• To me every hour of the light and dark is a miracle,
Every cubic inch of space is a miracle. |
• Blessed is the match consumed in kindling flame
Blessed is the flame that burns in the secret fastness of the heart |
• Kindle the taper like the steadfast star
Ablaze on evening's forehead o'er the earth,
And add each night a lustre till afar
An eightfold splendor shine above thy hearth. |
| • "They celebrated it for eight days with gladness like Sukkot and recalled how a little while before, during Sukkot, they had been wandering in the mountains and caverns like wild animals.So carrying lulavs ...they offered hymns of praise to God who had brought to pass the purification of His own place." |
| • Hanukkah has very little accouterments attached to it ... Besides dreidels and gold, foil-wrapped coins, the menorah is the way to showcase the holiday. |
| • Hanukkah is a celebration of the miracle of the oil that was only supposed to last for one night, but lasted for eight nights ... It’s really a story about the resiliency of the Jewish people and that despite our small numbers we still beat the odds and we’re still a growing people. |
• The miracle, of course, was not that the oil for the sacred light -
in a little cruse - lasted as long as they say;
but that the courage of the Maccabees lasted to this day:
let that nourish my flickering spirit. |
• By all means, then, let us have psalms
and days of dedication anew to the old causes.
~Charles Reznikoff, "Meditations on the Fall and Winter Holidays" |
| • "At this time of year, when the sun is most hidden, the holiday of Hanukkah celebrates the rays of hope and light. Indeed, the physical darkness of this time of year can be a metaphor for the darkness that often envelopes us at times of illness and loss of a loved one, when the world sometimes feels dark and cold. At such times, we yearn for the sun, and the light and warmth that it provides. Often, it is through simple and unrecognized miracles that we are able to feel the warmth of hope and light." |
• A fuel-less flame is nothing but a wraith,
However wrought, if unsustained by passion.
~Nicholas Gordon, "How Long Can We Remember an Event," |
| • "In the old days, it was not called the Holiday Season; the Christians called it "Christmas" and went to church; the Jews called it "Hanukkah" and went to synagogue; the atheists went to parties and drank. People passing each other on the street would say "Merry Christmas!" or "Happy Hanukkah!" or (to the atheists) 'Look out for the wall!'" |
