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Shalom, chaveirim - hello, friends -
It is a mitzvah to light the Hanukkah candles.
And of course, the rabbis of old enter into deep discussions about when to light, how many candles (and menorahs) to light, and where to light.
This year, Jews around the U.S. have been asking what to do with the "where to light" idea. The picture displayed here comes from a lesson plan of the Zekelman Holocaust Center of Michigan with the following citation:
“Rabbi Dr. Akiva Posner, Doctor of Philosophy from Halle-Wittenberg University, served from 1924 to 1933 as the last Rabbi of the community of Kiel, Germany. On Hanukkah 1932, just one month before Hitler came to power, Rachel Posner, wife of Rabbi Dr. Akiva Posner, took this photo of the family Hanukkah menorah from the window ledge of the family home looking out on to the building across the road decorated with Nazi flags. On the back of the photograph, Rachel Posner wrote in German (translated here): Chanukah 5692 (1932) ‘Death to Judah’ So the flag says ‘Judah will live forever’ So the light answers.”
To display publicly or not
According to Jewish legal codes - namely, the Shulchan Aruch (written in 1563) - we learn the following directions about where and how to place the Hanukkiyah (Hanukkah menorah).
"One should place the Hanukkah light at the entrance which adjoins the public domain, on the outside. If the house opens to the public domain, he should place it at its entrance. If there is a courtyard in the front of the house, he should place it at the entrance of the courtyard. If he lives in the upper floor, having no entrance leading to the public domain, he should place it at a window that adjoins the public domain. In a time of danger, when one is not allowed to perform mitzvot, it is enough that he place it on his table."
So is this a safe year to place it in the window or not?
For me, who lives on a cul-de-sac with my front window several yards from the street, it's not a big deal to place the menorah in the window.
Not only that, sleepy Longmeadow, MA is not exactly bustling with anti-Israel protests, for which I am thankful. In fact, we had several very public displays of support for Israel on our main drag of Longmeadow Street.
But what if I lived on Longmeadow Street?
Or what if I lived in Brooklyn where loud and violent demonstrators have stormed the streets with "Flood Brooklyn for Gaza" protests.
Or what if I lived in a building where there was a mosque nearby?
Or what if I was a student at a university ...
Part of the mitzvah of Hanukkah is pirsum haneis - publicizing the miracle. We display our lit menorahs to show people AND to remind ourselves of God's miraculous role in our story and the miracle of our survival against the evils of humanity. Over the centuries, there have been times when we have focused on the hope and desire that God would save us the way God kept that oil from a single jar burning for eight days and there have been times when we have focused on the role and responsibility of each individual Jew to unite with our community and work for our people's safety and salvation.
My suggestion about where to place the menorah? Do what you feel comfortable with. If you are going to spend the time worrying about something dangerous happening, leave the menorah on the kitchen table or somewhere inside your home away from the window. If you feel safe putting the hanukkiyah in the window, go for it!
Better to focus on the bigger questions
Pesach may have the big Four Questions. But since when do we leave questioning to one holiday?
Here are four questions for this holiday in this year:
- What are you doing for the Jewish people to feel safe and to strengthen our Jewish community in America?
- How can you support the people and/or organizations in Israel that reflect the Israel you hope for?
- Can you find news sources to guide you in your search for understanding Israelis, Palestinians, and next steps for both peoples?
- Who in your circle of life and love wants to learn and explore more about Judaism and Israel such that you could be chevruta (study partners) together?
October 7th was a watershed moment for the State of Israel and the Jewish People. Shemini Atzeret-Simchat Torah was the last holiday on the calendar and our year is moving forward ... so we are now midway through Hanukkah already. Black Saturday's massacre will always be with us and perhaps the miracle this year: we are still an "us." We are still here - and if anything, even more than we were before the horrors. We did not want those atrocities. But in typical Jewish fashion, we ask: So now, what? What do we do IN LIGHT of what has happened?
It matters less where you place your Hanukkiyah than your lighting it, period. Light it. Learn by, from, and with the light. And ultimately, it is our challenge to live by the light of Torah.
Chag sameach,
Rabbi Mark Cohn
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