Today we celebrate Rosh Chodesh Kislev and welcome the month of miracles and Chanukah lights.
Chanukah is more than a commemoration of "They tried to annihilate us, G-d saved us, now let's eat". The military campaign between our people and the ancient Hellenist Greeks was an expression of an even greater battle of cultures.
The Hellenists were all about the empirical and the human physique. In their culture the ultimate champion was one who excelled in a run swim or jump. To be sure, The Torah is also for living a healthy lifestyle but as a means to an ends. Judaism champions the spirit (there is something SO Jewish about the special Olympics). The ancient Coliseums make a sightly tourist attraction, the G-dly spirit of the Torah endures forever.
The materialism versus meaningfulness battle still rages in both the individual and the world. The antidote to the pursuit of materialism is study and the pursuit of something higher. At Chabad Beekman-Sutton we have opportunities for all ages and stages to explore the G-dly and spiritual, I personally recommend our weekly Rohr JLI class our most popular to date. To sign up please click here
Good Shabbos!
Rabbi Shmuel Metzger