Chanukah
Why the Menorah's Branches Are Straight, Not Round
A talk on the Rebbe's insistence that a Chanukah menorah be made with straight branches rather than the common rounded design, tracing the dispute to how the Rambam and Rashi describe the Temple Menorah, and challenging the accuracy of the menorah depicted on the Arch of Titus.
The Menorah, the Arch of Titus, and the Chabad Custom
A talk continuing the discussion of the Temple Menorah's true shape, the materials and cost of a kosher Chanukah menorah, why Chabad doesn't place the menorah in a window, and why the Roman Arch of Titus can't be trusted as an accurate depiction.
Chanukah's Hidden Connection to Mesirus Nefesh
Why the Rishonim disagree over whether there's a seudah on Chanukah, drawing a parallel between Yosef's self-sacrifice and the Chanukah miracle, with a personal story about traveling to honor a chassan.
Candle-Lighting Customs and the Western Lamp Miracle
Covers the halachos of Chanukah candle-lighting, the miracle of the Temple's western lamp, and the merit tied to careful candle-lighting illustrated by the story of a great scholar's birth.
Why You Can't Use the Chanukah Candles' Light for Work
A short halacha piece on the theme of salvation in Chanukah candle-lighting, and why their light may only be looked at, not used for practical purposes.
Why You Can't Use the Chanukah Candles' Light for Work
A short halacha piece on the sanctity of all eight days of Chanukah, and the purpose of the candles: to see, give thanks, and praise Hashem.
A Child's Wonder at Snow -- and at Chanukah
A warm, personal piece built around a child's curious questions about snow and mittens, woven into Rosh Chodesh Kislev and daily gratitude.
The Essence of Chanukah
Explores the miracle of Chanukah as a spiritual victory over the Greeks' attempt to erase Torah, the three categories of mitzvos, and the Chassidic idea that the Chanukah lights allude to the coming of Mashiach.
Parshas Vayeishev - Chanukah
The Midrash's comment that the pit had no water, hinting that the shevatim were lacking in Torah, raises an obvious problem: the shevatim surely knew Torah well and had a halachic basis for what they did to Yosef. The resolution lies in what water represents, not knowledge of Torah, but the bitul, the flowing downward toward humility, that has to accompany real Torah study. That same idea connects to Chanukah, when the Greeks tried to strip Torah of its kedusha and turn it into pure intellect, and the Chashmonaim's victory restored learning Torah as Hashem's Torah, with proper bitul.
Parshas Mikeitz - Chanukah
Yosef's choice of the name Elokim — associated with Hashem's presence within the hidden workings of nature — rather than Havayah, which represents Hashem beyond nature, reflects Pharaoh's total disconnect from anything higher than teva, later confirmed when Pharaoh tells Moshe lo yadati es Havayah. The contrast extends to why Eretz Yisrael's dependence on rain outranks Mitzrayim's automatic Nile flooding, and ties directly into Chanukah, whose miracles beyond nature reveal the same koach of Havayah that will fully emerge with Mashiach.
Parshas Mikeitz - Chanukah
Rashi's detail that Yosef packed grain with sand from its place of origin becomes a model for preserving Torah itself: sand represents the bitul expressed in nefashi ke'afar lakol tihyeh, and real humility has to extend into one's relationship with Torah, not just elsewhere. The Gemara's mashal of the kav chomatin — a dash of preservative equated with yiras Shamayim — and the Yevanim's actual goal of erasing the Torah's kedushah rather than the Torah itself, connects the lesson directly to what Chanukah celebrates.