Dear Beloved Community Members,

As the winter nights grow longer and we gather to light our chanukiot, I write to you with warmth in my heart and hope for our community. May this Festival of Lights bring renewed joy, peace, and blessing to each of your homes and families.

In challenging and joyous times, our community has remained a beacon of strength, support, and unity. Like the eternal light of the chanukiah, our bonds grow stronger with each passing day. May the light of Chanukah illuminate our paths forward and remind us of the ancient and present miracles that surround us.

As we celebrate Chanukah, we shine our light, knowing that too many in Israel are without celebration and light. We pray this Chanukah that light will replace the darkness and bring peace to all the people of that region. We pray that hostages will be freed from underground terror tunnels and brought into the light of the chanukiah, rejoining their families, surrounded by their light and warm embrace. Bring them home, now! We pray that the people of Gaza won't see the flames of Hamas' rockets firing from adjoining apartment windows or rooftops to launch attacks, making their homes a target. We pray that children will go to bed without the light of an explosion shattering their dreams.

I'd like to share with you a story that has been passed down through generations in the shtetls of Eastern Europe:

The Rebbe's Teaching on Light and Darkness

The great Rebbe of Kotzk once gathered his disciples on the first night of Chanukah. As they stood before the unlit menorah, he asked them, "Where does darkness go when we light a candle?"

His students offered various scholarly explanations about the nature of light and darkness, discussing complex philosophical ideas. The Rebbe listened patiently, then shook his head.

"When we light a single candle," the Rebbe explained, "darkness is not destroyed or pushed away. Rather, it is transformed into light. This is the deepest secret of Chanukah—that within the darkness itself lies the potential for great light. Just as the Maccabees found one small flask of pure oil that burned for eight days, we too can find that single point of light within ourselves that has the power to transform all darkness."

He continued, "Each night as we add another candle, we remind ourselves that our task is not to fight against darkness, but to increase light. And when we do this together as a community, even the darkest spaces become filled with divine radiance."

The disciples noted that on that night, the Rebbe's menorah seemed to burn with exceptional brightness, illuminating not just the room, but their hearts as well.

This story reminds us that each of us carries the power to spread light through acts of kindness and consideration for others. As we gather to light our menorahs this year, let us remember that our individual lights shine brightest when they illuminate the path for others.

With warmest wishes for a freylekhn khanike (Happy Chanukah),

Brooke and Laurence Rosenthal