Author: Rabbi Allouche
(RabbiAllouche.org) Can you be in two places at the same time? Apparently, in the Jerusalem Temple, you could.
You see, if you weren’t a priest, you were not allowed to enter the chamber where the Menorah stood. So, if you wanted to kindle the Menorah, you would have to stand in the adjoint room, the “Temple’s courtyard”, and use a very long pole to reach the Menorah in the room next door, and kindle its lamps.
But why not make it easier for everyone to light the Menorah and either allow ordinary people into the chamber where it stood or move the Menorah to where it can be accessible to all?
This intentional set-up conveyed a profound lesson:
It is every person’s duty to dream and aspire to achieve the highest peaks of life, even if they stand beyond our reach. Dreams and aspirations are the engines of our growth. And without them, our lives are fruitless and purposeless. In the words of Robert Browning, an English Poet: “Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp. Or what’s a heaven for?”
This trait also defined all of history’s shining luminaries. Abraham dreamed of healing the world with monotheism. Moses dreamed of leading his people into the promised land. Queen Esther dreamed of saving her people from extermination. Isaiah dreamed of the Messianic times. These giants, and so many others, teach us that we can never be satisfied with our achievements of yesterday. Every day, we must grow and grow and grow.
But what if our life’s challenges are too difficult? What if our life’s hardships are too confining? Should our dreams take the back seat? Shall our aspirations disappear?
The lighting of the Menorah with a very long pole teaches us that we can never quit dreaming. No matter the circumstances – even if we feel that we are far removed from light – we must nevertheless try to reach it, and ignite it, in ourselves and in our world.
Rabbi Menachem Mendel Futerfas (1907-1995), a legendary Chasidic Jew, who had suffered years of exile in Siberia simply for teaching Judaism in communist Russia, once taught his students: “If you lost money, you haven’t lost anything. Money comes and money goes. If you lose your health, you have lost half, for you are not the person you were before. But if you lose your resolve, you’ve lost everything.”
So if you are struggling with a difficulty, big or small, don’t lose your resolve. Muster your courage, take out your inner pole, and kindle your Menorah. Do a good deed, perform a Mitzvah, and ignite a light of kindness in our world.
Greatness is sure to follow.
Shabbat Shalom, and many, many blessings!
Rabbi Allouche
This article was originally posted on RabbiAllouche.org.
This post has been contributed by a third party. The opinions, facts and any media content are presented solely by the author, and JewishPhoenix assumes no responsibility for them. MORE
