renowned Tzaddik, R’ Asher Weiss explains in his work the Minchas Asher, that the Greek exile was distinct from every other exile in that nobody was trying to kill us. Physically, the Greek government did not represent any significant threat to the Jewish people. All they wanted to get rid of was our souls. The Greeks appreciated beauty in all forms, both external beauty, and spiritual beauty. They loved the architecture of the Beis Hamikdash, and they valued the health benefits of a kosher diet, but they could not stand the idea of a “Chok”, or something which doesn’t make any sense the human intellect, and is done only because Hashem, who is above human intellect commanded it. They didn’t want to kill us, but they wanted us to appreciate the world’s beauty and add culture into our lives. For a Jew, this idea is darkness. The idea of beauty independent of Hashem is anathema to the Torah’s view of light. For this reason, they decreed that we get rid of circumcision, Shabbos, Torah study, and renewing the month based on the lunar cycle. In the Greek mind, these all symbolized the Jewish backward stubbornness to cling to superstition and folklore, and avoid advancement of society.
Based on this understanding, we can resolve the difficulties we raised. Although all the other exiles were bad, none of them were referred to as darkness, because they were not trying to obliterate our essence. We can handle physical danger, so long as our spirits our strong, and we cling to what we know to be true. But the Greeks were threatening the very relationship that we have with the Creator, and the factor which makes us unique amongst the nations of the world. Indeed, they were successful in convincing many of the weaker Jews who adopted Greek culture, and until today, their presence can be felt amongst some deprived, misguided Jews who still seek to add culture and civilization to their lives, neglecting to recognize the fact that our heritage – the Torah – can offer the greatest form of culture, to evolve into God-like human beings. We can also understand why the Greeks requested that it be engraved in the horn of a cow that they want no part in the God of Israel. And thirdly, we can certainly understand what the Ramban writes that the Menorah of today is a continuation of the work done in the Beis Hamikdash. The Greeks, as we mentioned, didn’t have a problem with the Beis Hamikdash, and allowed the services to continue there. But they tried to take away the significance of that service as our way of making a connection with Hashem, and just turn it into some kind of ritual. In other words, they tried to remove the spirit of that service. When we light the Chanukah Menorah today, 2,175 years later, and show that that burning relationship between the Jewish people and their creator is just as smoldering as ever, we continue the essence of what was being done in the Beis Hamikdash. With this explanation, we can answer another pressing difficulty which the commentaries ask. Why didn’t the Jews light the impure oil? We know that there is a law that impurity is disregarded when it is widespread. Based on what we have said however, that the quintessential message of the Chanukah story was to resist the external impurity of the Greek culture from penetrating the hallowed fibers of the Jewish soul, it would have been abhorrent to use impure oil for lighting the Menorah at that particularly volatile time in history.
The Gemorah in Shabbos, (23b) says, “One who is careful to regularly light the Channukah candles, will merit in having children who are Torah scholars. One who is careful with the laws of Mezuzah, will merit in having an attractive home. One who is careful with Tzitzis will have appealing garments, and one who is careful with wine for Kiddush, will always be able to obtain scrumptious food and drink. The Maharal explains that this is a simple measure for measure system. If a person uses the gifts that Hashem gave him for Mitzvah performance, he will merit to always have those gifts. This explanation makes sense for all the above listed items accept for Chanukah lights. That do they have to do with having children who are Torah Scholars? Rashi helps us out. Rashi says that this is based on the principle that the Mitzvos are compared to a flame, and the Torah is analogous to light. By carefully performing the commandment to kindle the Chanukah lights, we will merit in having children who will increase Torah in the world, thereby allowing us to have brought more light into the world.
Perhaps we will conclude with the words of R’ Shimshon Pincus Zt”l. R’ Pincus used to say that although the Greeks are dead and gone, the imprint that they left in the world is stronger than it ever was and exists primarily in Western civilization. As we mentioned, anyone who grew up in the U.S. can tell you that there is an almost overwhelming pull to “fit in with society” and to appear sophisticated and worldly. We find even very observant communities which have been contaminated by this powerful foe of the Jewish identity. The message of Chanukah is therefore more poignant than ever. We must resist this prevailing draw toward non-Jewish culture and morals, and rather focus our energy on Torah values, and deriving our premises solely from the Torah, if we want to continue beating the Greeks in these trying times.
May we all merit to cling to true holiness with every fiber of our being!