Miracles

The Talmud says that on Hanukkah, we celebrate the miracle of the oil. Secularists claim the essence of Hanukkah is to celebrate the Maccabean victory.

During Hanukkah, the days of light triumphing over darkness, as the small flames illuminate the night, let us remember the fragrance of paradise that exists within every Jew, no matter who they are.

This year, the lights on the menorah shine alongside yellow ribbons, posters of the hostages’ faces, and the empty seats left for them.

Brigitte’s little red book of poems, lost during the Holocaust, was miraculously returned to her.

At this time of year, we’re reminded of the importance of olive oil, an essential ingredient in the Hanukkah story, the author writes.

Without any claim to prophecy, I cannot escape the feeling that what is happening at this moment is not just another Israeli-Palestinian war but something radically different. 

Virtually all (Zionist) rabbis agree that the blessing must be said on the Hallel of Jerusalem Day, for that event came purely “min hashamayim,” from heaven itself, a precious gift from God.

Any one of these occurrences strains the imagination, but each really happened. How all of these collectively culminated in the rebirth of the Jewish state seems impossible.

Living in Israel has allowed me to understand the concept of a modern miracle because we live it here each day.