Let It Shine: Every Candle Counts
We usually start with one Hanukkah candle and increase to eight, kindling 44 candles per menorah (lamp) over the eight-day festival. But that tradition began as one variant of an ancient consumer upgrade. Another variant was kindling eight candles on the first night, and decreasing to one candle by the eighth night.
In fact, kindling ONE Hanukkah candle each night was originally considered enough.
We tend to take our abundance for granted, until we are confronted with the prospect of scarcity. Each time hurricanes and other emergencies leave communities without electrical power, candles are a reminder of how fuel, light, and heat are tangibly connected. Even today, 675 million people worldwide live without electricity, while 2.3 billion rely on polluting cooking fuels.
And Hanukkah candles were not originally intended for any of the practical purposes that we usually associate with lighting. They are traditionally lit only for display, to "publicize the miracle." From this perspective, we can appreciate what an expense these candles must have presented in the past — especially for lower-income Jews anxious to fulfill the requirements of the mitzvah.
So when we are left with a single candle, we should never underestimate its power — or the power that expands wherever we share the light of our own gifts with others.
Perhaps the ancient practice of starting our festival with eight candles, and decreasing to one by the last night, more accurately evokes the experience of the Hanukkah miracle — which was measured not by the quantity of oil but by the continuing presence of light against all odds.
In our high-tech world, which grows more complex and fragmented with each new electronic device, we human beings continue to derive great inspiration and comfort from the simple light of candles. It's no coincidence that festivals of light converge across cultures at this darkest, coldest season of the year. Especially in these uncertain and painful times, we need the reassurance of light and warmth to help us move through all the challenges ahead.
Hanukkah means Dedication or Rededication. As you re/dedicate your end-of-year giving, please consider WAYS OF PEACE. Just as every candle counts, our social microenterprise depends upon every donation from our network of individual supporters to help us kindle transformation for individuals, families, and communities.
During this Festival of Lights and Rededication, we hope you will be generous — and we promise to extend your generosity even further. WAYS OF PEACE pays at least 10 percent of net staff compensation forward to other organizations that uphold our core mandates of renewing justice and kindness across lines of diversity.
