There is an odd phrase at the end of the second blessing we say over the Hanukkah lights each evening. We praise God for “doing miracles in those days, at this time”/ba-yamim ha-hem ba-z’man ha-zeh. But which is it…the original miracles in antiquity “in those days,” or miracles in our own day, “at this time?” Rabbi David ben Shmuel Ha-Levi (Poland,1586-1667), known as the Turei Zahav (“rows of gold),” the title of his important commentary on the Shulkhan Arukh, squares the circle by insisting that both are true. “…it's possible to say ba-yamim ha-hem ba-z'man ha-zeh in order to include all the miracles that God did for our ancestors, and to specify this particular event [Hanukkah] as an example of all miraculous phenomena, since God works miracles for us every day, both apparent and hidden, just as God did for our ancestors, both in apparent and hidden ways...” Hanukkah is a time for us to acknowledge and appreciate the miracles all around us, at this very time, even as we celebrate dramatic events that took place almost 2,200 years ago. Each night we kindle the Hanukkah lights, we have the power to span the millennia, building a bridge between the ancient Hasmoneans and the seemingly mundane details of our own lives, details that may in fact contain hidden sparks of holiness and wonders. Let us seek to perceive those hidden wonders. We can do it with a simple but profound act – by blessing God for “doing miracles in those days, at this time!”

Hag Urim Sameakh/Happy Festival of Lights!