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Light One Candle?

The Skewer question: What can we learn about Jewish communities from the way
they light Chanukah Candles?
The Aperitif: Traditions in a Time Capsule.
The Entree: Text Study- Ner Ish UBeito, One light for a man and his household
Tea with Nana: Make your own Minhag!
Supplies Needed: Paper and pen, Worksheets (for younger students), Text sheets,
Chanukia and Candles, matches.

The Skewer question: What can we learn about Jewish communities by the way they
light Chanukah Candles?
Aim: In this session, students will discuss and understand the social and communal
values that inspire Chanukah traditions from Jewish communities around the world.

The Apritif: Traditions in a Time Capsule.

Hello, welcome! Chag Sameach. In this session, we are going to be talking about family
traditions, with a special emphasis on Chanukah!
To begin, lets all think of a family tradition that you commemorate in your family. It
could be anything from watching Monday night football together to different
minhagim or customs you may have around certain Jewish holidays etc. Close your
eyes. Imagine you are there, with your family, performing this tradition together.
What does it look like?
How does it feel?
Who is there?
Here is your challenge:
Prepare a letter you will include in a time capsule. Provide directions to whomever finds
your note so that they will be able to relive and reenact your family tradition. Include in
the capsule supplies needed to perform your traditions. In the letter try to include ideas,
feelings and questions that might help your far-off family member to revive this tradition.
Younger students can use the attached sheet to prepare the letter. Students are invited
to share their traditions with the larger group.
Notes to Facilitator: You can welcome students into the room with a Chanukia lit in
the background. During the introduction, you can encourage a quiet meditation as
students think back to a family tradition and provide the worksheet to younger
students who need help thinking of what to write in their time capsule. The aim here is
to allow students to describe in as much detail as possible what goes on during these
family traditions, how people feel and what important value or values can be
understood from these traditions.
As you transition from the Aperitif to the Entre, you can ask students: What inspired
these traditions? What values influenced your parents or grandparents or great
grandparents to start these traditions?

The Entree: Text Study- Ner Ish UBeito, One light for a man and his household
Thank you so much for sharing your beautiful family traditions with us. It was interesting
to see the differences and similarities between our familial traditions, to understand the
reasoning behind traditions and sometimes not to understand at all but to feel secure in

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the need to continue a celebrating or recognizing a family tradition. Many of these
traditions were inspired by different values we just spoke about: hope, family unity,
charity, honoring our elders, remembering how it was to be a slave, community and
more. Now we are going to delve into a short text study that provides us with another
example of traditions that we perform (or celebrate) during the festival of Chanukah:
Text sheets will be handed out and the facilitator can begin by asking one of the
students to read the short excerpt from the Talmud out loud.
Our Rabbis taught: The precept of Hanukkah [demands] one light for a man and his
household
-Talmud Bavli, Shabbat Tractate, Daf 21B
What does this teaching mean?
After a short discussion on this question, students will divide up into Hevruta or study
partners and will read the second text on the sheet and discuss the commentary by
Rabbi David Yossef on this Talmudic passage.
Questions for the Hevruta:

How does Rabbi Yossef understand the passage Ner Ish Ubeito-One light for a
man and his house?
What traditions came out of this interpretation? How did this happen?
What values do you think inspired these traditions? Why was it so important for
these communities to keep these traditions in the way that they did?

... :
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Our Rabbis taught: The precept of Hanukkah [demands] one light for a man
and his household
-Talmud Bavli, Shabbat Tractate, Daf 21B

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According to this halacha, lighting one candle on each night of Hanukkah is

sufficient. But all communities added splendor to this mitzva and took it upon
themselves to light one candle on the first day, two candles on the second, and
so on, until the eighth day in which (we) light eight candles. And the Sephardic
and Mizrachi custom is that one family member lights the candles and by this,
all the members of the family have fulfilled their obligation; whether there are
many or few, whether they are present at the time of the lighting or not.
-Rabbi David Yossef, Sidur Yichveh Daat, Machon Yichveh Daat, Jerusalem 2005

Note to Facilitator:
After the initial reading of the excerpt from the Talmud, students will discuss what they
think Ner Ish Ubeito means. The text comes from a discussion in the Talmud about
how people should light Chanukah candles, and this text is interpreted in different
ways depending on the Jewish community.
(In Ashkenazi communities, the text is used to support the perspective that says that
individuals within the same household should light one Chanukia EACH, while in most
Sephardic communities, it is understood to mean that each household needs only to
light ONE Chanukia per night.).
In the commentary by Rabbi David Yossef*, there are two traditions that communities
altered: One is adding a candle for each day that is a custom in most communities
Ashkenazi and Sephardi) and the other one is lighting one Chanukia per house in
Mizrachi and Sephardi communities. Discussing the process of creating and adding
minhagim (customs) to Jewish law is a great way of connecting students and giving
them a sense of ownership and influence regarding their Jewish identity.
The values behind each way of lighting can be discussed. Lighting your own
Chanukia can empower you to take on more mitzvot and can strengthen a personal
connection with Judaism, while lighting one Chanukia per family emphasizes family
unity and community. Invite students to express their own interpretations of what
each way of completing the Chanukah mitzvah of lighting the Chanukia means or
symbolizes.
*Please note that the Bios of the Rabbis are included on the source sheet.
After the group returns from Hevruta, the facilitator can ask the group: What values do
you think inspired these traditions? Participants can share their interpretations and
understandings. Then the group can discuss the question in bold below or read the
following text by Rabbi Haim David Halevi.
Questions for discussion of Halevi Text:

What custom does Rabbi Halevi describe?

What is the value behind the tradition?
What do you think about creating and adding traditions to Jewish Holidays?

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In Sephardic communities, the custom is for the head of the household to light the
candle of the day and the rest of the candles that are added for splendor, are given
to the children who have reached school age, to light. The extra candle, the

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shamash can be lit by smaller children who have not started their education to
inspire them with a love of mitzvot and to teach them.

-Makor Chaim by Rabbi Haim David Halevi

Tea with Nana: Make your own Minhag!

Now that we have studied how Sephardi Jewish communities developed and created
traditions of their own, it is our turn. In groups of 4, choose a Jewish value that is
important to you. It could be Hachnasat Orchim or hospitality, it could be
Bikur Holim or visiting the sick, or any other Jewish value you can think of that
you feel you can connect to Chanukah. Now, try to think of a unique way to
commemorate this value during Chanukah. You can reenact the tradition you develop
using art, drama, food, blessings, song etc. (For younger kids, the facilitator will provide
ideas for Jewish values on the board: Tzedakah, Bikur Holim, Hospitality, Derech Eretz,
Heroism or bravery (Gevura) studying the Torah, Loving Israel, Being made in the image
of God, Humility (Anava), Dignity (Kevod Habriot) etc.)
Note to Facilitator: It is important to go around to each group to make sure that they
have chosen a Jewish value and to ask questions that will lead them to think about
ways of celebrating their value through tradition. Ideas you may want to give
students: If they are excited about the value of giving tzedakah, they could start a
tradition where they give tzedakah to eight different organizations, during Chanukah,
one for each night. Here the lights represent charity and compassion for those in
need.
The facilitator can also provide students with a short summary of the story of
Chanukah depending on the placement of this lesson plan within other curricula. This
may help students connect with Chanukah values such as religious freedom or the
triumph of few over many, values that inform many of our Chanukah traditions.
After each group presents their Minhag, the facilitator can end with a question: How
does it feel to create a tradition? How can we connect our homemade traditions to
those who came before us and to future generations?

Light One Candle?

How do Jewish traditions teach us about Jewish values?
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... :

Our Rabbis taught: The precept of Hanukkah [demands] one light for a man and his
household
-Talmud Bavli, Shabbat Tractate, Daf 21:2

.
. , , ,
, ,
, , ,
.

,)2005( ", ,' ' ,

According to this halacha, lighting one candle on each night of Hanukkah is sufficient.
But all communities added splendor to this mitzva and took upon themselves to light
one candle on the first day, two candles on the second, and so on, until the eighth
day in which (we) light eight candles. And the Sephardic and Mizrachi custom is that
one family member lights the candles and by this, all the members of the family have
fulfilled their obligation; whether there are many or few, whether they are present at
the time of the lighting or not.
-Rabbi David Yossef, Siddur Yichveh Daat, Machon Yichveh Daat, Jerusalem 2005

Rabbi David Yossef-is the Rabbi of Har Nof in Jerusalem and the Head of the Yeshiva Yichveh Daat also
in Jerusalem. He is on the managing council of the Shas political party and is the 9th son of Rabbi Ovadia
and Margalit Yossef.

How does Rabbi Yossef understand the passage Ner Ish Ubeito-One light for a man
and his house?
What traditions came out of this interpretation? How did this happen?
What values do you think inspired these traditions? Why was it so important for these
communities to keep these traditions in the way that they did?

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In Sephardic communities, the custom is for the head of the household to light the
candle of the day and the rest of the candles that are added for splendor, are given
to the children who have reached school age, to light. The extra candle, the
shamash can be lit by smaller children who have not started their education to
inspire them with a love of mitzvot and to teach them.

-Makor Chaim by Rabbi Haim David Halevi

Rabbi Haim David Halevi (1924-1998) was born in Jerusalem to parents who immigrated from Turkey. He
was a rabbi, philosopher and arbiter of Jewish law. Rabbi Halevi served as the Rabbi of Tel Aviv-Jaffa
and as the Chief Sephardic Rabbi of Rishon LZion. He won the Israel prize for Rabbinic literature.

Younger Students can fill out this sheet as a way of brainstorming what will go
into their Tradition Time Capsule.

My Tradition Time Capsule:

Describe one of your favorite family traditions:
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
List three things you feel when you practice this family tradition:
1. ______________
2. ______________
3. ______________
What supplies do you need to perform this tradition?
1. _________________
2. _________________
3. _________________
4. _________________
Draw a representation of your family celebrating this tradition: