Dear all,
Did you know the Talmud tells a story about a baby born with two heads?
When King Solomon was asked if the child deserved two inheritances or one, he didn’t answer right away. Instead, he poured warm water on one head. Both heads cried at the same time.
Solomon said: “This is one person.”
Chanukah teaches the same truth.
We may live on opposite sides of the world, but we are one people. When Jews in Australia are threatened, mourn, or feel afraid, Jews everywhere feel it too — in Israel, in Europe, here at home.
That’s what it means to be connected. One body. One soul. One light.
On Chanukah, we don’t light candles alone. We add light together — reminding ourselves that Jewish pain is shared, and so is Jewish resilience.
In this moment in time, may we stand with one another, across oceans and time, and keep the lights burning.
With love and Shalom,
Rabbi Zachary R. Shapiro
