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Editor's Notebook

InOur Tradition
Are The Answers

Self-Rededication
During Chanukah

RABBI WILLIAM C. GERSHON SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

PHIL JACOBS ED TOR

If the health and
well-being of chil-
dren are any indi-
cation of the
general well-being
of society in gener-
al, then a recent
government report
on the state of chil-
dren in America is
alarming. Consider some of the
findings:
* We are told that 1 million
teen-age girls get pregnant each
year.
* 375,000 babies are exposed
to drugs in the womb of their
mothers each year.
* In 1965, 10 percent of chil-
dren lived in single-parent
homes. In 1985, that
number had more than
doubled and continues to
rise.
* Teen-age suicide
continues to be on the
rise.
* Fifteen percent of all
children between the
ages of 10 and 18 have no
medical coverage at all.
* Twenty-five percent
of children in America
are in a state of poverty.
* More homicides are
committed by children
between the ages of 15
and 19 than by any oth-
er age group in our soci-
ety.
* Two million children
are abused and neglect-
ed each year.
The implications of
these statistics are clear.
The very fabric of Amer-
ican society is unraveling
at the seams. The break-
down of the family,
mindless materialism
and a bankrupt system
of values all contribute to
the ills of our post-mod-
ern society.
Many in the Jewish commu-
nity believe we are impervious to
these disturbing trends. But they
are wrong. We are affected either
directly or indirectly by the com-
munity in which we live. We can-
not be long protected from the
demise in our society. The chil-
dren of the less fortunate in this
country will share this country
with us, for better or worse. The
future of our children is inextri-
cably bound to all children of
America.
As Jews, we have something
unique to offer America. The rich-
ness of the Jewish tradition pos-
sesses a response to the
breakdown of American values.
We can share the wisdom of our
Jewish heritage with others. The
concepts of self-restraint, fami=
William Gershon is the associate
rabbi of Congregation Shaarey
Zedek.

ly and lifelong learning would
auger well for American society.
I offer several examples:
Halachah — The concept of
Halachah or Jewish law teaches
that there are things in this world
to which we must say NO! The
person who is strong and mighty
according to Pirke Avot is one
who can conquer his own pas-
sions, not one who has attained
the perfect body or the hottest
car. Self-restraint, when em-
ployed properly, can give us the
necessary discipline to avoid
drugs, alcohol and material ex-
cess. Ultimately, it can give us
the self-respect and self-worth
that every individual craves and
needs.

Mishpachah — Judaism has
always held the sanctity of the
family to be central to its teach-
ings. The family is the basic
building block of Jewish existence
and community. That is why on
the High Holidays, the holiest
days of the Jewish year, we read

There are
lessons for
America.

stories of the first Jewish family.
Although dysfunctional, the fam-
ily of Abraham, Sarah, Isaac and
Ishmael teaches us that no fam-
ily is perfect. At the same time,
we learn that no Jew can long
survive without one and no fam-
ily can survive in isolation from

the community.
Kedushah and the holiness of
sex — Sex in the Jewish tradition
is connected to love and family.
It was never considered as some-
thing unclean, but rather the ul-
timate form of human bonding
and communication. Sex between
husband and wife in Judaism is
the highest expression of treat-
ing another as a tzelem elohim,
an image of God — a person of in-
finite worth and uniqueness.
Therefore, sex ideally is to be re-
served for a loving relationship.
Talmud Torah — Lifelong
learning, from birth to death, is
one of the central pillars of Ju-
daism. "Talmud Torah k'neged
kulam, the study of Torah is
equal to all the com-
mandments" because
learning leads to action.
Study informs the mind
and nurtures the heart. It
provides inner enrich-
ment for each individual
in a world where the in-
ner life is often neglected.
Tzedakah — Tzedakah
means to "do the right
thing." We are
rachamamim b'ncti
rachamamim, merciful
children of merciful par-
ents. The Jewish people
are the most benevolent
society the world has ever
known. Giving to others,
of our resources and of
ourselves, teaches kind-
ness and goodness — val-
ues which are sorely
lacking in many sectors of
American society.
Chayim — Life is the
most sacred of Jewish val-
ues. The Jewish vision of
the world is for each per-
son to be valued as an im-
age of God. While a Van
Gogh may reap $83 mil-
lion at an auction, an im-
age of God is priceless.
Regard for human life and rach-
manut, compassion for all living
creatures, is the most important
value we can teach our neighbors.
We need to share the wisdom
of Judaism with others in order
to strike a balance in the Amer-
ican system of polarities. We have
a unique responsibility to ensure
we do not isolate ourselves from
the general society and to live .our
own lives in accordance with the
principles and teachings of the
Torah and the Jewish tradition.
They have provided our people
with the wisdom and the faith to
survive the ravages of history and
to bring to the world the message
of ethical monotheism.
The mandate of Judaism re-
quires us to create wholeness
where there is strife, peace where
there is torment and misery, love
and respect where there is hate
and deprivation. D

So many of our
friends and rela-
tives have com-
mented lately
about the early
timing of Kislev
24. First the
High Holidays
were "too early,"
and now that
we're barely done eating turkey
dinner, we're giving out pre-
sents.
It's good Chanukah is "ear-
ly" this year. It's good for all of
us, because there's less of a fo-
cus on Chanukah being paired
with Christmas as the so-called
season for giving. More impor-
tantly, we have an opportunity
here to focus on this Jewish hol-
iday with the gift element per-
haps redefined completely.
Wouldn't it be nice if Kislev
24 occurred each year in con-
junction with the time around
Thanksgiving? Maybe then the
emphasis would be more on
themes of tzedakah, feeding the
hungry, and the importance of
fostering intergroup relations.
A Chanukah review: Ask
any Jewish child or most adults
what this holiday is all about,
and you get the story about the
oil lasting eight days instead of
one. Beyond that, not much is
brought back to our memory.
Go ahead and take a pair of
scissors and cut out the follow-
ing paragraphs and carry them
with you, so you can use them
as a reminder that Chanukah
is not Hebrew for "long wait for
mall parking space."
Borrowing a term (with
apologies to "Rocky and Bull-
winkle"), we set our "way-back
machine" to the year 167 BCE.
That was the time an army of
Syrian-Greek (Seleucid) soldiers
arrived in the area of Modi-in.
This area in Israel still exists.
When the Miracle Mission land-
ed in Israel in 1993, this was the
first place 1,300 Detroiters vis-
ited. The Seleucids' goal was to,
by force if necessary, have Jews
and everyone else in the area
worship Greek idols.
A Jew by the name of Mat-
tathias, the elder priest, refused
the order. He even killed a Jew
who did bow down, as well as a
Seleucid soldier. It is Mat-
tathias who started the revolt.
For three years, Mattathias'
family led the revolt. His third
son, Judah the Maccabee (the
Hammer), led his people in win-
ning battle after battle against
the Greek forces of Antiochus.
It was in 164 BCE that the
Maccabees recaptured
Jerusalem, including the Tem-
ple. The word chanukah means
dedication.
Here's what motivated Madi-

son Avenue. During the prepa-
ration for the Temple re-dedi-
cation ceremony, only one
sealed container of pure oil was
available to light the Temple
menorah. The oil was only
enough for one trip to the mall.
Or in biblical times, it was
enough to light the menorah for
only one day. The miracle is
that the oil kept the menorah
burning for eight days.
Yes, the light represents to
all of us the spirit of re-dedica-
tion, a spirit that hopefully
leads us to rededicate ourselves
to be better human beings.
Also, Chanukah is a time when
we can rededicate ourselves to
the Torah, the ageless order of
life that we are blessed with.
Remember, Hashem gave the
Jews the Torah among all the
peoples of the world available
to receive it. With this comes
a tremendous responsibility to
learn and to follow what it says
in the sacred scrolls. The Torah
belongs to the Jewish people.
But it doesn't just belong to us
during Shavuot when we ded-
icate its giving to the Jewish
people through learning. Nor
does it belong to us only during
Simchat Torah when we start
the reading all over. Every day
it serves Jews as either a back-
drop for their lives, or as a
working, day-to-day marirml on
how to live.
The story of Chanukah also
belongs to us as Jews. It helps
us rededicate ourselves. It
brings light to our lives during
times of darkness. These are
themes that are as powerful in
the summer as they are now as
we approach winter. It has
nothing to do with shopping. It
has nothing to do with Christ-
mas. If Judah re-dedicated the
Temple in a warm, summer
month, the.message would be
as strong.
We all know that most of us
will be out there buying those
gifts, because we don't want to
feel left out of what the rest of
America is doing. We also don't
want our children to be without
that new computer game. Also,
it makes us feel good to give. So
maybe this year, along with the
presents, gift-wrap yourself a
self-commitment to go to tem-
ple or synagogue at least once
a month if you aren't going al-
ready. Tie a bow around par-
ticipation in a Jewish
Experiences For Families pro-
gram or one of many Jewish ed-
ucational services offered in this
community. "Buy" yourself a
Friday night with the Sabbath
candles lit and the television off
for the entire evening.
Make rededication the best
present of all. ❑

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