Happy Hanukkah!

Judaism teaches us that what we do with our lives is precious.  Adding meaning to all of our actions is a holy act- whether we are praying, eating, washing our hands, or partaking in normal, everyday activities, doing them with intention lifts the seemingly mundane to the level of holiness. Simply put, Judaism asks of us to act not mindlessly but with intention. Hanukkah, or  חנוכה ​means ‘Dedication’. As we light the Hanukkah candles, let our intent be meaningful with each night. 

Let us dedicate the 5th Candle to Acts of Compassion (Rachamim).  Rachamim also shares the same route verb as womb, or brotherhood.  Maimonides declared that “arrogant, cruel, misanthropic, and unloving persons were to be suspected of not being true Jews” (Yad, Issurei Bi’ah, 19:17). The Torah teaches us that G-d’s compassion is a reflection of our ability to show compassion to others. The prophet Isaiah wrote, “Learn to do well; seek justice; relieve the oppressed; judge the fatherless; plead for the widow.”

May this 5th Candle of Hanukkah serve as a light of compassion for others.  Below is a prayer by Trisha Arlin:

Barukh Atah Adonai
Blessed One-ness, Blessed Connection,
Kadosh Barukh Hu:
We pray for all who are in pain
And all who cause pain.

We pray for those of us 
Who are so angry
That we have lost compassion for the suffering
Of anyone who is not a member of our group.
And we pray for those of us
Who cannot see the suffering
behind the loss of that compassion.

We pray for the strength
To resist the urge to inhumanity
That we feel in times of fear and mourning.
We pray for the courage
To resist the calls to inhumanity
That others may make upon us in times of crisis.

Barukh Atah Adonai
Blessed One-ness, Blessed Connection,
Kadosh Barukh Hu:
May we find relief from our hurts and fears.
And may we not, in our pain,
Lose our empathy
For the hurts and fears of others.
We pray for all who are in pain
And all who cause pain.

Amen