It was great seeing so many of you at our Chanukah events, and there's still more to come next week!
Please join us this Tuesday for our special end of year matching campaign!
Tonight, remember to light the Chanukah Menorah first and then the Shabbat candles, and most importantly, both should be lit before sunset.
Wishing you a joyous and bright Shabbat-Chanukah!
Yitzchok
While the original Temple Menorah was lit in the day, the mitzvah of lighting the Chanukah Menorah, as explained in the Talmud, is to do so specifically at nightfall.
Why?
Because the message of the Chanukah Menorah is to light up the darkness of the world, to the point that even the places (or aspects of life) which were once dark, begin to radiate with a light of goodness and holiness! This applies to both our personal lives and personal challenges as well as to the world at large. Instead of battling the darkness, we introduce a good and holy light and help make the world a better place.
When Esau heard that Jacob was on his way back to the Land Canaan, he set out with an army to destroy him and his family. But Jacob plans ahead with gifts, prayer and preparations for battle, and miraculously their high-tension meeting turned into an encounter of brotherly love and forgiveness.
It was in that spirit of newfound brotherhood when Esau turned to Jacob and said: “Come let us travel together to Seir (where Esau lived with his family).”
How did Jacob reply? "Let my master please go on ahead of me, his servant...and wait there until I reach you…”
It was clear to Jacob that his brother’s newfound love was only momentary, and the time was not yet ripe for them to live together in Kumbaya. Yet openly declining Esau’s gesture was not an option either because of the danger involved.
Our Sages explain that hidden in this exchange is a future event that will unfold. In the end of days there will indeed be a great rendezvous between the descendants of Esau and those of Jacob, but this time, the world will be ready for it and it will herald the start of a new era for mankind, the era of Geulah - Redemption.
