Chanukkah: The Holiday of For, the Holiday of That and
the Singular Holiday of “Thanks”
In his most famous work, the Pachad Yitzhak, Rabbi Yizhcok Hutner (1906-1980), points out that the term, hodaah, usually defined as “thanks” ( הודאה or להודות ) has two separate meanings -- appreciation and acknowledgement.
Hodaah is an expression of appreciation of goodness received, as in the morning tefilah of modeh ani. There we thank God for the blessing received-- restoring life in order to face the new day. R. Hutner calls this hodaah al ha’avar, על העבר --thanking for a kindness that has been done--it is a thanking for.
Hodaah is also an acknowledgement. it is an acknowledgement or admission of the position of the other side. When I realize the validity of your position, I am modeh to it. Hodaah is also an understanding one’s place in the world. It is an internalization of who we are in relation to others, whether it be realizing our place as Jews, as Americans, as parents, as siblings or realizing who we are as subjects of God. It is an acknowledgement that.
In the Al Hanisim prayer which is recited on Chanukkah, we are told the reasons that Chanukkah is established. We are told that Chanukkah is here, to praise and thank God’s great name, להודות ולהלל לשמך הגדול. While many holidays are there to praise God, Chanukkah is the only one that specifically is set in order to exercise hodaah.
Chanukkah gives thanks for - thanks for the miracles of the military victory and for the miracle of the oil.
And Chanukkah is a holiday of acknowledging that -- it is a moment for us to acknowledge the blessings of our relationships. It is a moment where the Syrian Greeks had to admit and that we, Am Yisrael, are a people of blessing, and strength. And it is a time where we acknowledge our relationship with the caring, compassionate and powerful God.
Maybe this is why the Al HaNisim prayer is placed in the midst of the modim section of the Amidah. In that section we thank God על חיינו - for our lives and it is there where that acknowledge God שאתה הוא ה' אל-הינו- that you are our God.
As we celebrate this Chanukkah, may we not only spend time in thankfulness for the miracles in our lives as individuals and as a nation, but may we take moments to realize the goodness of the acknowledgment--being open to the ideas of others and articulating the awareness of the many blessed relationships in our lives that make us who we are.
Chag Urim Sameach.
the Singular Holiday of “Thanks”
In his most famous work, the Pachad Yitzhak, Rabbi Yizhcok Hutner (1906-1980), points out that the term, hodaah, usually defined as “thanks” ( הודאה or להודות ) has two separate meanings -- appreciation and acknowledgement.
Hodaah is an expression of appreciation of goodness received, as in the morning tefilah of modeh ani. There we thank God for the blessing received-- restoring life in order to face the new day. R. Hutner calls this hodaah al ha’avar, על העבר --thanking for a kindness that has been done--it is a thanking for.
Hodaah is also an acknowledgement. it is an acknowledgement or admission of the position of the other side. When I realize the validity of your position, I am modeh to it. Hodaah is also an understanding one’s place in the world. It is an internalization of who we are in relation to others, whether it be realizing our place as Jews, as Americans, as parents, as siblings or realizing who we are as subjects of God. It is an acknowledgement that.
In the Al Hanisim prayer which is recited on Chanukkah, we are told the reasons that Chanukkah is established. We are told that Chanukkah is here, to praise and thank God’s great name, להודות ולהלל לשמך הגדול. While many holidays are there to praise God, Chanukkah is the only one that specifically is set in order to exercise hodaah.
Chanukkah gives thanks for - thanks for the miracles of the military victory and for the miracle of the oil.
And Chanukkah is a holiday of acknowledging that -- it is a moment for us to acknowledge the blessings of our relationships. It is a moment where the Syrian Greeks had to admit and that we, Am Yisrael, are a people of blessing, and strength. And it is a time where we acknowledge our relationship with the caring, compassionate and powerful God.
Maybe this is why the Al HaNisim prayer is placed in the midst of the modim section of the Amidah. In that section we thank God על חיינו - for our lives and it is there where that acknowledge God שאתה הוא ה' אל-הינו- that you are our God.
As we celebrate this Chanukkah, may we not only spend time in thankfulness for the miracles in our lives as individuals and as a nation, but may we take moments to realize the goodness of the acknowledgment--being open to the ideas of others and articulating the awareness of the many blessed relationships in our lives that make us who we are.
Chag Urim Sameach.
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