Ceremony and Celebration Family Edition, The Hagim, Hanukka, The Second Night, A Hanukka Message
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THE LIGHT OF WAR AND THE LIGHT OF PEACE
There is a law about Ḥanukka I find moving and profound. Rambam writes that “the command of Ḥanukka lights is very precious. One who lacks the money to buy lights should sell something, or if necessary borrow money, so as to be able to fulfil the mitzva.”
The question then arises: What if, on a Friday afternoon, you find yourself with only one candle? Should you light it as a Shabbat candle or a Ḥanukka one? It can’t be both. Logic suggests that you should light it as a Ḥanukka candle. After all, there is no law that you have to sell or borrow to light the Shabbat lights. Yet the law is, surprisingly, that when faced with such a choice, you light your only candle as a Shabbat light. Why?
Listen to Rambam: “The Shabbat light takes priority because it symbolises shalom bayit, domestic peace. And great is peace because the entire Torah was given in order to make peace in the world.”
Consider: Ḥanukka commemorates one of the greatest military victories in Jewish history. Yet Jewish law rules that if we can only light one candle, the Shabbat light takes precedence, because in Judaism the greatest military victory takes second place to peace in the home.
Why did Judaism, alone among the civilisations of the ancient world, survive? Because it valued the home more than the battlefield, marriage more than military grandeur, and children more than generals. Peace in the home mattered to our ancestors more than the greatest military victory.
So as we celebrate Ḥanukka, spare a thought for the real victory, which was not military but spiritual. Jews were the people who valued marriage, the home, and peace between husband and wife, above the highest glory on the battlefield. In Judaism, the light of peace takes precedence over the light of war.
❖ Points to Ponder
- Does Judaism think war is wrong (i.e., is Judaism a pacifist religion)?
- How can shalom bayit*(peace in the home) also help bring* shalom*(peace) into the wider world?*
- How will you contribute to shalom bayit in your home this Ḥanukka?