Learning from Rabbi Sacks this Chanukah
Every time an enemy has risen aiming to destroy us, we have prevailed
As a trustee of the Rabbi Sacks Legacy, I recently had the privilege of speaking at the Sacks Scholars programme in Israel, including on a panel moderated by former Israeli Ambassador to the UK, Daniel Taub. We explored who Rabbi Sacks was beyond his writings – the characteristics he embodied and what it was like to work closely with him. Hopefully, we gave participants insights they can’t glean from his books alone but are equally important for understanding his work and impact. It was gratifying to see the programme in action; immense credit goes to the brilliant faculty who created such an impressive and enriching experience.
While in Israel, I visited several sites in the south attacked on 7 October, 2023. I saw the Nova Festival site, the moving memorial in Sderot where the police station once stood, and hundreds of cars Hamas set alight on that darkest of days. Most poignantly, I toured the worst affected parts of Kibbutz Be’eri. The devastation was simply shocking to witness. What was equally shocking was that despite never visiting before, I recognised much of the landscape from footage the Hamas terrorists filmed as they murdered or took hostage so many residents.
Outside one kibbutz home stood a partially torn Israeli flag. Next to it, on the wall, someone had written “Am Yisrael Chai” – “the Jewish people lives.” That message is particularly powerful at this time of year. On Sunday evening, Jews worldwide will begin celebrating Chanukah, a festival recalling the discovery of a single cruse of unblemished oil within the devastation of a looted Temple more than 2100 years ago. From that small jug, the Chanukiah was rededicated and Judaism began to flourish once more.
Rabbi Sacks offers a poignant insight about discovering that cruse of oil. We light Chanukah candles for eight nights, making a blessing over the miracle each night. The miracle of days two through eight seems obvious: oil meant for one night lasted eight. But what, Rabbi Sacks asks, echoing the age-old question of scholars and sages, was the miracle of the first night?
He suggests: “Perhaps the miracle was this: the Maccabees found one cruse of oil with its seal intact and undefiled. There was no reason to suppose that anything survived the systematic desecration the Greeks and their supporters did to the Temple. Yet the Maccabees searched and found that one jar. Why did they search? Because they had faith that something would survive even from the worst tragedy. The miracle of the first night was that of faith itself, the faith that something would remain with which to begin again.”
Standing in Kibbutz Be’eri, seeing the torn but still-standing Israeli flag next to the words “Am Yisrael Chai,” one couldn’t help but hear the call echoing to Jews throughout generations. Every time an enemy has risen aiming to destroy us, we have prevailed. We have suffered, but we have rebuilt and, as Rabbi Sacks writes, “lit a light that tells us and the world of the power of the human spirit to overcome every tragedy and refuse to accept defeat.”
That torn flag at Be’eri embodies this ancient truth. Like the Maccabees who searched through Temple ruins believing they would find something with which to begin again, the survivors of 7 October and Jews worldwide have declared their refusal to be defeated in the face of hatred and antisemitism. The flag remains standing. The words proclaim ongoing life. The faith endures.
This Chanukah, as I light the candles, I will think of that flag in Be’eri and of Rabbi Sacks’ teaching about the first night’s miracle. The miracle wasn’t just that the oil lasted – it was that the Maccabees had faith to search for it at all. It was their belief that even in complete devastation, something holy remains. That same faith animates those who wrote “Am Yisrael Chai” on a damaged wall in a devastated kibbutz. It is the faith that has sustained the Jewish people through millennia of persecution and tragedy, the faith that insists on rebuilding, on relighting, on beginning again.
That is what I witnessed in southern Israel last week, and that is the message of Chanukah – not merely that miracles happen, but that having faith to search for light in the darkness is itself miraculous. Chanukah sameach.
Dan Sacker is a Director at Milltown Partners, a member of President Herzog’s inaugural Voice of the People Council, and a trustee of the Rabbi Sacks Legacy, and the Lira Winston Fellowship.
Keep community journalism free.
Jewish News is free for everyone. No paywall. No barriers. Just trusted journalism for anyone who wants to stay connected to Jewish life in Britain.
If you value that, please support us.
From as little as £5 a month, you can help keep our journalism free and accessible to all.
Every day, we report on the issues that matter to our community. We celebrate achievements, support charities, challenge antisemitism and ensure Jewish voices are heard more widely.
From as little as £5 a month, you can help us continue to:
- Report on the stories shaping Jewish life in the UK and beyond
- Bring our community together through shared stories, events and campaigns
- Celebrate the people, culture and moments that define our community
- Support organisations doing vital work across Jewish Britain
You can make a one-off donation or become a regular supporter. Every contribution helps keep our journalism free, independent and accessible to all.
If everyone who values Jewish News gave a small amount, it would make a real difference to our future.
