For Hanukah lights God needs Humans

The Hebrew Bible (Exodus 27:20 – 30:10) describes the building of the Tabernacle, a very large portable tent of worship that the Jews carried with them throughout their four decades in the Sinai wilderness. None of the furnishings of the Tabernacle has received more attention than the Menorah, the seven-branched, golden candlestick used to illumine the Holy of Holies day and night.

The Torah portion opens with the instructions for maintaining that light. The Israelites are told “to bring…clear oil of beaten olives for lighting, for kindling lamps regularly.”

But why would the Creator of the Universe, the source of the light of the sun, moon, and stars, need to keep the home lights burning? Why does God want our light?

Our ancient rabbis were sensitive to this same question. In fact, they put the question directly into God’s mouth. In a Midrash (an expansive rabbinic insight into a Torah verse) God says of the lights it is “not that I need them but in order that you [Jews] may give light to Me as I give light to you.”

God’s need for a loving relation with humans in general and monotheistic people like the people of Israel in particular, produces a Divine desire to invent ways for Israel to show our love for God. Thus, when Jews celebrate the eight days of Hanukah (a holiday of lights) that falls during the month of December, they lite one candle and then use that one candle to lite one candle on the first evening and the next evening one candle is used to lite two candles until on the eighth evening they lite eight candles. God may make miracles for us, but God needs people of faith and hope to make a miracle visible to other people.

The rabbis compare this to a blind person accompanied home by a seeing person. After the blind person gets home, does the sighted one ask the blind one to light a lamp “so that you will no longer be obligated to me for having accompanied you along the way.” Of course not.

The sighted person represents the Holy One, who guides all humans throughout their lives. The blind person, urged to respond to God’s light by giving back to God, represents the Jewish People’s duty to respond. In response to God guiding Israel, we must also shine light on God’s wisdom and caring for all people in the world.

Reciprocity and interactively are the fundamental basics of the covenant between God and the Jewish people, and make Judaism special, just as all kind and loving relationships and religions are special and unique.

The Midrash continues: “As words of Torah give forth light to those who study them…. those who study Torah should give forth light to others. A blind person with a lamp still cannot avoid pitfalls without someone else’s aid. Thus Torah scholars must share their light with others, both Jews and non-Jews. The lamp of God is the rich teachings of the Torah.

God shines that light into the world, illumining pitfalls and stumbling blocks along the way. Yet Torah remains merely a book, its instructions mere words, if we don’t translate them into living deeds. It is in our hands to take the teachings of the Torah and of later rabbinic insights and to let them shine through our example and by teaching others.

We shine a light back to God when we live by God’s commandments and teach others to do so. In the words of the psalmist, “In Your light we are bathed in light.” And the Book of Proverbs says, ” mitzvah is a lamp, and teaching is a light.”

By living our lives in accord with Mitsvot, we respond to God’s light by lighting a way for ourselves and those we teach, to avoid the precipice of egotism, hedonism, self-righteousness or materialism. The Passover Haggadah (a book that’s been revised, reprinted, and republished over 6,000 times, mostly in the last 200 years) states:
Passover is a journey “from sorrow to joy, from mourning to festivity, from darkness to light, and from bondage to redemption”.

And as the Qur’an states: “We certainly sent Moses with Our signs, [saying], “Bring out your people from darknesses into light, and remind them of the days of Allah.” Indeed in that are signs for everyone patient and grateful.” (14:5) and “Allah is an ally of those who believe. He brings them out from darknesses into light.” (2:257)

This Light that comes out of Darkness is not natural photon radiation light. It is the light of enlightenment which is also is embodied in the following ancient narrative, that was transmitted orally in both Arabic and Hebrew throughout many centuries, and finally written down in several versions in the mid 19th century.

Two brothers who had inherited land from their father, divided the land in half so each one could farm his own section. One brother’s land was mostly on an upper hillside; the other brother’s land was mostly in a valley on the other side of the hill.

Over time, the older brother married and had four children, while the younger brother was still not married. One year there was very little rain, and the crop was very meager. This was at the beginning of a long term draught that would turn the whole valley into an arid, treeless, desert where grain did not grow and all the springs dried up.

The younger brother lay awake one night praying and thought. “My brother has a wife and four children to feed and I have no children. He needs more grain than I do; especially now when grain is scarce.”

So that night the younger brother went to his silo, gathered a large bundle of wheat, and climbed the hill that separated the two farms and over to his brother’s farm. He left his wheat in his brother’s silo, and returned home, feeling pleased with himself.

Earlier that very same night, the older brother was also lying awake praying for rain when he thought.

“In my old age my wife and I will have our grown children to take care of us, as well as grandchildren to enjoy, while my brother will probably have no children. He should at least sell more grain from the fields now, so he can provide for himself in his old age.”

So that night, the older brother also gathered a large bundle of wheat, climbed the hill, left it in his brother’s silo, and returned home. The next morning, the younger brother was surprised to see the amount of grain in his barn seemed unchanged. “I must not have taken as much wheat as I thought,” he said. “Tonight I’ll be sure to take more.”

That same morning, the older brother standing in his barn, was thinking the same thoughts. So after night fell, each brother gathered a greater amount of wheat from his barn and in the dark, secretly delivered it to his brother’s barn.

The next morning, the brothers were again puzzled and perplexed. “How can I be mistaken?” each one thought. “There’s the same amount of grain here as there was before. This is impossible! Tonight I’ll make no mistake – I’ll take two large sacks.”

The third night, more determined than ever, each brother gathered two large sacks of wheat from his barn, loaded them onto a cart, and slowly pulled his cart through the fields and up the hill to his brother’s barn.

At the top of the hill, with only a little light from a new moon, each brother noticed a figure in the distance. When the two brothers recognized the form of the other brother and the load he was pulling, they both realized what had happened.

Without a word, they dropped the ropes of their carts, ran to each other and embraced.

Christians and Jews believe the hill is Jerusalem. Muslims believe the valley is Mecca. I believe they are both right and God willing, someday everyone will see both cities and their sanctuaries as a pair of lungs; that are central to humanity’s spiritual inspiration by, and in connection to, the One God of Abraham, Ishmael and Isaac.

As the Qur’an states: “’Believers, be steadfast in the cause of God and bear witness with justice. Do not let your enmity for others turn you away from justice. Deal justly; that is nearest to being God-fearing.” (5:8)

May the inspiration of this ancient tale, transmitted orally for so many centuries in both Arabic and Hebrew, help Christians, Jews and Muslims overcome the many dark, hate filled actions occurring in today’s world.

As the Qur’an states: Good and evil deeds are not equal. Repel evil with what is better; then you will see that one who was once your enemy has become your dearest friend…” (41:34)

And as the Bible states: “In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will go to Egypt, and the Egyptians to Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship together. In that day Israel will join a three-party alliance with Egypt and Assyria— a blessing upon the earth. The LORD of Hosts will bless them, saying, “Blessed be Egypt My people, Assyria My handiwork, and Israel My inheritance.” (Isaiah 19:23-5)

The great Canadian Jewish folk singer Lenard Cohen wrote a song based on a 13th century book of Kabbalah titled the Zohar of a dialogue between 2 rabbis who are both idealists; but one sees the oil lamp half empty, and the other sees it half full.

It does not make any difference to the lamp if it is half full or half empty; but it makes all the difference in your world. Think carefully which way you want to see life’s light.

Rabbi Isaac said, “The primordial light created by God was hidden away until the world will be fragrant, and in total harmony. Until that world arrives, God’s light is stored and hidden away.” Rabbi Judah responded: “If the light were completely hidden, the world could not exist for even a moment!

Rather, it is hidden and sown like a seed that every year sprouts seeds and fruits whereby the world is sustained. Every single day, a ray of that light shines into the world, keeping everything alive. With that ray [of light and hope] God feeds the whole world. (Zohar 1: 31b– 32a)

The birds they sing, at the break of day
Start again, I heard them say.
Don’t dwell on what has passed away
Or what is yet to be.

Yes, the wars, they will be fought again
The holy dove she will be caught again
Bought, and sold, and bought again
The dove is never free.

Ring the bells that still can ring
Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack, a crack in everything
That’s how the light gets in.

We asked for signs. The signs were sent
The birth betrayed. The marriage spent
Yeah, the widowhood of every government
Signs for all to see.

I can’t run no more, with that lawless crowd.
While the killers in high places say their prayers out loud
But they’ve summoned, they’ve summoned up a thundercloud
They’re going to hear from me.

Ring the bells that still can ring Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack, a crack in everything That’s how the light gets in.

You can add up the parts; you won’t have the sum
You can strike up the march, there is no drum
Every heart, every heart to love will come
But like a refugee.

Ring the bells that still can ring
Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack, a crack in everything
That’s how the light gets in. (Lenard Cohen)