Eight Days and Bringing Light

Chanukah 5780

by Rabbi Avi Billet

Why is Chanukah an eight day holiday?

With respect to the eight days being contingent on a miracle of a small amount of oil lasting eight days, there are many answers for the question. But in truth, the miracle of the oil is not the reason why the holiday is eight days long. (see here as well)

Rabbi Yechiel Michel Epstein gathered a few reasons in his “Arukh HaShulchan” and after describing the miracles of the battles surrounding the Chanukah tale, he writes, “And the end of the miracle was on the 25th of Kislev.” This acknowledges that first and foremost, like at Purim, the celebration of this holiday is primarily a celebration of a military victory. 

Unlike Purim, however, Chanukah is uniquely observed for an 8-day period, unlike any other military victory, which is typically a 1-day observance. While he goes on to describe the miracle of the oil, he does not attribute the eight day celebration of Chanukah to the details surrounding getting more oil, new oil, additional pure oil.

“There is someone who wrote, "[Eight days are commemorated,] since they [forbade] the commandment of circumcision, which is for eight days." And there is one who wrote, [It is] because they then inaugurated the Temple for the service that the evil Antiochus had [forbidden] (Ibid.). 

“And [the last reason] is the truth - as in the Midrash, it is found that the work of the tabernacle was finished on the 25th of Kislev, and they did not inaugurate it until the beginning of the month (Rosh Chodesh) of Nissan, when the forefathers had been born. And the Holy One, blessed be He, payed [Israel] back in the time of Mattityahu (this midrash is brought by Maharsha, Shabbat 21b). And hence they made it like the inauguration of the Tabernacle, which was [composed of] the seven days of installation and the eighth day, [which] was the completion of the beginning of the service in the Tabernacle by Aharon and his sons, as is explained in the Torah. And so [too] with King Shlomo, it is written in II Chronicles 7, "And Shlomo made the holiday... seven days, and... on the eighth day was a convocation" - see there. And hence to commemorate [this], they called this holiday Chanukah (inauguration) also, from the expression, chanukat hamizbeach (inauguration of the tabernacle) and chanukat habayit (inauguration of the Temple). And with this, there is also an allusion to the 25th day: chanu (they inaugurated) kah [which is made up of the letters kaf and hey, which together represent the number twenty-five] (Ran, op.cit.). And another reason for this is elucidated in the Book of the Maccabees: Since, as a result of the decrees, they were stopped from bringing the sacrifices of the holiday of the past Sukkot and Shemini Atzeret. And hence, to commemorate this, they made the eight days of Channukah. And [it followed] that when from the Heavens they were shown the miracle of the oil - 'They' showed them that 'They' agreed to them making eight days. (And this is [the meaning of] what they wrote in Shabbat, op.cit., "The following year, they fixed, etc.;" meaning to say, after they saw that there was agreement to them from the Heavens to make eight days - through the oil that 'They' showed them [stay] lit for eight days. And in commemoration of this miracle, they fixed that candles be lit on Chanukah, as was written by Tur.)” 

[These translations are from Sefaria: https://www.sefaria.org/Arukh_HaShulchan%2C_Orach_Chaim.670.5?lang=bi&with=Sheets&lang2=bi]

The idea is quite simple. In the moment, when they realized they were going to be dedicating the Temple again, and when they realized they had missed the holiday of Sukkot, they committed to making this rededication an eight-day event. They had no idea that they would experience an eight-day miracle of oil. And they also had no idea that they’d even find oil!

When they looked back at events that had transpired, the eight-day oil miracle was coincidental to the eight-day observance they had already celebrated. It gave them the idea to “establish the mitzvah of lighting candles,” while also perhaps inspiring that what had been a one-time eight-day rededication ceremony would become a yearly eight-day holiday.

Many take the light of Chanukah to be a metaphor for bringing light to the world. We live in exceptionally dark times. With attacks on Jews almost daily in different areas of New York City, with Jewish cemeteries being vandalized, with the recent murders in Jersey City, as well as in the two synagogues in the last year, and with many anti-Semitic notions being normalized in politics and in media, one wonders how Chanukah can fill the world with light.

The Jewish people have seen dark times in the past. While we hope things will not get darker, we can look to Chanukah as a model of a very dark time in which “the many fell to the hands of the few” and those who carried the torch of Torah emerged, while those trying to destroy them ultimately fell into the dustbin of history.

Military miracles and a reminder that God is lighting the way combine to make this holiday. May we merit to continue to see good people of the world defeat the evil people on the battlefield and in the battlefields of media, and may God carry us all through to the light, so the Chanukah celebration can return to what it was always meant to be: a triumph of Jewish ideas and ideals over a hedonism and arrogance that celebrated physicality and the physical world while ignoring true Godliness.

If Chanukah can be the guide to correcting the darkness that is consuming elements of humanity, it will indeed bring a much needed light into this world. And that will only be a blessing for everyone who seeks illumination from that light.

Can You Have a Part in Someone Else's Dream?

Parshat Vayeshev

by Rabbi Avi Billet

Yosef comes across two sets of dreams in our parsha. The first are his own dreams, of bundles of grain and stars, and the second are the dreams of Pharaoh’s chief wine pourer and chief baker. (For more on Yosef and all the dreams he experiences, read here)

If Yosef’s own dreams were predicting a portion of his future, we certainly understand why the Torah gives them to us in full detail. It is interesting to note that the anger of his brothers, and the concern of his father do not actually amount to proper interpretations of the dreams. It is not farfetched to say that while everyone seems to take the messages of the dreams in a similar manner, Yosef has no actual inkling of how such notions might ever come to fruition, simply because he doesn’t know where or how he might ever rise above his brothers. 

As far as the dreams he hears of in prison, we can ask a simple question. What need have we to hear their details?

Thanking God Even When the Going is Really Rough

Parshat Vayishlach

by Rabbi Avi Billet

Parshat Vayishlach begins with Yaakov’s troubles and worries over finally meeting Eisav again after so many years apart. And while that encounter goes surprisingly pareve-ly, his next significant stop, in Shechem, destroys his daughter’s life and almost destroys his family. 

When one looks at the forefathers, it is easy to see that they had their challenges, their trying moments, and even extended time periods of difficulty. It’s not a competition, but I think Yaakov had it worst, as we’ll soon see. But even after Shimon and Levi wipe out Shechem, much to their father’s disappointment, Yaakov still manages to go to Beit El, under God’s reminding instruction, at which time he declares “I will build an altar there to God who answers me on the day of my distress, and has been with me on the path on which I have gone.”

Rachel's Struggle and Rachel's Cries

Parshat Vayetze

by Rabbi Avi Billet

One of the more fascinating family relationships in the Torah surrounds that of Yaakov with his wives, and that of the wives themselves with one another. All of what you will now read is aimed at opening conversations, and not to diminish the status the fathers and mothers of the Jewish people hold in our eyes. In fact, looking at their experiences as very real, human experiences should be more the source of inspiration and what to learn from rather than to be critical of their roles in our national story.

The fact that Yaakov ends up having 4 wives at the same time is an anomaly. While Avraham had Sarah and Hagar at the same time (and took Keturah as a wife when he was a widower living alone) this is something he did not want or initially agree to, but only accepted at his wife’s insistence, after ten years in Canaan (and an unknown amount of time they were married prior to coming to Canaan), and Sarah’s embracing her barrenness.

Yitzchak only had Rivkah in his life.

Yaakov intended to only have Rachel in his life. That he married Leah was a result of Lavan’s trickery. His keeping her as a wife (though he had every right to divorce her) was likely the result of his own honesty and kindness towards Leah. And, like Hagar to Avraham, Bilhah and Zilpah became his wives at his wives’ insistence.

But even in that arena, we need to raise an eyebrow about Leah’s role.