Dear Friends:

     It is far more than likely that when our ancestors experienced the miracle of Hanukkah, they could not have imagined at all a world anywhere near as fuel reliant, oil-dependent, and environmentally reckless as our own today.  True, the miracle of their day was one of oil conservation.  However, it was olive oil that was conserved and, as our tradition has it, it was conserved by God due to a temporary shortage of a supply of this resource (due to the Macabee's war against the Greek Assyrians) that was otherwise plentiful.

     Our ancestors could not have dreamt of a world in which whole nations would be dependent upon other nations for the energy necessary to facilitate their citizens' transportation to and from work everyday. They could never have considered the possibility of a world in which humanity's use and abuse of energy, garnered from this world's natural resources, could threaten our planet's future and thereby jeopardize the very future of all that lives.  Our ancestors most certainly could not have imagined a world in which humanity would have mastered the sciences of Chemistry and Physics to the point that it could bring instant destruction to the entire world, whether with intention or in error.

     Remarkably, however, as we celebrate this year the ancient miracle of Hanukkah, this is just the world in which we live.  We do live in a world that our ancestors could never have imagined at all.  We face enormous challenges, most of them of our own making, that threaten our very existence.  And yet, at the same time, the seeds of the miraculous are evident in the extraordinary advancements that one finds among efforts to cultivating alternative sources of energy  to minimize harm to our environment and reduce our dependency upon those who detest all that our society stands for.

     Consider that the most dangerous of all alternative sources of energy, hydrogen, while most often associated with those who would use it in a most sinister and destructive manner, is also considered by many experts to be the most promising alternative source of energy.  It is indeed true that the raw power of God's world provides for us opportunities to realize the miraculous or to bring about the greatest horror ever known to humanity -- all with the same resources!  Yes, we have challenges born of human neglect, complacency, and of our fondness for immediate convenience, however, these challenges present to us today an opportunity to unite as a civilization around common solutions to diverse concerns as never before! We can provide for our children the miracle of a future in which their world can be both free of threats from Terrorist-States who use oil as blackmail, and protective and even regenerative of its natural environment as it produces and consumes energy.

     Today we can dream of such miracles. But we must do much more than dream of them.  It is in our power to change the world.  Once upon a time, God might have intervened to keep the seven-branched lamp in the ancient Temple lit by conserving our ancestors’ olive oil for them in a most miraculous manner.  Today, God turns to us, imploring us to recognize that our environmental and geopolitical causes are united when one considers that the miraculous solutions to both are the same and that it depends upon all of us, whatever our differences, to effect the miracle upon which our future depends.

     I dream of a new legend of Hanukkah.  I dream of a Hanukkah in which God lights lamps celebrating the way God's children came together to save their world from destruction and to bring about a future rich with promise.  May we all unite to do so in service of the highest virtues of human freedom and liberty and with great care for a natural world entrusted to us by our Creator.

     May this year's celebration of Hanukkah usher in an era of common cause heretofore unknown to humanity, and no doubt, eagerly awaited by the One who causes the sun and stars to shine their light upon us.

 Hag Urim Sameah -- May you and yours be blessed with a joyous Festival of Lights,

 Rabbi Isaac Jeret
Spiritual Leader