Chanukah: Our Nation

By Yoni Laub

One of the most classic sources pertaining to Chanukah is the Gemara in Shabbos (21b) which explains the different levels of lighting the menorah. The baseline requirement for Chanukah is נר איש וביתו – lighting one candle per household. To go above the standard and do the Mitzvah in a מהדרין way, one can light one candle for each person in the house. However, one can go above and beyond, מהדרין מן המהדרין, by lighting one candle for each night of Chanukah for each member of the household. Interestingly though, when the Shulchan Aruch codifies the Halacha of lighting Chanukah candles, he only lists the מהדרין מן המהדרין Din. Why would the Shulchan Aruch, a sefer of הלכה, leave out the baseline obligation and only list the מהדרין מן המהדרין

If we continue in the Gemara in Shabbos, a few lines after the iconic  מהדרין מן המהדרין Gemara, we’ll find a far less popular passage,

אָמַר רָבִינָא מִשּׁוּם דְּרַבָּה: זֹאת אוֹמֶרֶת נֵר חֲנוּכָּה מִצְוָה לְהַנִּיחָהּ בְּתוֹךְ עֲשָׂרָה.

Ravina says that the Chanukah candles should be lit below 10 Tefachim. Why is that? Why should Chanukah candles specifically be lit under 10 Tefachim. Especially given that the primary focus of the Mitzvah is Pirsumei Nisa, shouldn’t the Gemara just say to light wherever is most public, regardless of the height. Moreover, what is the relation between the Gemara saying that we have a concept of מהדרין מן המהדרין and the Gemara later saying that the candles should specifically be lit below 10 Tefachim?

I believe we can answer these questions with a simple יסוד. Chanukah is a holiday for going above and beyond. As the פני יהושע and others point out, the whole Chanukah miracle of the oil wasn’t even necessary. Since the lighting was for the Tzibur, it would have been Muter to use Tamei oil! But Klal Yisrael wasn’t looking to serve Hashem in merely an acceptable manner; they sought to go above and beyond. That could explain why the שולחן ערוך only quotes the מהדרין מן המהדרין Din of Chanukah. We’re not looking to just be Yotzei. We want to go above and beyond to publicize the great miracle.

Concurrent within the Chanukah story is another notable theme. As we mention in על הניסים, the Maccabim fought a war to be Mekadesh Shem Shamayim and enable Klal Yisrael to continue serving Hashem in the optimal fashion. War is not what inherently comes to mind when one thinks of Kedusha. It is violent and it is scary. But the Maccabaim were looking to protect Klal Yisrael and their service of Hashem by any means necessary. They needed to fight a war, so they fought the war, thereby making it the most Kadosh thing possible. War on the surface could seem like the most ungodly place, but when Klal Yisrael fights a war, we do it in the most godly and Kadosh way possible. That could shed light on why the Gemara says that the Chanukah candles should be lit below 10 Tefachim. The Gemara in Sukkah explains that the reason why the Sukkah needs to be more than 10 Tefachim is because Hashem’s Shechinah doesn’t rest below 10 Tefachim. Rabbi Reuven Brand explains that on Chanukah it’s our job to bring Hashem into all facets of life and we do so by lighting the Menorah below 10 Tefachim. This was true in how the Maccabaim fought the war and it remains true to the ideal way of lighting Chanukah candles.

In our lifetime, we’ve never experienced these two themes as closely than we have over the last couple of months. After the tragic mass attack on Shemini Atzeres/Simchas Torah, hundreds of thousands of chayalim have been called to fight to defend Klal Yisrael. And while our enemies are evil and vicious well beyond comprehension, Klal Yisrael brings Kedusha into the darkest experiences of life with our actions and intentions.

Rav Aryeh Lebowitz quoted a fascinating question on the words of Bimei Matisyahu. When going through the aspects of the miracle, the Tefilah says that the few beat the many and the weak beat the strong which surely is miraculous. However, it continues with the pure defeating the impure, and the tzadikim defeating the reshaim. Obviously, we’re happy that the tzadikim won, but how is it miraculous for the tzaddikim to beat the reshaim? Rav Lebowitz explains that tzadikim are at a disadvantage in war because while reshaim will do anything in war, tzadikim are guided by morals guidelines and cheshbonos that might put themselves at physical and strategic disadvantage. This loudly rings true today as the IDF seeks to be moral and kind while fighting against the reshaim who have no regard for human life or goodness.

Returning to the first Gemara, Klal Yisrael has responded over the last few months in a מהדרין מן המהדרין way. Jews around the world have donated millions of dollars to support the war effort, people who have never had any association with religion have become connected and committed to religious practice in a way they never could have imagined, yeshivas and homes have been open to people displaced from their homes, and hundreds of thousands of Jews have attended rallies and engaged in diplomacy in efforts to support Israel and help bring hostages home. Klal Yisrael is taking religious commitments and Chesed to a whole new level. Am Yisrael does not look to respond adequately. When faced with circumstances that are below 10 Tefachim, Klal Yisrael always responds מהדרין מן המהדרין.