96 Friday, November 25, 1983
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
An Ancient 'Rock Song Sumbolizes Ranuka
By DVORA WAYSMAN
World Zionist Press Service
JERUSALEM — The
wintry sun is setting in
Jerusalem, and in
thousands of homes
throughout the city, tiny
candles are being lit to proc-
laim the miracle of Hanuka.
The Wames of the multi-
colored candles in their
haniikiot are beacons sig-
nifying light and hope.
There is also the tantalizing
smell of frying latkes and
sofganiot (doughnuts), and
then the wonderful sound of
families singing.
The voices are joined in a
special kind of "rock" music.
They are singing "Maoz
Tsur" — "0 Fortress, Rock
(of my salvation)," the title
and opening words of the
hymn sung in the syna-
gogue and at home after
kindling the Hanuka lights.
It is a melodious tune, usu-
ally sung with great gusto
and feeling.
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posers of "Zmirot," Sabbath
hymns. Scholars believe
him to be Mordecai ben
Isaac, who lived in Ger-
many in the 13th Century.
The second stanza tells of
deliverance from Egyptian
bondage: ". . they embit-
tered my life by hardship
during my subjection to the
dominion of Egypt," while
the third verse praises God
for saving Israel from
Babylonian exile: ". . well
nigh had I perished when
Babylon's end drew near
The fourth expresses
thankfulness for surviving
the Purim plot, with the
Agagite representing
Haman and "the lofty fir
tree" signifying Mordecai.
The last verse is praise for
the miracle of Hanuka
when: ". . . their men of un-
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The original hymn con-
sists of six stanzas. The
first contains the words:
U
... let My house of
prayer be restored . .. I
will complete with song
There is a lot of mystery and psalm the dedication
surrounding the origin of of the altar." It expresses
"Maoz Tsur." The only clue Israel's hope that when
to the identity of the com- the Messiah comes, an-
poser is the acrostic of the cient Temple worship
first five stanzas, spelling will be restored.
out the name "Mordecai," a
common practice by corn-
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Maoz Tzur
Fortress, Rock of our salvation,
Gladly Thee we praise,
Build once more our House of Prayer
And we will offerings raise.
Speed the day of punishment
For every barbarous nation;
Then with psalms we will complete
The altar's dedication.
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derstanding appointing
these eight days for song
and praise."
Various authors over the
years added another six
verses pleading for ven-
geance against later perse-
cutors, but most synagogues
do not use them, perhaps
because of their blood-
thirsty nature. Even with
the "Maoz Tsur" we do sing,
which summarizes the de-
liverance of Israel from the
days of Pharaoh to those of
Antiochus, there is nothing
really to show that it was
originally composed for
Hanuka.
Through the years, in
Ashkenazi homes, "Maoz
Tsur" has become as
traditional as latkes and
dreidels at Hanuka, even
though it has the same
tune as Luther's famous
hymn "Nun freut each
liebe Christen gmei" and
is also used by the Christ-
ian church for "Rock of
Ages, cleft for me," an
adaptation of the original
Hebrew text.
There is a Habad saying:
"Song opens a window to the
secret places of the soul." It
is hard to define what
makes some music specifi-
cally Jewish. There are
many categories, including
Hasidic, Yiddish, Yeme-
nite, M oroccan; Kurdish, Is-
raeli and "religious" — a
broad range into which you
can place hymns like "Maoz
Tsur."
There is nothing in
Jewish law against creating
new tunes for hymns. In
fact, the Gerer Rebbe has
stated: "Were I blessed with
a sweet voice, I would sing
you new hymns and songs
every day, for with the daily
rejuvenation of the world,
new songs are created."
New songs can give new
life to a familiar prayer,
_
even re-creating the mood
in which it was originally
conceived. Rabbi Nachman
of Bratzlav wrote: "How do
you pray to the Lord? Is it
possible to pray to the Lord
with words alone? Come, I
will show you a new way to
the Lord, not with words or
sayings, but with song. We
will sing, and the Lord on
high will understand us."
.
"Hanuka is a festival of
light and song that is one
of the most beloved in the
Hebrew calendar. As
families stand grouped
around the candles sing-
ing: "0 Fortress, Rock of
my salvation, unto Thee it
is becoming -to bring
praise ..." there is har-
mony of a special kind.
The harmony is not just
in the song, but in the
sanctity and affection
that binds the Jewish
family and gives it a
foundation as solid as a
rock, with the faith to
pronounce the tradi-
tional blessing:
Blessed art Thou, 0 Lord
our God, King of the Uni-
verse, who has kept us in life,
and hast preserved us, and
enabled us to reach this sea-
son.
Hanuka—Holidag of Dedication and Heroism
By DR. DAVID GEFFEN
World Zionist Press Service
JERUSALEM — Two
strands weave together in
fashioning the heritage of
Hanuka: dedication on the
one hand and heroism on
the other.
The theme of dedication is
implicit in the name
Hanuka (dedication) refer-
ring to the cleansing of the
Temple and the re-
establishment of the service
therein after the Macca-
bean victory.
The second theme, that of
heroism, relates to Judah
Maccabee, whose courage-
ous actions left an impres-
sion not only on the psyche
of the Jews but also on all
the peoples of the world.
When Handel chose the
"champion" for his oratorio,
it was Judah Maccabee
whom he selected. This
heroic theme has particu-
larly manifested itself in
modern Jewish history, not
only in Israel but in many
countries where Jews have
carried arms.
This Hanuka we celeb-
rate the 220th anniver-
sary of the dedication on
Hanuka 1763 of the oldest
synagogue building still
standing in the United
States, the Touro syna-
gogue of Newport, R.I. It
is reported to have been
based on the plans of the
Spanish and Portuguese
- synagogue in Amster-
dam. Many members of
the community were
Marranos. This syna-
gogue was honored last
year by becoming the
first one to be depicted on
an American stamp.
A young patient at Hadassah Hospital on Mt.
Scopus in Jerusalem enjoys Hanuka.
In Israel, the holiday of
Hanuka marks some of the
milestones of the return to
the land. Just 110 years ago
on the fourth night of
Hanuka, the foundation
stone of Mea Shearim was
laid. That neighborhood
was the fourth to be built
outside of the old city of
Jerusalem and was the first
to be erected at such a great
distance from the main set-
tlement within the walled
city.
In the early 1880s,
Hanuka was chosen as the
time for inaugurating new
agricultural settlements. In
1881, it was Rosh Pinah;
1882, Zichron Yaakov;
1883, Yesod HaMaala; and
in 1884, Gedera. The latter
was known as the Biluim
settlement — they were the
50 or so settlers who consti-
tuted the first wave of mod-
ern Zionist aliya. In the his-
tory of these settlements the
two themes of dedication
and heroism have both been
present in abundant mea-
sure.
The theme of heroism was
dramatically illustrated in
an Anglo-Jewish institu-
tion at the turn of the cen-
tury. Beginning in 1893, a
Hanuka military Maariv
service was held annually
on Sunday during the festi-
val. All Jews serving, or
who had once served, in the
British armed forces at-
tended, together with their
The Touro Synagogue
families, in military attire.
The key theme emphasized,
year after year, was the
parallel between the Mac-
cabeans and Anglo-Jewish
patriots.
In the last. 36 years the
that "the strong were
Israelis have frequently
been called the modern
Maccabees. Israel has
never wanted to fight, but
has been forced to in
order to survive. This is
emphasized in the special
prayer of Hanuka — al
hanissirn. There we recite
through the ages.
given into the hands of
the weak and the many
were given into the hands
of the few." With dedica-
tion and heroism the
Jews have survived
As we kindle the Hanuka
menora this year let us re-
dedicate ourselves to car-
rying forward the beacons of
our Judaism and in that
way insure the survival of
our faith through the ages.
Menora Is Central to Hanuka
Board of Jewish
Education of New York
NEW YORK — With the
start of Hanuka on Nov. 30,
windows in Jewish homes
throughout the world will
be enhanced by the glow of
Hanuka menoras.
Each year, on the 25th
Kislev on the Jewish calen-
dar, the menora or hanukia
is brought out, polished and
cleaned, and placed on the
window sill for the
neighborhood to see. As
twilight approaches and the
first stars appear, Jews
around the world say bles-
sings and light the first
candle. Hanuka has then of-
ficially begun.
On each of the next
seven nights, the number
of candles lit is increased
by one, kindled right to
left, so that at the end of
the holiday, eight can-
dles, plus the Shamash,
stand aflame. The
Shamash is a "helper"
candle which stands
above the rest, either in
the center or to one side
of the menora — and is
used to kindle the flame
of the other candles.
.
The -lighting of the Men-
ora commemorates the re-
dedication of the Temple in
Jerusalem by Judah Mac-
cabee and his followers,
who, against overwhelming
odds, fought to practice
their religious beliefs.