Gary Cooperberg, December 24, 2008

When Chanukah comes, most American Jews compare it to Christmas.

They buy presents for their children and combat the Christmas tree with the Chanukah Menorah. In Israel things are different. Even the toy dreidle, the spinning top, is different. In America the four letters on the dreidle are Nun, Gimel, Hay, and Shin. Nes gadol haya sham, A great miracle happened there. Here in Israel we have Nun, Gimel, Hay and Pay, Nes gadol haya po, A great miracle happened here. That last word makes a world of difference.

After over two thousand years of Exile, most Jews have come to look at the Land of Israel as a distant fairytale entity which has little more than nostalgic significance. How sad that we have taken an ancient dream and relegated it to an almost meaningless symbol. Chanukah is one of many historical examples of how our G-d saved us from enemies who sought our destruction and enabled us to defeat them despite overwhelmingly superior odds. We are actually seeing a replay of this miracle in Israel today. The nations are gathering together to destroy the Jewish State, and our Hellenistic Jewish leaders are collaborating with them. Yet the spirit of the genuine Jew still lives and breathes in this country and will bring Divine intervention to save us from our enemies again.

I must admit that I had no particular plans as to how I would enjoy the holiday. My daughter decided to help me. She arranged for me and my son-in-law, together with three of my grandchildren, to join a field trip to the Judean Hills, where the Maccabees lived, hid and fought the mighty Greek army. Now I am beginning to show signs of aging, with a bit of arthritis and other aches and pains. I really did not look forward to mountain climbing. My back hurt and I was quite worried about falling. But when I watched my little grandchildren scampering up the same mountains that the Maccabees climbed I forgot about my pains. Here I was witnessing a personal example of Jewish destiny unfolding before my very eyes. These little ones, who speak only Hebrew, were climbing on their mountains. They were reliving their history in their homeland. They do not look at Jewish history as something distant and unrelated to them. On the contrary. They live and breathe the continuum of Judaism and are very much a part of it. To be a Jew who was born in Israel and who knows that this is his only country is to be living proof of the fulfillment of Jewish destiny. As a grandfather who was raised in the United States I could not help but thank G-d for the greatest Chanukah present of all…the dedication of my future generation to continuing Jewish destiny in the most meaningful way possible…to be a living part of it.

When we finally got home we were all exhausted from the walking and climbing. But the spirit of the Maccabees was with us. It connected us with our past and strengthened our faith in the future. My Chanukah miracle was to see the results of my decision to come home. The renewal of Jewish life in our ancient homeland may not be projected in the media as something positive and everlasting. But those of us who have the good fortune to watch our children and grandchildren renewing Jewish life and Jewish pride here are blessed with living proof of the undeniable future of our people and our reborn homeland. Jews who live in the Exile have no idea what they are missing and what they are denying to their offspring. Our future is indelibly connected to this Land, and the Exile is already beginning to spit us out. There is still time to come home with heads held high…but no one knows how much time is left.

Gary Cooperberg, a resident of the Jewish community in Hebron, Israel, is the founder and director of Project Shofar.

Copyright © 2008 Gary Cooperberg