Adding Fuel to the Jar - By: Rabbi Simcha Weinberg

I can picture the Syrian Greek authorities responding to the news of Matityahu, the father of the Macabees, attacking a small contingent of soldiers just as the Tunisian government did to the impact of the self-immolation of Mohamed Bouazizi a year ago; "Nothing a show of might won't control!" It didn't work in Tunisia, Yemen, Libya, or Egypt. It doesn't seem to be working for the current Syrian government and army. It certainly did not work for the Greeks of the Chanukah story. It was, it seemed at the time, the Jewish Spring. We could argue that our's was the better spring; after all, we had the miracle of the oil. Yet, the sages who instituted Chanukah as a festival did not mention the miraculous oil in the prayer they formulated to honor the holiday. Quite frankly, as far as miracles go, a jar of a day's worth of oil that burns for eight is not such a biggie.

It's hard to believe that two thousand years from now the descendants of the Arab Spring will be celebrating a religious festival honoring the citizens who took on armies. They will not have hundreds of books discussing the philosophical, religious, and mystical implications of their Spring. Nor will they have hundreds of books detailing the numerous laws of how to celebrate the festival. And that, my friends, is the difference between their Spring and ours.

The Chanukah story, the Jewish Spring, began an explosion of creativity and exploration. We took what others would have limited to a successful, albeit temporarily so, battle for freedom, and transformed it into a gushing Spring of study and passion. You can say that we took a small story and made it burn increasingly brighter for millennia. That, for me, is the true Chanukah miracle, and it permeates our history, prayer, and study. We search for and find small jars of oil wherever we are, no matter the circumstances, and make them burn forever. When I use a thousand-year-old Responsum as part of a lecture on relationships, I am taking that small jar of oil and keeping it burning in twenty-first century America. When I search for a source on how maximize the spiritual and emotional benefits of Shabbat, I am searching for the small jar of oil and giving it life. The Spring flows with energy. It lives an eternal life.

The Foundation Stone has become that burning candle for the tens of thousands of people from more than fifty countries searching for meaning, direction, and a connection to that small jar of oil. It is a powerful expression of the Jewish Spring. Please use your end of the year tax deductible contributions to fuel our Spring, our small jar of oil. Each donation will expand the lives of many, burn far longer and brighter than we can imagine.

About the Author

Author Info: Learn & discover the Divine prophecies with Rabbi Simcha Weinberg from the holy Torah, Jewish Law, Mysticism, Kabbalah and Jewish Prophecies.

Article Directory Source: http://www.articlerich.com/profile/Rabbi-Simcha-Weinberg/78434

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