The Darche Noam Chanuka Page

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Articles on Chanuka
Compensating Kislev, Mrs. Menucha Chwat
The Midrash (Shemot Rabba 52:2) reveals that the 25th of Kislev was not only when the rededication of the Temple took place in the times of the Chashmonaim, but was also the date when the Mishkan was completed by Moshe and the people of Israel. The actual dedication of the Mishkan, we are told in the Torah, was on the 1st of Nissan, though. The Midrash explains the delay. . . .
Chanuka on our Philadelphia Street, Rebbetzin Ruth Karlinsky
As a child growing up in Philadelphia, I remember well the long bus ride home from school in the dark December evenings. As we passed from one Catholic neighborhood through another, we would marvel at the array of gaudy holiday decorations, blinking lights, tinsel balls and life size reindeer. The amount of electricity used could have provided power to a third world country. For a Jewish kid, the world outside was overwhelming. . . .
Chanuka and the Power of the Oral Torah: Seven and Eight,
Rabbi Yehoshua Hartman (adapted from Rav Hartman's introduction to his annotated edition of the Maharal's Ner Mitzva)
The title of the Maharal's book on Chanuka, "Ner Mitzva", not only poetically refers to the Chanuka candles, but captures the essence of the holiday. . . . more
Shabbos vs. Chanuka Rabbi Yaakov Kamenetsky zt"l,
(based on Emet L'Yaakov vol. 3, Miketz)
When there is a conflict between Shabbos and Chanuka candles the gemara clearly rules that Shabbos candles take precedence. Why is this this the case? . . . more
Prayer, Miracles, and Nature: Two Aspects of the Chanuka Miracle,
Rabbi Shaya Karlinsky -- Binyamin Karlinsky's Bar Mitzva Drasha
". . . Among the decrees the Greeks forced upon the Jews, there was one that was most strange. "Write upon the horn of an ox: You have no part in the G-d of Israel" (Breishit Rabba 2:5). With this decree, the Greeks acknowledged the existence of
G-d, and in fact, His being the G-d of Israel! So what were they trying to accomplish? . . ." more
Chanuka and the Nesi'im, Rabbi Yitzchak Hirshfeld
". . . Balancing our individual and collective selves is part of making marriage and family work, of keeping a community together, and is part of the great challenge of modern Israel. The sacrifices of the nesi'im have a lesson to teach us about striking this balance. . ." more
Greek Spirituality and Jewish Spirituality, Rabbi Shaya Karlinsky
"The Greeks prohibited the observance of Shabbat, Brit Mila (circumcision), and Kiddush Hachodesh (court sanctification of a new month based on the new moon). Why did these three Mitzvot bother them more than the other 610 Mitzvot?" more
Forgetting to Say the Blessings Over the Chanuka Candles:
A Responsum by Hagaon Rabbi Akiva Eiger, zt"l
What happens if after lighting some of the candles on the eighth night of Chanuka one realizes that he forgot to say the blessings? Are the blessings made before lighting the remaining candles?

Audio
"Out of This World," Rabbi Fyvel Shuster (Monday, 20 Kislev, 5767)
hear it now / download the file (30 minute mp3)
"The Internal Exile of Yavan," Dr. William Kolbrenner (5765 Chanuka Mesiba)
hear it now / download the file (33 minutes, 30.7 mb)
The Pachad Yitzchak on Chanuka, Rabbi Menachem Farber
hear it now
"Chanuka: The Great Awesome Darkness of the Greek Exile,"
Rabbi Zvulun Liebb
hear it now
"Chanuka: The Inner Light," Rabbi Yitzchak Shurin
hear it now
"The Second Temple Period and Chanuka:
Redemption or Jump-Start for Judaism?" Rabbi Yitzchak Shurin
hear it now

A Chassidic Story:
Playing Checkers on Chanuka

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