I would like to share a beautiful Hanukah thought based on some of the writings of Rav Shimshon Pinchus, zichrono l’bracha.
There is a famous Midrash that tells us that when it came time to make the Menorah, Moshe Rabbenu was bothered by the Mitzvah of the Menorah. He wondered how it could be that G-d would ask us to light a candle for Him? G-d is the source of light.
For all of the years in the desert, G-d lit up the world for us with a pillar of fire. And now we are going to come and light up a light for Him? The Midrash answers with a mashal:
A blind man was being led by a guide who could see. Every step of the way, the guide helped the blind man get around. Then, when they finally got into the house, the guide asked the blind man to please turn the light on for him. The blind man asked, “You need me to turn on the light?”
The guide replied that he wanted the blind man to have a part in it.
Which means that the lesson of the Menorah is that G-d doesn’t really need us, but He wants our service to Him. And that is why our service is so dear to G-d. This is an important point. When it came time to create the world, the angels asked G-d why He needed human beings. They asked G-d why He was even mentioning human beings. They said that whatever humans could do, they could do better, so why take pride in humans? A mashal was given. Imagine a man who had to carry a very heavy load- someone who had to buy bundles and bundles of bamboo for the Schach of a very large shul. So, he hired a worker to load all the bamboo onto his van. The worker was sweating away. Then the man’s six-year-old son asked his father if he could help, and the man said, “sure.” The six-year-old picked up one loan bamboo stick and put it in the van. The hired worker wondered, in amazement, why this little child was getting involved if he was hired to do everything, and he could do it better and faster.
The answer is, he didn’t need the little kid, but that was the man’s son, and a father takes pleasure in his son helping out. It’s something that can’t be explained logically. There is a certain special love that a man has for his child’s input. That is what the angels did not understand. The Jewish people are G-d’s children. It’s not that He needs us, but that He enjoys our service. He enjoys the relationship and the connection.
A similar law brings out this point. In the Bet HaMikdash, the fire came down from heaven miraculously. Yet there is a halacha that every day, we have to put some logs onto this fire that is there miraculously. The reason is the same- Although G-d doesn’t need it, He wants our service. He wants our input and involvement. He wants the relationship. The Sefer Shevet Yehuda describes that during the times of the Bet HaMikdash, a gentile a was given a tour. He was shown all the different goings-on and some of the miraculous events. The gentile was told about the miracle of the fire coming down from heaven, and he was very impressed. Then he got to the room where they checked the wood that was to be put onto the altar. He asked them why they put wood on the altar, if, as they had just told him, the fire comes down from heaven on its own. The answer given was that G-d wants our involvement. The gentile went into a rage and started screaming, “That’s a Jewish talk! That’s a Jewish talk,” and he stormed out of the Bet HaMikdash in a rage. He couldn’t fathom the concept that we are Hashem’s children.
This concept is very important, because the whole fundamental of Bitachon based on this. The Gemara in Masechet Yoma tells us why the manna came every day, rather than once a week, once a month, or once a year. It was because Hashem wants the relationship. He wants us to turn to Him, and count on Him, and ask Him. He enjoys it. It’s a father-son relationship, and that’s what bitachon is based on.
It’s not like someone that you have to give. It’s someone that you want to give.
The Gemara brings out the high level of Bitachon of the Jewish people in the desert, with the analogy of Keruvim /cherubs .When the keruvim above the Aron/ ark were facing each other, it was symbolic of the love of G-d and the Jewish people. As they started turning away from each other, it showed the opposite. The Gaon of Vilna asks why this relationship is symbolized by a child. And he answers that it’s because a child relies on a parent. Children are young and small, and need their parents for everything. There is a certain special connection you have with your children when they’re that age. As they get older and more independent, and feel the they don’t need their dad any more, it’s not the same connection. Bitachon is based on this principle, which is the principle of Hanukah:
Hashem wants to have a relationship with us. That’s why the famous question is asked, “If G-d wanted to give it to me, why do I have to pray for it?” And the answer is that G-d wants you to pray. G-d wants you to rely on Him. He wants that relationship. He likes our involvement, because we are His children.
That is one of the fundamental messages of Hanukah. We should appreciate every little service that we do. Every prayer.
Every self-sacrifice.
Everything that we do gives pleasure to Hashem. Like it says, “Fortunate is the one that toils in Torah, and gives his creator a good feeling.” Have a wonderful day.