Garbage Hanukkah was created from discarded hand-crafted items I found in a large plastic bag on 18 June 2017 and saved, a tiny plastic menorah found among other personal effects in the drawer of a discarded piece of furniture and broken tiles and plaster, all found on 12 November 2017.

It is intended to celebrate Hanukkah, honor the resilient Jewish spirit and take a strong stand against rising anti-Semitism in the world. Accordingly the selected colors and imagery are meant to provide powerful symbolism.

First, the menorah with its “Star of David” and the blue coloration symbolize the enduring nature of the Jewish people and Hanukkah that began after the Temple [and]… all the oils therein [had been found defiled]… [W]hen the [Temple was recovered by the Maccabees after they defeated the Assyrians], they made search and found only one cruse of oil which lay with the seal of the High Priest, but which contained sufficient [oil] for one day’s lighting only; yet a miracle was wrought therein and they lit the lamp therewith for eight days… [Babylonian Talmud, Shabbat 21b] It was this transformative miracle – the survival of the Jewish Faith that ushered in the global monotheistic age and helped make Christianity and Islam possible.

Second, the flowers symbolize G-d’s passionate love for “His chosen people” that is epitomized by Shir Hashirim (Song of Songs) written by King Solomon who ruled Israel from 967-931 BCE – a love that radiates out to each and every being of creation regardless of religion: He specifically “chose you… because of love” [Deuteronomy 7:7-8] and “…loves [us] because of who we are, not despite who we are.”[1]

Third, the interwoven illuminating yellow and orange colors are meant to provide a powerful reminder of the numerous persecutions Jews faced from pre-Exodus slavery (prior to 1440 BCE), through the Holocaust, an unspeakable evil that extinguished 6 million innocent lives (1933-1945 CE), to decry anti-Semitism that still plagues today’s 21st century CE world and to illustrate the fact that eternal hope remains. The yellow is a stark reminder of the yellow stars Jews were forced to wear during the Holocaust so the phrases “Never forget!” and “Never again!” are indelibly etched into the heart and mind of every person in this and every future generation to come.

The orange is meant to provide hope and joy since the light will never be extinguished based on Isaiah 49:6: I will make you a light for the nations that My salvation be unto the ends of the earth. Even if Judaism at only 0.2% of the world’s population (14 million)[2] appears endangered, it will survive such that evil will never prevail no matter how dark or uncertain the days may seem based on God’s everlasting love demonstrated by Maimonides the Laws of Chanukkah, ch. 3 Halachah 3: It is because of… these eight days (based on the first Hanukkah, c. 165 BCE)… days of joy and praise… candles are lit… to show and reveal the miracle. The Hanukkah miracle reaffirmed God’s eternal promise to the Jewish people: So said the Lord, Who gives the sun to illuminate by day, the laws of the moon and the stars to illuminate at night… If these laws depart from before Me… so will the seed of Israel… [Jeremiah 31:34-35] As this is not possible, Judaism will always survive. This has been demonstrated throughout the ages. Each time it appeared the Jewish people were on the brink of extermination, they were restored in the spirit of Jeremiah 16:15: I will restore them… – an uplifting fact proclaimed by the words of the Israeli folk song Am Yisrael Chai:

Let’s dance and cheer…
Wave your banner up high…
We’re alive, we’re alive[!]

In every generation…
God will save us…
We’re here for eternity[!]

Also, as anti-Semitism continues to rise across Europe, in the USA, Australia, South America, the Middle East as well as in virtual space (e.g. the Internet) and genocide persists against peoples of diverse ethnicities, religious beliefs (that include Christianity and Islam) and backgrounds, it is more important than ever each and every one of us stand with the oppressed and display our cultural, ethnic and religious identity without fear. Consequently, the smiling face exhorts us to be happy of who we are and to never feel compelled to conceal our identity and/or suppress our individuality.

Last, to address the challenge of a recent YouGov poll that found nearly 40% of Jews in the United Kingdom feel the need to hide their faith “for fear of an anti-Semitic attack”[3] – the spiritual resistance of Jews held in concentration camps and ghettos during the Holocaust should serve as an inspirational example. Despite severe privations, dehumanization, torture and murder by their Nazi captors, imprisoned Jews refused to let their spirit be broken. Anne Frank (1929-1945 CE), famous for her “Diary” remained defiant to the end declaring, “We will always remain Jews!”[4] It was the same spiritual resistance shown by Yehudit (Judith c. 2nd Century BCE), a daughter of Yochanan (Johanan), the Jewish high priest at the time who bravely declared when the Israelites were about to surrender just prior to the Maccabees’ victory that led to the first Hanukkah – “If you truly have faith in G-d, you must never give up[!] [D]o not lose hope for a moment[!]”[5]

Finally, from my Christian perspective, Hanukkah is in essence my holiday too and I display a menorah in solidarity with the Jewish people. They have the God-given inalienable right to practice their faith freely and hold their beliefs without acts of discrimination, persecution and conversion attempts (the latter, though appearing innocent is still a misguided, anti-Semitic act of religious intolerance) being directed towards them.

Therefore I conclude with a poem I wrote. It adopts the perspective of the persecuted intended to defy evil with the hope hate, discrimination, and persecution can someday be ugly blights of the past.

I am it

To ensure light is not extinguished by darkness – I am it,
To ensure hope prevails over despair – I am it,
To ensure virtue and love endure evil and hate, I am it.

Jew, Christian, Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist – I am it,
Black, White, Red, and Yellow – I am it,
Male and female, unborn, young and old – I am it,
Straight, LGBT & Q – I am it,
Whatever the persecuted and oppressed trait is – I am it.

As we are the work of the same, one God of love –
Share the same DNA, have the same aspirations,
Live and breathe equally priceless lives and
Yearn to be who we are free of consequence –
We must stand as one and so for my part, I am it.

To every Jewish person, their family and friends, and people of goodwill of other faiths who embrace religious tolerance, may your hearts and homes be filled with peace, love, cheer and light during this Hanukkah season and always.

___________

[1] Meir Y. Soloveichik. God’s First Love: Theology of Michael Wyschogrod. First Things. November 2009. www.firstthings.com/article/2009/11/gods-first-love-the-theology-of-michael-wyschogrod

[2] The Global Religious Landscape. Pew Research Center. 18 December 2012. www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscape-exec

[3] Nigel Nelson. One in three British Jews consider leaving the UK fearing hate crime, poll finds. Mirror. 20 August 2017. www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/one-three-british-jews-consider-11016650

[4] 8 Quotes From People Who Lived Through the Holocaust. Virtual Jerusalem. 22 November 2017. www.virtualjerusalem.com/culture.php?Itemid=16568

[5] The Story of Yehudit. Chabad.org. 29 November 2017. www.chabad.org/holidays/chanukah/article_cdo/aid/103019/jewish/The-Story-of-Yehudit.htm