Candles (nerot) — or any type of clean-burning oil lamps — are an important feature in the celebration of Shabbat and Jewish holidays. The main function of candles is to provide light in the home at night in order to enhance the festive atmosphere. Candles are also key to Temple and Chanukkah rituals.
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The Temple Menorah
TANAKH
The original menorah in the mishkan — the Israelites’ portable Temple in the desert — was a seven-branch candelabra, with a small cup at the top of each branch in which pure olive oil was burned every night. The Torah records God’s very detailed instructions to Moses regarding its design.
Eternal Lamp
TANAKH
The precedent for the ner tamid, the “eternal light,” found in modern synagogues is the light from the menorah of the mishkan — the Israelites’ portable desert Temple — and the Temples. The book of Exodus narrates God’s instructions to Israel to light it with pure oil of beaten olives.
A Delight of the Sabbath
HALAKHAH
One is supposed to delight in the Sabbath, and among the mitzvot (commandments) through which we delight is lighting the Sabbath candles and enjoying their light throughout the evening. The great twelfth-century rabbi, Rambam, explains the great necessity of this light.
Chanukkah Candlelighting Conundrums
TALMUD
The ritual of lighting Chanukkah candles recalls the miracle of the holiday in which a small container of oil burned for eight days, eight times longer than expected, upon the rededication of the Temple after the military victory over the Greeks. The Babylonian Talmud in tractate Shabbat discusses the best way to light these festive candles.
Who Creates the Lights of Fire
MISHNAH
The ritual of havdalah (literally, “separation”), which marks the transition from the end of Shabbat back into the week, requires a blessing over a candle. The Mishnah, the first codification of Jewish law, from the early third-century land of Israel, records a disagreement over the wording of this blessing.
The Reward for Kindling Lights
TALMUD
Even though elsewhere the rabbis assert that one should not perform mitzvot (commandments) with the reward in mind, that did not stop them from claiming that there are indeed rewards, even for lighting Sabbath candles. The Babylonian Talmud in tractate Shabbat enumerates the rewards for observing many mitzvot, including the lighting of Sabbath candles.
A Metaphorical Lamp
TANAKH
Candles serve as useful metaphors for how the Torah enlightens and illuminates. The biblical wisdom book of Proverbs offers some early examples of this phenomenon.
A Chanukkah Flame, Not a Bonfire
TALMUD
What qualifies as a chanukkiyah — the special candelabrum used for lighting Chanukkah candles — and may multiple people light from one vessel? The Babylonian Talmud in tractate Shabbat discusses these questions and how multiple people may be permitted to light from one dish of oil, apparently a makeshift chanukkiyah.
Sabbath Candlesticks, Poland 19th century Gift of Arthur M. and Alice Chase in memory of Ida Chase (née Torchin) and her family, The Jewish Museum, New York.
Sabbath Candlesticks, Poland 19th century Gift of Arthur M. and Alice Chase in memory of Ida Chase (née Torchin) and her family, The Jewish Museum, New York.
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