Modern Miracles - Happy Chanukah!

“Arkady was the only Jew I ever shared a cell with in the gulag. We celebrated Hanukah together in Chistopol prison in 1980, lighting pieces of wax paper we had stashed away for months and hoping they would last long enough for us to say the prayers over them.” -- Natan Sharansky

This quote (thank you, Erica Brown) illustrates poignantly that miracles of Jewish existence aren't a matter of biblical history here in Russia. The fact that there is a vibrant and active Jewish community here in St. Petersburg today, after over seven decades of atheistic and deicidal Communism, is truly a modern-day miracle. This afternoon, a giant menorah was erected and lit outside of YESOD--a triumphant display and testament to the vibrancy of Jewish life in the face of the ultimate adversity.

As today's bright blue sky fades to darkness and we light the first candle of the menorah, Matt and I wish you and your loved ones a warm, bright, happy and healthy Chanukah from around the world. May the light of this year's Chanukah candles remind us to appreciate our freedoms as American Jews and give us the courage and strength to be a "light unto the nations."