How Should Noahides Celebrate Chanukah?
By Rabbi Moshe Perets and Rabbi M. Schulman
As a Noahide you may celebrate Chanukah .
You can very easily buy or make a menorah lamp. All that is needed is a sturdy base with holders for 8 + 1 candles. (The ninth candle is added, offset from the rest, which is used to light the main candles). Your intention for doing this should not be to fulfill the Rabbinical commandment, which is only for Jews, Rather, it should be for the practical objective to publicize the One G-d’s open miracles.
G-d’s miracles were seen in His physical and spiritual redemption of the Jews who were oppressed by the Greek empire. This happened in Judea in the second century BCE. Publicizing these miracles can be done lighting the Chanukiah candles in a place like a window sill. They should be able to be seen at night by people who are walking or driving by. This publicizing can also be done by speaking about this message to your family and other people. The objective is to educate and remind them about the truth and greatness of the One G-d.
Noahides may light Hanukkah candles with that intention. This can be done in the same manner as the Jewish custom (below), but without reciting the associated Jewish blessings.
This year, Chanukah starts Thursday evening, December 7th, 2023, at sundown.
The traditional way to light the Menorah on Chanukah
The 8 Chanukah lights should be candles or wicks in oil that begin burning at the same height.
They should be able to burn continuously for at least half an hour. That half an hour should be sometime after nightfall. (It should not be earlier than about 20-30 minutes after sunset, depending on the location.)
A proper menorah has 8 candle holders positioned in a straight row at the same height. Another holder for a “shamash” (“servant”) candle is positioned near but apart from the Chanukah lights (higher / outside the row). It is lit first, and it is then used to kindle the row of Hanukkah lights.
On the first night, one Chanukah light is kindled on the right side of the menorah. Then on the second night, add a second light to the left of the first and kindle the additional light first. On each night add another candle to the left, and light from left to right. This is done on each night for 8 nights.
The following statement, abridged for Noahides, is appropriate to be said after kindling the lights each night. (Other similar versions may be said as well.) “We kindle these lights to commemorate the saving acts, miracles and wonders which You [G-d] have performed in those days at this time through Your holy Kohanim priests, in order to offer thanks and praise to Your great Name for Your miracles, for Your wonders and for Your salvations.”
Noahides can mark the days of Chanukah in some other customary ways
This includes the option to recite certain Psalms (any of chapters 30, 33, 67, 91, 133), and reading and thinking about the history and messages of Chanukah. You can also attend the public lighting of outdoor Hanukkah menorahs that might be taking place near you during the festival (contact your local Chabad Center for more information about times and places). The following recitation paragraph, adopted from the Jewish traditional liturgy (version of the Ari Zal), can also be said at any time during all the days of Hanukkah (especially at the end of your prayer of thanks after eating a meal):
“We praise You, G-d, for the miracles, for the redemption, for the mighty deeds, for the saving acts, and for the wonders which you performed in those days, at this time: In the days of Matisyahu, the son of Yochanan the High Priest, the Hasmonean and his sons, the wicked Hellenic government rose up against the people of Israel to make them forget Your Torah and violate the decrees of Your will. But You, in Your abounding mercies, stood by them in the time of their distress. You waged their battles, defended their rights, avenged the wrong done to them, delivered the mighty into the hands of the weak, and the many into the hands of the few, the impure into the hands of the pure, the wicked into the hands of the righteous, and the wanton sinners into the hands of those who occupy themselves with Your Torah. You made a great and holy name for Yourself in Your world, and effected a great deliverance and redemption for the people of Israel to this very day. Then the Israelites entered the shrine of Your Holy House, purified and rededicated Your sanctuary, kindled lights in Your holy courtyards, and instituted these eight days of Chanukah to give thanks and praise to Your great Name.”
It’s a good thing to give extra charity during Chanukah to a proper charitable institution or cause, or to needy individuals.
Parents can give small gifts of money to their children on some or all of the days. This is useful for teaching them to put part of their money (for example 10%) into a charity box at home, to be given later to a proper charity.
Traditional foods for Chanukah
It’s especially customary during Hanukkah to enjoying some Chanukah recipes for oil-fried or dairy foods. The oil-fried foods are eaten to remember the miracles of the small jug of pure oil for the menorah in the Temple. The first miracle was that the jug was found after the Greek army retreated from Jerusalem. It had only enough oil to burn in the menorah for one day. Then miraculously, the oil burned for 8 days.
The dairy foods are eaten to remember the military victory of the Maccabee priests (Kohanim, descended from Aaron) over the Greeks. This is because Jerusalem was retaken by the Maccabee brothers through of the heroic act of Yehudit (or Yehudis), their righteous sister. (She came to the Greek general and fed him a feast of cheese and wine. When he fell asleep, she dealt to him the end he deserved, and the leaderless Greek army panicked and retreated.)
Brought By Rabbi Moshe Perets
Some Music for your Chanukah Evenings
Sources : Noahide Academy YouTube Channel and Ask Noah International
Rabbi Moshe Perets is the Founder and Executive Director of NoahideAcademy.org, the world’s largest Noahide informational website. He has established the Noahide Academy of Israel website under the non-profit organisation - אור לעמים - Light Unto the Nations since 2016. He accomplished his Rabbinical Studies at the Chabad Yeshiva of Brussels in 2011. He has a medical degree by the University of Louvain in Brussels as well a Masters in Biomedical Research by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He has for the past years focused on Psychotherapy and developed a new approach: Deep Soul Therapy. He is a spiritual mentor, teacher, coach, and healer who has helped facilitate profound shifts for hundreds of people around the globe. His teaching activities at the Noahide Academy allowed students from all over the world to live passionate, purposeful lives, connect more intimately with G-d, and reveal the hidden light and power of their souls. Rabbi Moshe Perets lives currently in Israel with his wife and 5 children.
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Thank you Rabbi for taking the time to make this video and to write this article. It was very informative! It is much appreciated! I also like your background in your video! B"H! 🙏👌💪