Are you a Lamplighter?

A parable told by Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson:

The Hasid once asked:  "Rebbe, what is a Jew's task in the world?"
The Rebbe answered, "A Jew is a lamp-lighter on the streets of the world.  In olden days, there was a person in every town who would light the gas street-lamps with a light he carried at the end of a long pole.  On the street corners, the lamps were there in readiness, waiting to be lit; a lamp-lighter has a pole with a flame supplied by the town.  He knows that the fire is not his own, and he goes around lighting all the lamps on his route."

The Hasid asked:  "But what if the lamp is in  a desolate wilderness?"
The Rebbe answered:  "Then too one must light it.  Let it be noted that there is a wilderness, and let the wilderness feel ashamed before the light."

"But what if the lamp is in the midst of a sea?"
"Then one must take off one's clothes, jump into the water and light it there!"
"And that's a Jew's mission?"

The Rebbe thought for a long moment and then said, "Yes, that's a Jew's calling."
The Hasid continued: "Rebbe, I see no lamps."
 The Rebbe answered: That is because you are not a lamp-lighter yet."

The Hasid asked:  "How does one become a lamplighter?"  The Rebbe replied:  "One must begin with oneself, cleaning oneself, becoming more refined, then one see the other as a source of light, waiting to be ignited.  When Heaven forbid, one is crude, then one sees but crudeness; but when one is noble, one sees nobility.:

When I read this parable, I immediately thought about individuals I had met in my life who were indeed lamplighters.  Not all of them were Rabbis or even professional teachers of Judaica.  They were individuals who taught not through words but by the example of their lives, for Lamplighters have passions that are translated into righteous actions.

 When lamplighters see a homeless person, a hungry individual, or a lonely soul their pockets open, their hands extend, and their doorways widen to accommodate those who are living in darkness. They go out of their way to teach skills that will make someone employable or offer jobs to those who lack the means to support themselves.   

Lamplighters understand that when a member of the community suffers a loss through the death of a loved one that it is as if the light is temporarily snuffed out.  They do not think twice when a shivah minyan is announced.  They know that their presence will help restore the light.  They lend an ear to hear reminiscences, they lend a shoulder to offer support to those bowed low.

Lamplighters teach their children.  They do not leave it up to others to ensure the transmission of values. Knowing the difference between right and wrong are part of their daily instruction.  They know that a child’s natural curiosity should not be put off or somehow ignored.  They explore ideas with their children, expose them to the ways in which Judaism helps make the mundane holy, and strive to create a shalom bayit, a peaceful environment in which their children can grow not only physically but also psychologically and spiritually.

Lamplighters recognize that the world may have large numbers of its inhabitants living in darkness, but that does not mean hope should be dismantled.  When tyrants threaten freedom, when lies permeate the media, when hatred is promulgated as if it were truth, lamplighters speak out.  They might not write letters to the editor or even stand behind a soapbox on the corner of downtown, but they do try to influence by speaking to their friends, acquaintances, and children…hoping that the message of light will filter its way into wider and wider circles.

Lamplighters do not forget the collective past of the Jewish people, nor ignore the collective future either.  They recognize that Israel has been and is an integral part of our very essence.  They know that when young men and women participate in the Israel Defense Forces, they are not just protecting their own families, they are protecting every Jew who has been in need of a safe haven and every Jewish community that has faced adversity. 

Chanukah is often called the Festival of Lights.  It is not just the glow of the menorah that should be providing the light in this world.  It is our own personal light that must continue to glow in the darkness even when Chanukah is over.  In the words of Peter Yarrow, “Light one candle for the strength we need to never become our own foe, Light one candle for those who are suffering the pain we learned so long ago, Light one candle for all we believe in, that anger not tear us apart, Light one candle to bind us together, with peace as a song in our heart.” 

The real power of Chanukah is in the light that we can spread by recognizing the light of G-d in our lives.

Shabbat Shalom and Chag Chanukah Sameach.