Chanukah and the Power of the Oral Torah
Seven and Eight Rabbi Yehoshua Hartman Darche Noam/Shapell’s senior lecturer Rav Yehoshua Hartman is one of the foremost experts on the writings of the Maharal. The following essay is adapted from the introduction of his just-published edition of the Maharal’s Ner Mitzva. Ner Mitzva The title of the Maharal’s book on Chanukah, “Ner Mitzva”, not […]
Compensating Kislev
Mrs. Menucha Chwat The Midrash (Shemot Rabba 52:2) reveals that the 25th of Kislev was not only when the rededication of the Temple took place in the times of the Chashmonaim, but was also the date when the Mishkan was completed by Moshe and the people of Israel. The actual dedication of the Mishkan, we […]
Chanuka on our Philadelphia Street
Rebbetzin Ruthie Karlinsky As a child growing up in Philadelphia, I remember well the long bus ride home from school in the dark December evenings. As we passed from one Catholic neighborhood through another, we would marvel at the array of gaudy holiday decorations, blinking lights, tinsel balls and life size reindeer. The amount of […]
Greek and Jewish Spirituality
Rabbi Shaya Karlinsky 1. The Greeks prohibited the observance of Shabbat, Brit Mila (circumcision), and Kiddush Hachodesh (court sanctification of a new month based on the new moon). Why did these three Mitzvot bother them more than the other 610 Mitzvot? 2. They also prohibited the study and dissemination of Torah Sheba’al Peh (Oral Torah) […]
Prayer, Miracles, and Chanuka
Two Aspects of the Chanuka Miracle Rav Shaya and Binyamin Karlinsky The following D’var Torah is an English translation of the Drasha that was delivered by my son, Binyamin at his Bar Mitzvah, and for our siyum of Masechet Ta’anit. (Rav Shaya Karlinsky) The Gemara in Ta’anit (2a) analyzes the verse from Kriyat Shma, “To […]
Chanuka and the Nesi’im
Rabbi Yitzchak Hirshfeld The dedication of the Mishkan through the sacrifices and donations of the nesi’im (tribal princes) seems to be quite a central Chanuka theme. During Chanuka we read the section of Bamidbar recording the nesi’im’s donations and sacrifices (Megilla 3:6). Our Hallel on Chanuka is also influenced by the sacrifices of the nesi’im. […]
Shabbos vs. Chanuka
Rabbi Yaakov Kamenetsky zt”l (paraphrased from Emet L’Yaakov vol. 3, Miketz – from R’ Yaakov’s notes for a drasha he gave on Shabbos Chanuka Parshas Miketz) We are commanded to light two different types of candles: Shabbos (& Yom Tov) and Chanuka. The two are radically different. It is prohibited to use the Chanuka candles, […]
Chanuka Candles: Forgetting the Blessings
Opening up the Responsa Literature Forgetting the Berakhot Over the Chanuka Candles Hagaon Rabbi Akiva Eiger, zt”l Question: What happens if one remembers to make the blessings over the candles on the eighth night of Chanuka only after lighting some of the candles? Answer: He can still make all three blessings. There is, however, one […]
The Fragrance of Cheshvan
R. Eliezer Kwass Tishrei and Cheshvan stand next to each other in the calendar, but seem to be as far apart as two months can be. Tishrei is full of holidays, joy, and intensity; Cheshvan does not even have one minor holiday. Experiencing their juxtaposition feels like a spiritual roller- coaster ride. Tishrei puts us […]
Rain: May It Be a Blessing
by Menucha Chwat Midreshet Rachel v’Chaya The month of Cheshvan is associated with rain. In Eretz Yisrael, on the 7th of Cheshvan we begin adding the words “Veten tal umatar levracha” – “Give dew and rain for a blessing” – to the weekday Amidah. We not only ask for dew and rain, but we add […]
