Jewish Post, Indianapolis, Marion County, 10 December 2003 — Page 6

IN 6 December 10. 2003

Meditations enlighten during Hanukkah

By RABBI NANCY FLAM and RABBI SIMKHA WEINTRAUB

Hanukkah, the festival of lights, celebrates the rededication of the Temple after its ritual defilement by the Syr-ian-Greeks and the successful resistance of the Jewish people to assimilation. The holiday bolsters a sense of national pride in our unbroken heritage as well as an openness to miracles inspired by the story of the single cruse of oil that lasted for eight full days. In addition to the historical

WE HAVE THE KEYS TO YOUR NEXT LEASE

and national meanings of the holiday, one may find both universal and personal significance. The original Hanukkah celebrated a rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem, the structure that represented God's dwelling with the Jewish people. Our tradition teaches that our bodies, too, are temples, each one housing the spirit of God within. Hanukkah can serve as a time when we recognize the sacredness of our bodies, make attempts to cleanse them, and rededicate them to the service of God and humankind. Hanukkah comes at a dark time in the calendar, close to the winter solstice with its shortest day and longest night. At a point in the month when the moon is in hiding, it is, literally, the darkest time of the year. Our response, then, is to light candles against the dark in an effort to bring light back into the world. Because of its place in the calendar, Hanukkah provides an opportunity to meditate upon the metaphorical meaning of light and darkness in our individual inner lives. Light has long been associated with God and the realms of spirituality; darkness, by contrast, appears when our sense of God, mean-

RICK'S

ing, and purpose is eclipsed. For those who are struggling with illness or other serious life challenges, meditating upon the light can provide comfort, inspiration, and perspective. For this reason we offer eight kavvanot (meditations) about light to enhance the candle lighting ritual. We suggest that each night of Hanukkah we light the candles in support of Jews around the world - and those within our own communities - who are living with illness and are in need of spiritual strength. Let our prayers, tzedakah, and deeds of loving kindness spark hope and strength in us and our fellow Jews. (These kavvanot are to be used on the eight nights of Hanukkah. You may choose to dedicate each night in support of a different population of Jews living with illness [i.e., children, women, men, the elderly, those with chronic illness, Jewish genetic disease, mental illness, or chemical dependencies] or to focus all eight nights on a particular group or individual.) 1st Night "Blessed are You, Adonai our God, who makes light and creates darkness, who creates wholeness and fashions all things." (TheSiddur: Morning

BOATYAW)

LEASING TERMS FROM 6 to GO MONTHS QUALITY

vm n

Your Full Servlet Leiiumi Company Andrew Carr General Manatjer 6320 N. GUILFORD AVE. INDPLS. IN 46220 317-253-4415

| CELEBRATIN6 45 IEHR8 IN BUSINfl?!

Tis the season '• Holiday parties, luncheons"

& dinners

• Banquets, meetings &

special event planning • Reservations for

New Year's Eve accepted • Pnvate room for large &

small events available

The city’s most spectacular view with unmatched ambiance overlooking beautiful Eagle Creek Reservoir. Thnk of us for all vour needs when planning your special event Eliminate the hassle and leave the planning to us. Now accepting any size reservations. Fly in, drive in or arrive by boat 4050 Dandy Trail • Indianapolis , Directly across the street from Eagle Creek Airport (off 38th St.) Call 290-9300 for information

Blessings) 2nd Night "It is You who light my lamp: Adonai, my God, lights up my darkness." (Psalm 18: 29) 3rd Night "The act of kindling represents the spiritual enkindling of the human being; surely it is this route of growth and spiritual transformation that is the true reward to be received above." (Rabbi Judah Loew of Prague, quoted in The Lamp of God: A Jewish Book of Light, Freema Gottlieb) 4th Night "Everybody has a special light burning for him/her in the higher world, totally different from the light of every other person. When two friends meet in this world, their lights above unite for a moment, and out of the union of the two lights, an angel is born." (The Lamp of God: A Jewish Book of Light, Freema Gottlieb) 5th Night "We see that a candle, a wick and oil give forth light through diminishing. Likewise, the

man/woman who limits his/ her material wants to a minimum gives out spiritual light. (The Gerer Rebbe, quoted in The Hasidic Anthology, Louis Newman, translator) 6th Night "The spirit of the human being is God's lamp." (Proverbs 20:27) 7th Night "Do not rejoice over me, O my enemy! Though 1 have fallen, I rise; Though I sit in darkness, Adonai is my light." (Micah 7:8) 8th Night "The miracle of Hanukkah pierces to the essential tiny point of light within that is never obliterated. Externals may change, but inside the potential is always for the highest - a point to which one can always return, the eternal light within." (The Lamp of God: A Jewish Book of Light, Freema Gottlieb) Rabbi Flam is West Coast director of the Jewish Healing Center; Rabbi Weintraub is CSW program consultant for the Jewish Healing Center.

Steiman named 'Best of Indy'

Indianapolis Monthly's "Best of Indy" December 2003 issue has chosen Idrienne Steiman, owner of the Pilates studio The Integrated Body Inc., as the "Best of Pilates Instructor" in the city. Idrienne is grateful for the recognition, since she has been a Pilates devotee

and teacher of the method for 18 years. She is the certifying studio of Indiana for the PhysicalMind Institute. Steiman offers a free Introductory Mat class on Wednesdays at 11: 30 a.m. and 5:45 p.m., Thursdays at 9 a.m., and Saturdays at 8:30 a m.

Email us at: [email protected]

GH CLARK PLUMBING SERVICES CO INC Residential • Commercial

EMERGENCY I SERVICE

Mac si

NEW WORK • REMODEL • REPAIRS - SEWER A DRAIN CLEANING WATER HEATERS. DISPOSALS • GAS LEAKS PUMP SERVICE A REPAIR • SUMP PUMPS

Formerly Gltin H Oorit A Sons

PLC# 103841 ^ p SINCE 1960

•1414 E. ThompMn Rd ■

l "° d

m