marvelous miracles who wants to be a maccabee i shpy
TRANSCRIPT
FAMILYChanukahGuideINCLUDED!
CHANUKAH 5770US $3.60
MARVELOUS MIRACLES WHO WANTS TO BE A MACCABEE I SHPY
R E V E A L T H E H I D D E N
Hey Kids!Menorah, Latkes, Dreidel and Gelt can only meanone thing... Chanukah!Chanukah celebrates the miracle of light vanquishingdarkness, and of good defeating evil.
Read about the Maccabees, true Jewish superheroes, whobravely fought against all odds, to defend their faith and theirland against the evil King Antiochus.
Discover the meaning behind Chanukah Gelt, and the secret oflight! Learn how to make your own Cheese Latkes, teach yourfriends how to play Dreidel and enter our Chanukah competitionsto win some amazing prizes!
What’s Inside:
Other Features:
6. Jewish HeroesThe Rambam
7. Signs of the TimesLet There Be Light!
14. I ShpyCan You Find The Hidden Pictures?
16. Jewish HistoryIsaac (Yitzchak)
20. Kids in the KitchenCheese Latkes!
21. Joey“Letters of Light”
24. Just for FunLet’s do the Twist!
26. StoryThe Flame That Disappeared
28. What’s Wrong...in this Holiday Scene?
Page 8
Page 12
Page 4
GELT
3
popcorn machine
Chanukah is all about the miracle of the oil.
Invite your friends over to a Chanukah party
they’ll never forget, with this authentic, hot-oil
kettle Popcorn Machine!
A joint project of Merkos L’Inyonei Chinuch and Tzivos Hashem
Made possible by a grant from: The Rohr Family Foundation
Plus othergreat prizes:
LIGHT your own Menorah
SHARE the story of Chanukah
ATTEND a public Menorah lighting
HAVE a Chanukah party
PLAY a game of Dreidel
EAT latkes and doughnuts
RECEIVE Chanukah Gelt
GIVE money to charity
chanukah
Checklist
Editor-in-Chief: Ella Wilhelm, Art Director: Gershon Eichorn, Project Manager: Zevi SteinhauserContributing Editors: Levi Avtzon, Yisrolik Baumgarten, Rochel Nerenberg, Design: SpotlightDesign.com
Illustrators: Joey Comic: Paul Fricke, Back cover art: Yanky Gitlin, Printing: The Printhouse
gravity defyingbootsMake the Dreidel jump and spin around,then have a go at it yourself with these incredible gravity-defying boots!
Beeswax coil
candle48-hour Horizontal C
oil Beeswax Candle
burns to the exact amount of time
you choose! (5 to be won!)
This magazine contains G-d’s name, please treat with respect.
WIN$500CHANUK
AH
GELT!
WIN$500CHANUK
AH
GELT!
Complete the Chanukah checklist for you
r chance to
And an opportunity to give
10% to a charity of your choice!
Billionaire BillBill Gates may be the richest man in the world –worth a cool 40 billion US dollars – but it’s hischarity work that is really impressive! Every year, hedonates $3.8 billion to charities that are dedicated
to fighting hunger, improvingeducation and developing
vaccines against deadlydiseases. That’s one man
who knows the truevalue of a dollar!
During Chanukah it is customaryto give gifts of Gelt (money) to
children. Some people have thecustom to give Gelt every night (exceptfor Shabbat), but to hand out an evenbigger amount on the fifth night!
WHY GELT?The Hebrew word Chanukah shares the sameletters as the Hebrew word for education –“Chinuch.” The Assyrian-Greeks weredetermined to force the Jewish people to giveup their religion in exchange for idol-worship.After our enemies were defeated, we had to re-learn and re-establish the proper values andTorah way of life. The custom of Chanukah Geltteaches us the importance of giving some of itto charity, reinforcing those positive valuesthat are such an integral part of Judaism.
GELT,
GLORIOUS
GELT!
Maccabee MoneyIn December 2008, during a volunteer
archaeological dig in Israel, 14-year oldOmer Ya’ari discovered a rare andimportant silver coin dating from thetimes of the second Holy Temple! Not
only that, but a coin that was mintedduring the times of the Maccabees wasfound as well... amazingly just a few daysbefore the holiday of Chanukah!
ON THE M
ONEY:A million dollars’ w
orth of $100 bills weighs only 22lb (10kg)
•The Loch Ness m
onster is protected by the 1912 Protection of Animals Acts of Scotland because it’s w
orth over $40 million a year to Scottish tourism
• Europe and the
United States together spend over $17 billion a year on pet food • Money notes are not made from paper, but a special blend of cotton & linen • In 1932 when a shortage of cash occurred in Washing 4
Global GeltWhat do America, Australia, Canada andTaiwan have in common? Their currency iscalled the DOLLAR! To ride the bus inEngland you’d need to use a POUND, to buy afalafel in Israel you’d have to pay a SHEKEL,and in most of Europe, you’d use the EURO.In Russia they use a RUBLE, in Poland it’scalled a ZLOTY, Norway uses KRONE,and Thailand uses the BAHT. Butthere’s one kind of currency thatwill be accepted everywhere, nomatter where you go... KINDNESS!Acts of charity and good deeds willhelp you get by in every corner ofthe world!
Trading UpWhat’s the very oldest form of money? A cow!Long before the concept of coins and notes was established,
people traded their goods for other items they needed. Had anextra milking cow but needed some sheep for wool? Trade! Had
plenty of carrots but wanted potatoes? Trade! Soon, people started dealingin shells, gold, precious metals and jewels. Over the years the system developed
and refined itself to where we are today! Cash, Credit Cards, Stocks and Bonds!
Colossal Coin!On the 3rd of May 2007, the Royal Canadian Mint unveiled thelargest coin in the world. Featuring maple leaves on one side,
and Queen Elizabeth II on the other, with a diameter of 19.6 inches(50cm), and weighing over 220 pounds (100kg), this gold Canadian
coin is made out of two-million-dollars worth of solid gold! Imaginetrying to find a charity box big enough to hold this beauty!
ton, notes were made out of wood for a brief period • The first credit card was issued by American Express in 1951 • The $ sign was designed in 1788 by Oliver Pollock • There are more than nine5
Wealthy And Wise
Did you know that KingSolomon was therichest man in history?
When he was just 12 yearsold and anointed as King ofIsrael, G-d appeared toSolomon and asked himwhat he desired. Hecould have had all theriches in the world, buthe asked G-d for wisdomand understanding tolead and judge hispeople fairly. Solomon’sanswer brought much joyto G-d, who fulfilled his
request and promised himunparalleled wealth, honor and
peace throughout his reign!
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6
n Tiberias, Israel lies one of the greatest men thatever lived, a true leader of world Jewry. From all overthe world, Jews come to pray at his grave. Inscribedon his tombstone are the words “From Moshe toMoshe, there arose none like Moshe.”
The Rambam, Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon, wasresponsible for organizing the entire body ofJewish law into a clear and easilyunderstood work called the MishnehTorah. Just as Moshe Rabbenu gave theTorah to the Jews at Mount Sinai, sotoo did Rabbi Moshe ben Maimongive the Jews of his time theMishneh Torah. And just as Mosheled the Jewish people out of exile tothe Promised Land, so too did theRambam lead the Jewish people while
they were in exile, keeping theirfaith strong in the face of greathardship and danger. His famousletter to the Jewish communityin Yemen, encouraged them tostay faithful to Judaism and tobelieve in the coming ofMoshiach, even while theirenemies were persecuting them.
Not only was the Rambam revered by the Jews for his wisdomand leadership, he was also admired among non-Jews for hisexpertise in medicine, science and philosophy. In Egypt, he wasappointed by the court of Sultan Saladin as personal doctor tothe Grand Vizier as well as to other members of the royal family.
Legend has it that when the Rambam passed away, his bodywas placed upon a donkey and it wandered around Israel untilit came to Tiberias. The reason Tiberias was chosen, as the story
goes, was the city’s modesty compared to the other citiesof Israel. Similarly, the Torah was given by Moshe
on Mount Sinai, a small mountain, for itremained silent while all the othermountains boastfully argued why theydeserved to have the Torah given onthem.
So great were these men that bothmountains and cities vied for thehonor of hosting these Jewishheroes.
Truly, from Moshe to Moshe, therearose none like Moshe!
Name: Rabbi Moshe ben MaimonAKA: Rambam, Maimonides
Children: Avraham
Born: 14th Nissan, 4895 (1135 CE),in Cordova, Spain
Passed away: 20th Tevet, 4965 (1204CE), in Cairo, Egypt. Buried inTiberias, Israel
Claim to fame: A leader of the Jewishpeople who codified Jewish lawand wrote many other works inphilosophy, science and medicine.The Rambam was also renownedfor his skill as a physician
R A M B A M
RAMBAM
Portrait of Rambam,with signature
Rambam’s tomb in Tiberias. Inscription reads: “From Moshe to Moshe, there arose none like Moshe.”
Rambam’s drawing of the Menorah in the Holy Temple
And light has played a prominent role throughout history:
The ancient Egyptians used candles made frombeeswax as early as 3000 years ago.
During the Qin Dynasty, the ancient Chinese madecandles from whale fat.
Boiled cinnamon, dried fish, yak butter, seeds,insects, paraffin and kerosene—all were
used in the past to produce light sources.
In 1879 Thomas Alva Edisoninvented the light-bulb,which changed humanexistence forever—byilluminating the night andenabling us to live, work,develop and inventduring night hours aswell as during the day!
Once, a great debate arose amongst the wise men of Chelm:Which was greater? The sun or the moon?
The so-called wise men fought bitterly amongst themselves, until they decided to bringtheir problem to the Rabbi. The Rabbi thought long and hard about the question, and the
people waited eagerly for his decision. Finally, the Rabbi spoke: “The sun shines during the day when it is already
light outside and we have no need for it at all—therefore, the moon is moreimportant, for it shines at night when it is dark and we cannot see!”
Have you ever heard of a town called Chelm? Chelm is famous for being a city of fools, whose residents often foundsilly solutions to even sillier problems.
The story may seem funny, but we can learn animportant lesson from it as well:At times, it may seem like the darkness is too overwhelming,and the blackness too thick to ever be able to see. Yet all ittakes is one small candle, one tiny drop of light—and anentire room full of darkness is pushed away!
The very first thing that G-dcreated when He decided tomake a world—was light!
Let there beLIGHT!
7
It is the story of the little Jewish nation defeatingthe mighty Hellenist empire, and the miracle of the
little bit of oil that burned on the Menorah for 8days. We light Chanukah candles after nightfall to
remind us that even in the very darkest of times, wehave the potential to light up our surroundings. Our
job is to make the world a better—and lighterplace—one good deed at a time!
Chanukah is all about light overcoming darkness.
ntiochus ordered his army into Israel to ensure theJews were following his evil decrees. Thousands of Jewswere killed for refusing to give up their belief in G-d andserve Antiochus.
The Hellenist soldiers tried to force the elder of thegeneration, Rabbi Eliezer, who was 90 years old, to eat pigmeat in public, so that others would follow his example. RabbiEliezer refused! Seeing his determination, but hesitant to killsuch a holy man, the soldiers told him to just pick up the meatand pretend to eat it. The brave Rabbi stood strong and
refused, for he knew that his Jewish brothers would followwhat he did. “Never!” he cried, and in a fit of rage, thesoldiers killed him.
chana& her 7 sonsLike Rabbi Eliezer, many Jews performed countless acts of
bravery and martyrdom, sacrificing their lives for Judaism.Chana was one such woman. She and her sons were found prac-ticing Judaism, regardless of the new laws.
the evil king antiochus
It was the year 174 B.C.E. and Antiochus the
Madman had begun his tyrannical rule over
Syria and the Jews of Israel. Antiochus
was determined to make everyone in his
kingdom follow the Hellenist religion and
way of life, and to do that he resolved to
wipe out Judaism once and for all!
“I now decree that any
Jew caught learnIng torah,
keepIng Shabbat, eatIng koSher,
cIrcumcISIng baby boyS or
belIevIng In g-d... wIll be
put to death! AhAhAhAhA!
8
Antiochus ordered them to be arrested as an ex-ample for the rest of the stubborn Jewish nation.He had Chana’s seven sons brought to him, try-ing to convince each one in turn to abandon theTorah. One by one, the sons refused to give uptheir religion, defying the king and proudly re-maining true to G-d. Each son was killed untilonly the youngest was left. The king offered himgold and silver to obey his decrees, but the youngchild displayed tremendous courage, and turnedhim down. Antiochus was enraged! He allowedthe child one last chance to save himself by pick-ing up the king’s signet ring – and pretending tobow down to the idols in front of him. The boy re-fused! As her last and only son was beingdragged to his death, Chana begged to kiss himonce last time, and then she too gave up her life.
the YoungSuperheroes Many Jews soon fled the cities and towns to hidein the surrounding hills and caves of Judea andsecretly practice Judaism. But even hidden,they were not always safe.
The brave Jewish children devised a clever planof their own. They would post a lookout at theentrance to the cave where they were sitting a
learning, to warn them if soldierswere approaching. When the alarmsounded, the children would quickly hid theirTorah scrolls and take out little spinning tops,pretending to be heavily immersed in a game.These spinning tops were none other thanDREIDELS – and this is why every Chanukah weplay the Dreidel game!
BRAVEMATITYAHU One day, Antiochus’ henchmen arrived in Modiinwhere Matityahu the Kohen Gadol (High Priestof the Holy Temple) lived. The soldiers built analtar in the centre of the village and demandedthat Matityahu offer sacrifices to the Greekgods. Matityahu refused saying “I and my sonswill remain loyal to our G-d forever! MiL’Hashem Eilay —whoever is for G-dlet him come to me!”
He then draw his sword andtogether with his five strong,brave sons and their friends, fellupon the Syrian soldiers andkilled them!
The Greeks
are coming!!
“QuIck! put awaythe torah
ScrollS and getout thoSedreIdelS...”
the jews defied the orders...
chana talks to her seven sons...
”my chIldren, tell
your anceStor abraham,
‘you bound only one Son
upon an altar, but I
bound Seven.”
9
10
rise of the maccabeesMatityahu knew that Antiochus would be furiouswhen he heard what had happened, and so they fledto the hills to Judea. More loyal and courageous Jewsjoined their makeshift army, vowing to fight anddefeat Antiochus and his men.
But Matityahu was elderly, and before his death hecalled his sons together and urged them to continueto fight in defense of their people and the Torah. Heappointed his son Shimon the Wise to be the leader inplanning, and Judah the Strong to be the leader inbattle. The brotherscalled themselves the“MACCABEES,” a wordcomposed of the
initial letters of the four Hebrew words: “Mi KamochaBa’Eilim Hashem,” “Who is like you, O G-d.” Theirnumbers slowly grew as more and more Jews joinedthem in their fight for freedom!
the few against many Antiochus was burning with rage! How dare the Jewstry and defy him? He sent an army of more than40,000 men to sweep through the land and wipe outthe audacious Maccabees. When Judah and hisbrothers heard that, they exclaimed: “We will fight tothe death in defense of our souls, our Torah and ourHoly Temple!” Together, the Maccabees made theirway to Jerusalem, praying to G-d to help them in thisepic battle.
The Jews were facing a mighty army of trained,heavily-armed soldiers. They however, were just a
small, untrained army. Nevertheless, they threwthemselves into the battle, with their belief in
G-d giving them the courage to fight. The war
antiochus sent huge armies...
The maccabees fight back
“Mi KamochaBa’Eilim Hashem!” who IS lIke you amongSt
the Strong, o g-d!
11
was long and hard and many Jews were killed,including Judah’s youngest brother Yonatan, whowas trampled to death by one of Antiochus’ warelephants. But G-d helped His people, and after aseries of battles the Jews were victorious!Antiochus’ army was vanquished, chased out of theland of Israel, and the Jews were free to practicetheir religion and serve G-d once again!
When the Maccabees entered the Holy Temple, aterrible sight met their eyes. The Temple was inruins! The Greek soldiers had defiled anddesecrated our holiest place, and filled it with idolsand impurities. The Jews began cleaning,scrubbing and fixing the Temple. On the 25th ofKislev in the year 139 BCE, the Jews were ready torededicate the Temple and start offering sacrificesto G-d once again!
All that was left was to light the beautiful, seven-
branched Menorah. But there was no oil! Theysearched everywhere, desperate to find at leastone flask of pure olive oil with an untouched seal,one that had not been ruined by the Hellenists, butto no avail.
Finally, one small flask was found!
The Jews were ecstatic at the find, but theirhappiness was short-lived. What would happenwhen the oil ran out? The Menorah needed to be litdaily and it would take another eight days tomanufacture new, pure olive oil. With heavy heartsthey lit the holy Menorah – and a miracle occurred!The oil on the Menorah burned for eight wholedays!
Joy and happiness filled the air as the Jewsrecounted all the miracles G-d had performed forthem.
They promised to celebrate these eight days everyyear, as a special Jewish holiday: The holiday ofChanukah!
...we were victorious!
I found one-- but It IS only
enough for one nIght…
what wIll we do?it’s a miracle...
the oIl IS laStIng
for eIght full
dayS!
Over 2000 years ago, the Maccabees
defeated their enemies, won back the
Holy Temple, and lit the Menorah which
stayed burning for 8 days, bringing
joy and light once more to the world...
How do we light the Menorah?
The Menorah is lit shortly after nightfall, when it is dark. The Maccabees chased away the forces of darkness with their swords—we dothe same with our Menorah! On Friday however, before Shabbat, we need to light the candles before sunset.
• A
To set up your Menorah on the first night,place one candle on the far right. Each night,add another candle. Every night we light thenewest candle first, and continue lightingfrom left to right. So we PLACE from right toleft, but we LIGHT from left to right.
• C
The Menorah must be lit in a central doorway, or on a windowsill facing the street, so everyonecan see the lights twinkling in the night. All 8lights need to be on the same level, but the“Shamash” (used to light the other candles) should be above the rest.
• B
All of the above! Make sure the flames burn for at least30 minutes, and don’t forget to recitethe blessings!
• D
12
Are you
ready for...
Some people like to use candles, others use olive oil. As long as the flames on the
Menorah burn and give a steady light, they’re OK to be used! Olive oil with cotton wicks is the preferred way to light the Chanukah Menorah,because the miracle of Chanukah occurred with oil,and that’s the way the 7-branched Menorah in theHoly Temple was always lit!
The lights of the Chanukah Menorah are special – that’swhy they cannot be used to light each other, or used
for anything else. Instead, we use a Shamash (helper)candle! The Shamash can be made out of sweet-smellingbeeswax and is held as we recite the blessings. Wethen use it to light the other wicks, and once we’redone, place it back in the Menorah, separately tothe other lights.
In addition to placing our Menorah in thedoorway or on the windowsill, we also
attend public Menorah lightings, to spread themiracles of Chanukah. The Lubavitcher Rebbe
encouraged and supported Menorah lightings in publicareas around the world to maximize the reach of the
Chanukah lights, and publicly announce the powerful messageof light conquering darkness.
mA
CC
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ee
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fe
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s:
13
expert
ask a
phone a song
ask the audience
50:50
Baruch Atah Ado-noi, Elo-hei-nu Melech Ha-olam, Asher Ki-de-sha-nu Be-mitz-vo-sav,Ve-tzi-vanu Le-had-lik Ner Chanukah
ukkv ,urbv Ha-nei-ros Ha-la-luOnu Mad-li-kin, Al Hat-shu-os, Ve-al Ha-nisim, Ve-al Ha-nif-la-os, She-a-si-sa La-avo-sei-nu Ba-ya-mimHa-haim Biz-man Ha-zeh, Al yi-dei Ko-ha-ne-cha Hak-doshim. Ve-cholShmo-nas Yi-mei Chanukah, Ha-nei-ros Ha-la-lu Ko-desh Heim, vi-ein La-nu Ri-shus Li-hish-ta-meish Ba-hein, Ela Lir-o-san Bil-vad,Ki-dei Li-ho-dos Uli-ha-lel Le-shim-cha Ha-ga-dol, Al Ni-se-cha Ve-al Nif-le-o-se-cha Ve-al Ye-shu-o-se-cha.
r¤J£t 'oŠkIg¨v Q†kœ¤n Ubhœ¥eO¡t '’v v¨T©t QUrŠC/vŠF´b£j r¯b ehˆk§s©v‰k Ubœ²Uˆm±u 'uh¨,I‰m¦n‰C Ubœ¨J§S¦e
Baruch Atah Ado-noi, Elo-hei-nu Melech Ha-olam, She-asa Nisim La-a-vo-sai-nu, Ba-ya-mim Ha-haim Biz-man Ha-zeh.
v¨GŠg¤J 'oŠkIg¨v Q†kœ¤n Ubhœ¥eO¡t '’v v¨T©t QUrŠC/v®Z©v i©n±Z¦C o¥v¨v oh¦n²H‹C 'Ubhœ¥,Ic£t‹k oh¦X°b
Baruch Atah Ado-noi Elo-hei-nuMelech Ha-olam She-heh-chi-yah-nu Ve-ki-ye-mahnu Ve-hi-gi-yanu Liz-man Ha-zeh.
The first time you light your menorahthis year, add this blessing:
'oŠkIg¨v Q†kœ¤n Ubhœ¥eO¡t '’v v¨T©t QUrŠC/v®Z©v i©n±Z‹k UbœŠgh°D¦v±u Ubœ¨n±H¦e±u Ubœ²h¡j¤v¤J
BEFORE LIGHTING, SAY THESE
Blessings:
AFTER LIGHTING, SAY OR SING THIS
song:
1
2
3
After the Menorah is lit, it is traditional to sing Chanukahsongs such as Haneirot Halalu. We hang around the
Chanukah lights for about 30 minutes – a perfect time to inviteyour friends over for a Chanukah party! ShareChanukah stories, play a game of Dreidel andenjoy traditional Chanukah foods like deliciouslatkes and donuts!
See song lyrics and translation
14
I Shpy a hammer, a wristwatch and a stamp,2 spinning Dreidels, and a shiny golden lamp.
A matchstick, a helmet, a plastic lego brick,A sack of potatoes and a fluffy yellow chick.
I shpy a sword, a doughnut and a skate,A musical note and the numbers 1 to 8.
An arrow, a bow, a brightly colored kite,And a plate of yummy latkes for it’s Chanukah tonight!
15
ANCIENT JERUSALEM
For thousands of years, the Jewish people have directed their heartsand minds towards Jerusalem. Our prayers are filled with mention
of the holy city and our longing for peace, and every year at the endof the Passover Seder we exclaim “Next Year in Jerusalem!”
Jerusalem was the site of G-d’s Holy Temple, which was built on MountMoriah – the very same mountain upon which the story of theAkedah, the binding of Isaac, took place. The golden Menorah in theHoly Temple was lit every day, its light bringing warmth andinspiration to our people. With every good deed we do, we comecloser to the day when our Holy Temple will be rebuilt, and the light ofthe Menorah will once again shine, illuminating the entire world!
Isaac was born on thefirst day of Passover, the
first person to be born a Jew. When
8 days had passed, he was given a
Brit Milah as G-d had commanded,
and was named Yitzchak (Isaac). Each
Hebrew letter in Isaac’s name has a
special significance:
— Yud has a numerical value of
10. This stands for the 10
Commandments which the Jewish people
would receive on Mount Sinai.
— Tzadik has a numerical
value of 90, which is how old
Sarah was when her son Isaac was born.
— Chet has a numerical value of
8 which stands for the Mitzvah of
Brit Milah at 8 days old!
— Kuf has a numerical value of
100, which is how old Abraham
was when Isaac was born.
Isaac grew up to be a wise and
kind man. He took after his father and
mother and lived his life according to
the word of G-d. But when he was 37
years old, G-d tested his father one last
time, and commanded Abraham to offer
Isaac
HistoryJewish
Who was the very first Jewishboy to have a Brit Milah(circumcision) at 8 days old?Isaac!When our forefather Isaac was born,he looked incredibly similar to hisfather Abraham. So much so in fact,that people had absolutely no doubtsthat Abraham was his father – eventhough he was 100 years old whenIsaac was born!
Just like his father, Isaac devoted hisentire life to serving G-d and helpingothers do the same.
Unlike his father Abraham however,Isaac did not leave Eretz Yisrael (theLand of Israel) during his entirelifetime – and that was 180 years!
Year
2048FromCreation
IsaacBorn
Brit Milah
צ
ח
ק
י
16
Isaac up as a sacrifice to Him. This was
not just a test for Abraham. Isaac was a
grown man at the time! He was strong and
tall and could easily have refused to be
tied up and offered on the altar.
Nevertheless, he knew that G-d had
commanded his father to do so, and
travelled willingly with him to Mount
Moriah, where the Akedah (binding)
would take place.
The AkedahIsaac was tied up and bound,
then placed on an altar on the top of
Mount Moriah. Abraham paused with the
knife in his hand, his eyes welling over
with tears. The angels in Heaven also
began to cry.
“Lord of the Universe!” they called out,
“You are a merciful and kind-hearted G-d,
Have mercy on Isaac! You promised
Abraham that he would have many
descendants and they would grow into a
mighty nation. What will happen to this
nation if Isaac is to be killed?”
The angels begged and cried,
causing an enormous uproar in the
heavens. Their tears leaked down through
the clouds and dripped into Isaac’s open
eyes facing the sky.
G-d turned to the angels and replied:
“Remember what happened when I
created Adam the first man? You said ‘He
will sin, he does not deserve any
advantages!’ I have put Abraham through
this test to show you the greatness of
man. Man has free will; when he chooses,
he can be even greater than angels!”
At that, G-d commanded Abraham to put
down his knife, telling him not to harm
even a hair on Isaac’s head, for he had
proven to the world that he was truly
deserving to be the father of G-d’s chosen
nation – the Jewish people!
G-d told Abraham and Isaacto turn around, where they found a ram
caught by its horns in a thornbush. They
took the ram and offered it as a sacrifice
to G-d in Isaac’s place.
G-d then made a promise to Abraham:
“There may come a time when your
descendants may be entangled in sin just
as this ram was entangled in the bushes.
Let them blow a Shofar (horn of a ram) on
Rosh Hashanah and repent, and in the
merit of the Akedah, I will forgive them!”
Every part of the ram that Abraham
sacrificed was used for a special purpose.
Its ashes were stored and formed the
foundation of the Great Altar that stood
in the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. Its ten
sinews were made into the 10 strings of
King David’s harp. The skin of the ram was
used for Elijah the Prophet’s belt. Its two
horns were made into trumpets. The left
horn was the trumpet that was sounded at
Mount Sinai when the Torah was given to
the Jewish people, and the right horn was
put aside to be sounded when Moshiach
comes!
Jacob & Esavborn
2088
2085
The Akedah
Sarahpasses away
2108Isaac and
Rebecca marry
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RebeccaIsaac was 40 years old when he married hisbeautiful wife Rebecca (Rivkah), a kind and modestwoman. Rebecca was a source of comfort to Isaac whose hearthad been heavy ever since the death of his mother three yearsearlier, and when they were married, three special blessingscame back to their household, which had been missing sinceSarah’s death:
1. The Clouds of Glory hovered over the entrance of thetent in her honor.
2. The Challot remained fresh the entire week, and thehousehold was blessed with wealth and prosperity.3. The Shabbat candles remained lit for a whole week,from Friday to Friday.
For twenty long years, Isaac and Rebecca didn’t haveany children, but G-d eventually blessed them with twin boys –Esav and Jacob! Esav became a hunter and a man of thefield, while Jacob was wise and learned, and dedicated his life toG-d and the Torah.
Isaac blessed both his sons, telling Jacob that he would be thehead of the Jewish people and all nations of the world wouldserve them and want to emulate them. Esav was told that if hisbrother’s descendants would not follow in the ways of G-d, thenEsav and his descendants would be able to overcome Jacob’sdescendants.
Isaac died at the ripe old age of 180 years and was buried in theCave of Machpelah, in the city of Chevron, right next to his wifeRebecca, and his parents Abraham and Sarah.
Eretz YisraelThere were many parallels in the lives ofAbraham and Isaac: Both devoted themselves to G-dand the Torah, both waited and prayed for many years to havechildren, both were great and holy men. But whereas Abrahamwas able to leave and re-enter the land of Israel, Isaac was too
holy to do so. He had been offered up as asacrifice to G-d, his eyes could only
21712123
Abrahampasses away
Isaac blesses his sons
18
see holiness, and therefore he needed toremain in the holiest place on earth – EretzYisrael!
The city where the Akedah took place wascalled... Jerusalem! And MountMoriah, on which Isaac was bound was theexact mountain on which the Holy Templeof Jerusalem would later be built by KingSolomon!
The Holy TempleThe Holy Temple (BeitHamikdash) was the holiest place onearth. The golden Menorah gave light tothe whole world, and the sweet aroma ofthe Ketoret (incense) that burned on thegolden Altar, perfumed the air for milesaround. It was the place where three timesa year Jews would gather from all over theLand of Israel to offer sacrifices to G-d andbe inspired and rejuvenated once again.The first Holy Temple which was built byKing Solomon and lasted for 410 years, wasdestroyed by Nebuchadnezzer and theBabylonians in the year 423 BCE. It was
rebuilt 74 years later, only to be destroyedafter 420 years by Titus and the RomanEmpire in 69 CE.
With the destruction of the second Temple,we could not go up three times a year, offersacrifices twice times a day, or be upliftedby the holiness that surrounded the place.Nevertheless, G-d told us to make ourselvesand our homes into ‘mini-Temples.’ We canpray three times a day. We can connect toG-d by learning Torah and doing HisMitzvot. We can make our homes intopeaceful, joyful places, and light up theworld around us by doing good deeds.The more good deeds we do, the closer weare to the time when G-d will bringMoshiach and build the third Holy Temple,uniting the world in peace and harmony!
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Isaacpasses away2207
Rebecca passesaway
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We all know about the brave Maccabeeswho fought against wicked KingAntiochus to free their people, but did
you know that a Jewish heroine also helped fightagainst the Assyrian-Greeks?
This is the story of Yehudit…Antiochus had appointed the wicked Helifornus as general incharge of preventing Jews from learning Torah and doingMitzvot, under penalty of death. Yehudit was a member of theroyal Hasmonean family and realized something had to be done!At a terrible risk to her own life, she secretly entered thegeneral’s tent at night, carrying a basket of heavy wine and saltycheese. Helifornus was surprised to see this beautiful Jewishwoman inside his tent, and when Yehudit offered him somedelicious cheeses, he was more than happy to eat his share.After drinking some of Yehudit’s rich, strong wine, the generalbecame very tired and soon fell fast asleep, snoring heavily.
Immediately, Yehudit picked up the general’s enormous sword,and swinging it over her head, brought it down heavily on hisneck! She hurriedly made her way out of the camp before thegeneral’s soldiers would find out what she had done. The nextday, the Jews went to battle against the Greeks. The enemysoldiers fled in terror and disarray when they saw their generalhad been killed. The Jews were victorious once again – thanks tothe efforts of Yehudit!
In honor of Yehudit’s brave deed, on Chanukah it is traditional toeat dairy products. It’s also customary to eat foods fried in oil onChanukah, so let’s combine the two to make: CHEESE LATKES!
DIRECTIONS1. In measuring cup, carefully check the eggs to make sure there
are no bloodspots.
2. Mix all ingredients together well in a large bowl. The mixtureshould be smooth, with no lumps.
3. Ask your adult assistant to help you turn on the stove.
4. Heat oil in the frying pain. Be careful! The oil is hot.
5. Using a large spoon, drop spoonfuls of batter into the hot oil.
6. Fry for 2 or 3 minutes on each side, until lightly browned.
7. Keep spooning the batter into the frying pan, adding moreoil as needed.
Chef’s Secret: Cheese Latkes taste great served ontheir own, or topped with sour cream, applesauce,even maple syrup!
3 eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup cottage cheese,drained
1 ½ cups flour
1 tspn. baking powder
½ tspn. salt
5 tbsp. sugar
1 tspn. vanilla extract
Oil for frying
INGREDIENTS TOOLS
KIDSKitchenin
the
LET’S MAKE
CHEESELATKES
Large mixingbowl
Measuring cup Large spoon Spatula Frying pan
Q†kœ¤n Ubhœ¥vO¡t hh v¨T©t QUrŠC:IrŠc‰sˆC vŠ h‰v̂b kF©v†J 'oŠkIg¨v
Ba-ruch Atah Ado-nai Elo-heinu Melech Ha-olamShehakol Nihiyo Bidvaro.
Blessed are You, L-ord our G-d, King of the universe, by whose word all things
came to be.
Don’t forget tomake the blessing
and enjoy!
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Nothing says Chanukah quite like the Dreidel game – so get out
those Dreidels and let’s do the twist!You’ve probably noticed the Hebrew letters on the sides of your Dreidel:
The letters on the Dreidel stand for the Hebrew words: Nes Gadol Haya Sham - “A Great Miracle Happened There!” What miracle? The miracle of Chanukah of course! The Dreidel game originated from Chanukah, when brave Jewish children would fool the Greek soldiers by pretending to play Dreidel together, when they were really secretly learning Torah!
If you land on NUN, you get nothing.
If you land on GIMMEL, you get everything!
If you land on HAY, you get half.
If you land on SHIN, you need to add a piece to the middle.
AT the beginning of each round, everyone puts a piece in the middle.Take turns to spin the Dreidel. The let-ter you land on could make it your lucky day!
INVITE your friends over for a fabulous, fun-filled Chanukah party with Dreidel, latkes and doughnuts for all!
EACH player begins the game with an equal number of coins, candies, cheerios, nuts or even chocolate coins!
9-letter word solution: ANTIOCHUS.
1-7 words:WARM
8-14 words:HEATING UP
15-20 words:HOT
21 plus:YOU’RE ON FIRE!
Answers below.
If you find:
HERE’S HOW TO PLAY:
The Shamash is the 9th candle on the Menorah which is used to light the rest of
the candles throughout Chanukah.
See how many words of 4 letters or more you can make from the letters shown in the grid.
Each word must contain the center letter.
Can you figure out the 9-letter word?
othing saayys Chanukah quite like the Dreiddeel game – so get out
Let’s Do The Tw st!
tthee
F nd the Shamash
- NUN - HAY
- GIMMEL - SHIN
NTC
USI
AOH
3
2
1
24 Answers to back page:1. Menorah has 9 flames and branches. 2. Girl finding “afikoman.” 3. Dreidel has wrong letter. 4. Boy spinning a pear. 5. Boydrinking oil. 6. Boy eating pancakes. 7. “Hamantashen” do not belong in this holiday. 8 Girl receiving “0” dollar bill for Chanukah Gelt.
Just 4
Fun
Chanukah is all about the miracle of the oil, and there’s no better way to commemorate it than by eating foods fried in
oil like doughnuts and potato latkes!
Can you help Mendy and Miri find the last remaining bottle of pure olive oil so the Menorah in the Holy Temple can be lit?
Be careful - watch out for those pesky Greek soldiers!
What did 0 say to 8?
Knock knockWho’s there?
Donut
Donut who?
Donut forget toclose the door!
Fry-day!
Oi Hunt!
What’s the best
day to eat latkes?
25
Nice Belt!
It was the first night of Chanukahand Rabbi Baruch of Mezhibuzstood in front of the Menorah
surrounded by his Chassidim (followers).The wind howled in the snowy night, butinside the brightly-lit house all waswarm and peaceful.
After lighting the first candle andchanting the blessings, the Rebbe andhis followers sat nearby to enjoy thelight of the Menorah. Suddenly, the flameatop the first candle disappeared intothin air!
The Chassidim turned to their Rebbe insurprise, but Rabbi Baruch told them tocontinue singing as normal, and timepassed.
All of a sudden, a loudnoise rent the air, thedoor burst open and aChassid from a distantvillage staggered in. Hisclothes were ripped, his face and armswere bruised and bleeding, yet his eyeswere full of joy.
The Chassidim hurried to warm him up,and eventually he sat down at the tablewith them and began:
“As you all know, I come every year frommy home-town to be with the Rebbe onthe first night of Chanukah. This journeytakes me several weeks, but this year, aterrible snow-storm was raging and itwas taking much longer than normal. I
was afraid I would not make it in timefor Chanukah, so I decided to travel byday and night.
Late last night I ran into a gang ofthieves who kidnapped me anddemanded that I surrender all of mymoney to them. I begged and pleadedwith them that I had no money, but theyrefused to listen.
After hours of interrogation, theybound me in chains and
threw me into a darkcellar, bleeding andexhausted, waitingfor their chief to
come and speak with me.
The chief arrived, and I tried as bestas I could to explain to him theimportance of celebrating Chanukah, andthe great joy of lighting the Menorah.My words seemed to make an impressionon him, for he released me from mychains and said:
“I sense you have much faith in G-d, anda great willingness to go to any lengthsto celebrate your holiday. I will let yougo – but be warned! Every step of theway is extremely dangerous. The forestteems with wild bandits and ferociousbeasts, no-one travels alone, especially
not at night. Ifyou manage to getthrough the forestunharmed, throw yourhandkerchief into the ditchbeside the signpost to your
Rebbe’s town. One of my men will bewaiting there to find it, and if youindeed survive, then I vow to disband mygang, and repent for my evil ways!”
Terrified, I set off into the dark, stormynight. I could hear the piercing howls ofvicious wolves, but I could see nothingat all in the thick darkness. Defenselessand terrified, I had no idea what to door where to go, but at that moment, asmall light appeared! The flickering flameadvanced and my horse followed, and allalong the way the wild animals fled fromus, as if the tiny dancing flame wasdriving them away.
We followed the flame all the way untilwe arrived at the edge of the town. I sawthe ditch by the signpost and threw myhandkerchief inside, after all – whoknows? Maybe these thieves will changetheir ways after all, in the merit of thelights of Chanukah.”
The Chassidim breathed a collective sighof amazement, and glanced back at theRebbe’s Menorah. Lo and behold, theflame had returned! The first light ofChanukah burned pure and strong,lighting the way as it always had, forJews around the world, throughout theages!
Terrified, l set off into the dark, stormy night. l couldhear the piercing howls of
vicious wolves...
that disappeared
The
Flame
28 A joint project of Merkos L’Inyonei Chinuch and Tzivos HashemMade possible by a grant from: The Rohr Family Foundation
See page 24 for answers.