Three inspiring insights to illuminate your Hanukkah.
By: Slovie Jungreis-Wolff
1. Gaze at the menorah’s lights.
You cannot gain any personal benefit from the lights of the menorah. You can’t use them to read, to help you see, or to find warmth. All you can do is gaze at them. What’s the point?
You are being asked to stop what you are doing and be mindful of the light in your life. Living in a high-pressured, fast-paced world, how often do you step back and take stock of your blessings?
Overwhelmed with work and the daily grind, it’s easy to overlook the wonder, the majesty, and the small moments of love and friendship.
Hanukkah is the Jewish Thanksgiving. You are given the opportunity to think about your personal miracles and the people who bring you joy. Every breath is spectacular. Life itself is the greatest gift. You gaze into the lights, turn away from that which pulls you down, and allow the dancing flames to lift you up.
2. Just one candle.
Each night of Hanukkah you add another light to the menorah. On the surface, you are commemorating a great miracle. The Greeks defiled the Temple, making it impossible to light the golden menorah that stood in Jerusalem. When the Jews liberated the Temple from the Greeks they wanted to bring the menorah’s light into the world once again. But the Greeks had tainted all the flasks of pure olive oil needed for kindling the menorah. The Jews finally found a single flask of oil, enough for one night. Miraculously, the menorah’s light refused to go out. For eight days the menorah burned bright. And so we begin with one light and keep adding until we reach eight to celebrate the miracle of lights that continued each night.
But there is a deeper meaning here. Each person is compared to the flame of a candle. As King Solomon wrote, “God’s candle is the soul of man” (Proverbs 20:27).
You are that single candle. You may believe that you are in darkness. You may feel weary or overwhelmed with the challenges facing you. After all, you are just one person. What can you do?
Hanukkah reminds you: never discount the power of one. Just as one candle can illuminate a dark room, so too, you can brighten a world that feels overwhelmingly negative. You have been given a soul that can never be extinguished. Don’t stop believing in yourself; feel how that sacred inner spark is alive.
This Hanukkah, ask what you can do to brighten your world. Reignite your spark. Giving to others reawakens your soul. Connecting to others brings joy. In this season of gift giving, the greatest presents are gifts of the soul. One person can illuminate the darkness that another is sitting in. Your smile, your good word can bring healing to a fractured world.
3. Share your light with pride.
The menorah is lit near a window facing the street so that your flames are seen by all who pass by, publicizing the miracle and declaring the pride you feel in your Jewish identity. The lights of the menorah represent the eternal flame of the Jewish people.
The Jews are a tiny nation, a miniscule fraction of the world’s population. They’ve been exiled throughout the four corners of this world, gone through every form of persecution. The Temples have been destroyed. They’ve faced crusades, inquisition, blood libels, and rabid antisemitism. Shoved into cattle cars, beaten, burned in crematories, shot and gassed. They have faced deadly missiles, drones, terrorist attacks, and the barbaric massacre of October 7th while the world glorified the terrorists and remained silent to their pain and suffering.
Yet the Jewish People remain defiant.
The light of the Jews will not go out.
Jews have not merely survived, they have triumphed over evil and blessed the world with eternal wisdom and values that have form the bedrock of Western civilization.
This Hanukkah, be proud of being Jewish. Wear your Judaism with honor. Your menorah tells the miraculous story of your people whose flame refuses to die.