With the month of Kislev underway, we turn our attention to Hanukkah, our holiday of light and heroism.
December, 1948. The State of Israel is seven months old, recovering from the War of Independence that claimed 6,500 lives. The heroes who defended Israel – the men and women of the newly established Israel Defense Forces – were the first Jews since the Maccabees to take up arms and defend Jewish independence in the Land of Israel. I take personal pride that my father z”l – whose name was Nessim (miracles – because he was born on Hanukkah) – was one of those IDF fighters, in the elite Palmach unit.
Sephardic Chief Rabbi Benzion Uziel was eager to light Hanukkah candles with these heroes and express his praise and gratitude to them.
Here are excerpts of his address to a gathering of IDF soldiers in December 1948 (I wonder if my father was in the crowd that night?):
“This year marks the first time in centuries that we are celebrating Hanukkah and kindling Hanukkah lights as an independent nation in our ancestral homeland.
In the days of the Maccabees, and in our times, we experienced the rise of enemies who outnumbered us and sought to uproot us from our land. 2500 years ago, and again today, our people, and the nations of the world, have witnessed the miraculous wonder of God standing by our soldiers in battle, and – in the words of the Hanukkah prayer – help ‘deliver the strong into the hands of the weak, the many into the hands of the few.’
Praised be you, our mighty soldiers and heroes, who armed yourselves with faith and heroism, and renewed the splendid acts of the ancient Maccabees. Praised be our sacred fallen heroes who fell in this recent war of redemption. With their blood, they redeemed our land and our inheritance. May their memories forever be a blessing, and may their souls be bound up in the bond of eternal life, together with all of our nation’s righteous souls and heroes from past generations.
This year’s Hanukkah marks a double celebration. We have blended the memories of of our past with the great vision of our modern-day independence. This year the Hanukkah lights illuminate our souls in our own liberated Land of Israel.
To you, our heroic soldiers, I say hizku v’Imtzu – may you be blessed with strength and with courage. May we see the day when God will help rid us of all enemies. May our lives be illuminated by the bright flames of eternal redemption and peace.”
Thus spoke Rabbi Uziel before the very first modern-day Maccabees. 76 years later, his words ring true for today’s heroic IDF Maccabees.
Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Daniel Bouskila is the international director of the Sephardic Educational Center.
