Chanukah 2020The Miracle of Light that Gives Me Hope
12/09/2020 12:10:33 PM
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Chanukah is a humble little holiday. I mean, really, what is there about it? Other than an 8-branched lamp (with a 9th branch for candle that helps light the others), there's not much to it. Coming during the Christmas season, Chanukah can easily be both overlooked and overhyped.
Neither response is necessary. Tiny Chanukah is packed with faith and hope. It stands on its own, especially in 2020, when faith and hope are in such short supply.
Pirsumei nisa, proclaiming the miracle of the "little bit of oil that could," is the practice of placing your menorah in a window for all the world to see. It's the pride of individual religious freedom, the certainty that differences matter, that minority populations have as much right to flourish as majorities, that individual integrity counts. The humble menorah stands tall and proud in a world where fitting in and letting go of individuality is prized.
Pirsumei nisa is a tiny gesture with a big heart. No matter how small we think we are, no matter how much anxiety and pain there is in our communities, we are the little bit of oil that lasted 8 days when it should have only lasted one. With faith in the future, we can do much more than we thought we could.
In the past few years Chanukah music - which, honestly, was more of a joke than something to be taken seriously - has flourished. There is so much out there now ranging from settings of religious texts to the latest, Daveed Diggs' "Puppy for Hanukkah." While it's not going to get US radio air time, a lot of it is high quality.
I'll add some videos later for you to enjoy.
In the meantime, may the lights of Chanukah burn brightly for us and all the world.
חג אורים שמח!
Happy holiday of lights ... Happy Chanukah!
Wed, October 4 2023
19 Tishrei 5784
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UJC Podcast Series
UJC Event Videos
Rabbi Felicia Sol & Prof. Adam Sol: "The Hill We Climb" by Amanda Gorman - Poetry, Exegesis, and Imagining a Better World.
https://youtu.be/vp_tPfz9_MI
Judith Altmann: Stories of a Holocaust Survivor
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
The Three Amigos: Our Abraham
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Today's Calendar
Chol HaMo-eid Sukkot |
UJC Adult Education tour of The Aldrich Museum : 1:00pm |
Hebrew School for 6 & 7th Grade Only (First Wednesday) : 4:30pm |
Friday Night
Candle Lighting : 6:10pm |
UJC Shabbat Evening Service - In-person and Virtual : 7:00pm |
Simchat Torah Celebration : 7:00pm |
Shabbat Day
UJC Shabbat Morning Service-virtual and in person : 10:00am |
Havdalah : 7:16pm |
Upcoming Programs & Events
Oct 4 UJC Adult Education tour of The Aldrich Museum Wednesday, Oct 4 1:00pm |
Oct 4 Hebrew School for 6 & 7th Grade Only (First Wednesday) Wednesday, Oct 4 4:30pm |
Oct 6 Simchat Torah Celebration Friday, Oct 6 7:00pm |
Oct 8 No Religious School - Columbus Day Weekend Sunday, Oct 8 9:00am |
Oct 11 Hebrew School for 6 & 7th Grade Only Wednesday, Oct 11 4:00pm |
Candle Lighting
Friday, Oct 6, 6:10pm |
Havdalah
Motzei Shabbat, Oct 7, 7:16pm |
Chol HaMo-eid Sukkot
Wednesday, Oct 4 |