Burning Out or Being the Light? Menorah Lighting Shares Hanukkah Spirit in Ferndale
(Crystal A. Proxmire, Dec. 16, 2015)
Ferndale, MI – On the final day of Hanukkah folks from a variety of backgrounds gathered on the lawn of the Kulick Community Center in Ferndale to witness the lighting of the giant Menorah and hear words of wisdom from the founders of Jewish Ferndale.
Chana Finman who founded Jewish Ferndale along with her husband Rabbi Herschel Finman, shared a story to illustrate the meaning of the holiday.
“Everybody here tonight is a Shamash,” she said. “The Shamash is the most important part of the Menorah… the middle candle that means don’t be afraid to lead… We should never be afraid to stand up for what’s just, for what’s right, for what’s honorable according to the ideals of our forefathers, and our fore-mothers.
“One of the things about my mother… She was a woman who was part of the era where women were becoming ‘more’ and accepting more challenges. She went to the University of Michigan here and she eventually became a director of a women’s crisis center in the Philadelphia area.
“She taught all the different counselors who helped women in crisis. One of her [areas of] expertise was about burnout. …It meant that people who were trying to help other people sometimes felt unappreciated and they would burn out. Teachers, spouses, parents, all kinds of people in the helping fields, police even, nurses, doctors, would suffer from burnout. So my mother’s expertise was to teach how not to get burned out.
“There was a nurse in a big city hospital… a big candidate for burnout. In the seminar everyone was given a piece of paper to make a doodle of themselves. This woman who worked in the ER… she raised her hand and said she had never suffered from burnout… My mother said to her, “But what did you doodle?’
“Most people would draw something really depleted. This nurse made a picture of a candle. She identified herself as a candle.
“What is so beautiful about a candle? You take that Shamash and you light the other candles, does the Shamash’s flame diminish in any way, shape or form by you lighting another candle? No. It doesn’t. It remains the same. And you can keep lighting, as we will in a moment, all the lights and the Shamash, the real leader, never becomes diminished.
“Why? Because she sees herself, or he sees himself, as light. And light cannot diminish no matter how much you share it. Why? Because it’s essential. It’s the epitome of soul. It’s a speck of God…
“It’s our job to see ourselves as a Shamash all year round so we can continue to give to others and never feel depleted, only more full of light.”
The event was an illuminating celebration of light, community and faith. Members of the Ferndale Community Concert Band made lovely music as people enjoyed snacks and Chazzano Coffee. Jewish Ferndale provided booklets to help explain Hanukah, as well as coins made of chocolate called Gelt.
In addition to Chana Finman’s story, State Representative Robert Wittenberg joined Rabbi Finman in a traditional prayer as the Menorah was lit, and the Rabbi had some sentiments of his own to share.
‘The way Hanukkah works is that the first night you light one candle, the second night you light two, until tonight we light all eight,” he said. “This tells us that everything we do involving Yiddishkeit has to be increased. Living Yiddishkeit requires continuous growth. There is always room for enriching one’s spiritual life.
“Another unique feature of Hanukkah is that its required to be seen on the outside. Even a person lighting it at home has to do it in such a way that it affects the outside. This conveys that… everyone who lights a Hanukkah candle do not forget about those around us.”
Rabbi Finman also announced that plans were moving along for a Jewish Community Center to be in Ferndale, with hopes that by this time next year it will be up and running. Learn more about Jewish Ferndale at https://www.facebook.com/jewishferndale/.