פרשת מקץ וזאת חנוכה
This Shabbos is dubbed by Chazal “V’zos Chanuka” because the Torah portion which we read on the last day of Chanuka begins with those words. The Ari Z”l explains on a slightly deeper level that when a person constructs a building, in many ways the final steps taken in that construction are the most important ones, because they complete the building and turn it into what it was designed to be. Similarly, the last day of Chanuka contains all of the holiness and depth of all the other days combined. This being said, it behooves us to dedicate this day in attempting to gain a deeper understanding of what this mystical and wonderful holiday is about.
The Rambam in the fourth chapter of the laws of Chanuka (4:12) says something very unique which does not seem to appear anywhere else. He says that the commandment to light the Chanuka candles is a very dear and beloved Mitzvah, and one therefore must be very fastidious to publicize the nature of the miracles and to praise Hashem for all the good that He does. This Rambam seems very strange! Why does the Rambam take it upon himself to rate the Mitzvos? In general, we know that the Mishnah in Avos says that a person should not really consider whether a Mitzvah is smaller or bigger, but it certainly seems inappropriate to refer to one Mitzvah as “endearing” implying that any other Mitzvah is not.
Perhaps, we could gain a deeper understanding in the meaning of this Rambam by studying the language Chazal chose when composing the “Al Hanissim” prayer. We find that at the beginning of the prayer, the Jewish people are referred to as “Amcha” or “Your Nation”, and at the end they are referred to as “Your Children”. The commentaries explain this discrepancy by stating that that primary point of dissention between the Greeks and the Jews was whether or not any nation can have a preference in Hashem’s eyes. The Greeks believed that all nations are created equal and all people share this earth in equality. The Jews stood for the fact that there is indeed a chosen nation who need to earn that title by accepting upon themselves a greater level of responsibility. When the Chanuka story started out, the Jews were not in the greatest shape, and therefore were only deserving of the title of Hashem’s nation, but as it unfolded, we merited in returning to our original and rightful position as Hashem’s children. This occurred through a combination of two factors. Firstly, the Jewish people were willing to sacrifice their bodies and souls for the sake of the Mitzvos. For example, they went out to war to stop the damaging influence of Greek culture even though they were grossly outnumbered and had inferior warfare materials. Furthermore, they went out looking for pure olive oil even though Halachically, they were not necessarily required to. When they did this, they showed how dear the Mitzvos were to them that they were willing to go above the letter of the law to fulfill the commandment of lighting the Menora with every possible stringency. Hashem in return restored their status as His children by performing miracles for them and treating them the way a father treats his children – with exceptional mercy and personal attention. Based on this understanding, we can now easily explain why the author of the “Al Hanissim” switched his terminology at the end of the prayer. This was to symbolize that by the end of the Chanuka story, we were indeed reinstated as the children of the Creator, and enjoyed all the benefits that come along with that title.
The Gemorah in Shabbos (21b) asks, “What is Chanuka”? The Gemora answers that when the Jews came to light the Menorah, they found that there was no pure oil left save for one small jug which only contained enough oil to burn for one day. But they lit it anyway, and it ended up lasting for all eight days until they could procure more oil. Based on this Gemorah, it seems that the primary miracle for which the holiday of Chanuka was founded had to do with the oil and the Menorah. While it is true that we praise Hashem for all the other wonders He performed, such as the phenomenal way in which a few elderly Kohanim defeated the entire Greek army, these praises were not the central theme for this festival.
Based on what we have said about Chanuka, it actually makes perfect sense for the Menorah to be the central theme. The Gemorah in Shabbos (22b) says that one of the Menorah’s crucial purposes was to demonstrate to the world the fact that the Shechina rests with the Jewish people. While Shimon Hatzadik was alive, the westernmost light would miraculously burn the entire day, outlasting all the other lights even though it contained the exact same amount of oil. This was meant to be testimony to the Jews’ special status as Hashem’s children. Unfortunately, after the times of Shimon Hatzadik, we no longer merited this miracle, and it would have been easy to misconstrue this turn of events as Hashem removing His presence and love from the Jewish people. This being the case, the miraculous way in which the Jews located one jug of oil during the Chanuka story, and the way in which it burned for all eight days was the perfect antidote to counteract the lowered morale of the Jewish people at that time, and to remind them that even if we have sinned to the point that we no longer merit to see outright signs of our special rank, we must nevertheless remain conscious of its truth and of Hashem’s closeness to us at all times, and His desire for us to return to Him.
I believe that we can now deal satisfactorily with the Rambam we quoted at the beginning. The Rambam was not “rating” the Mitzvos by saying that lighting the Chanuka lights is a very dear Mitzvah, rather he was explaining the unique nature of the Mitzvah in that it is meant to remind us of how beloved we are to Hashem. The Rambam is giving an instruction in the proper fulfillment of this Mitzvah. He is teaching us that when we gaze at the lights in the Menorah, we should contemplate how adored we are by Hashem, and how much He cares about us and wants us to do the right thing, and this reflection will kindle our hearts in the love of Torah, and the desire to perform all the Mitzvos properly. Indeed, the great Mussar giants say that one of the best motivations to keep the Torah well is the knowledge that we have a father in Heaven who loves us dearly, and gets so much pleasure (so to speak) when He sees us doing the right thing and traversing the proper path. This message should be very encouraging to us on a continual basis and help us to shine light in our darkest times throughout the year.
May we all merit to imbue this message of Chanuka deep into our hearts!