Editorial: Hanukkah lessons shine through
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As darkness falls, lights shine to show the way.
It happens every day. The headlights on cars. The streetlights along the road. The neon on a storefront. The light on your front porch that says, “This is home. This is where you belong.”
Lights beckon us to come close. They illuminate our path. They lead us away from danger. They sparkle in celebration. They remind us of our losses. They focus us in prayer.
It is no surprise that Hanukkah centers around lights struck against the darkness.
The Jewish holiday commemorates a great miracle. More than 2,000 years ago, the people of Judea were massacred by a Seleucid army sent by a king demanding they worship his gods. The soldiers desecrated the temple with their altar and blood sacrifices.
When an outnumbered Jewish army reclaimed the temple, it had to be rededicated. The oil to light the lamps had been contaminated. With just one pure vessel remaining, the menorah was lit with what should have been enough fuel for only one night. Instead, it lasted eight nights, long enough for more oil to be acquired.
There are so many lessons that can be found in that story. Standing up for what is right, despite the odds. Rising after a crushing blow. The value of tolerance and peace over oppression and violence.
But the focus of the festival is the lights. And therein lies both the miracle and greatest lesson.
It isn’t the faith the lights would keep burning. The miracle is that the menorah burned even though everyone knew there wasn’t enough oil.
The lesson is that you don’t get the miracle unless you strike the match. The blessing is in the attempt, not the outcome.
The value of those lessons — great and small — transcends religion. There is something to learn from the story whether you are Jewish or Christian, practicing or lapsed, fervent or questioning or disbelieving. Sometimes the inherent truth at the core just shines through.
Happy Hanukkah.