ב"ה
THEMES of Featured Chasidic Masters Articles
Beginner
Chanuka teaches us to connect to G-d from a positive perspective.
One should begin to repair one's ways by learning Torah and performing mitzvot. The positive path of learning and mitzvot will automatically disassociate one from harmful actions. The path to repentance requires looking forward, not dwelling on the past.
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Beginner
The Greeks defiled the oil in order to nullify the super-rational concept of purity.
The Greeks wanted the Jews to to contaminate the Jewish thought process, that they forget the G-dly aspect of the Torah laws. Thus, the main set of laws that the Greeks opposed were "chukim", ones that have no logical explanation.
But the Jew possesses something far deeper than intellect and indeed totally beyond it, the essence of his soul, known as the "Yechida", symbolized by the intact jar of pure olive oil sealed by the High Priest. |
Beginner
Each law of the Chanuka lights is to subdue a force of foreign darkness
The Chanukah candle is the light of the essence of G-d, the light which automatically dispels and transforms the darkness, even in the realm that represents a denial of G-d's existence and a rebellion against Him. Thus the Chanukah candle is placed outside the door facing a public area which reflects the idea of plurality, of separate existence.
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The Greeks scoffed at our Jewish outlook; they believed only in what they could see.
The Greeks believed only in that which they could see. But in truth, their rationalistic philosophies were mere excuses to absolve themselves of a greater responsibility and allow themselves to pursue with abandon the momentary gratifications of this world.
To this day, we battle against the same forces of secularism and assimilation that our ancestors prevailed against 2,200 years ago. We mustn’t fail in carrying forth the torch of the Maccabees and passing it on to future generations of holy Jewish children. |
A soul is called a flame, whose nature is to soar upward
A soul is called a flame. Just as the nature of a flame is to soar upward, striving to unite with its source - the original element of fire, so too the soul is driven upward - to be consumed in its source. This is its nature. As a son yearns for his father, so the soul yearns for G-d.
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The Meaning Behind the Chanukah Oil Miracle
The festival of Chanukah comes to teach ordinary human beings how to become like oil. If we wish to light up our lives and the world around us with the fires of goodness, morality and G-dliness, we ought to take a good and deep look at the olive oil in our Menorahs. For Judaism, in contract to the Greek culture, always taught that If we know how small we are, we will realize how great we can become.
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