Catching Up

I've been remiss in wishing my Jewish visitors a Happy Chanukah this year, and here we are on the last day.  Please accept my warmest, while rather late, wishes for you and yours.

I could do no better than Rabbi Judah Freeman at JPFO, who writes:

Let us remember this Chanukah the lessons that the Maccabees taught us -- that we must be strict and stringent not just with regard to ritual observances like Chanukah candles but with regard to the protecting of the life of the innocent. The Maccabees waged a fierce battle against Greek incursion on Jewish sovereignty and taught the Jewish people that defense of life overrides Sabbath prohibitions. May we too remember that life is sacrosanct, that it is worth protecting, and that we must maintain the tools and ability to do so.

In modern times, here in the United States, that means that we must protect and preserve our Second Amendment rights -- the right to keep and bear arms in defense of self, in defense of family, in defense of property, and in defense of our religious and personal freedom. May we never see the day when we must take up our arms as did the Maccabees in defense of our religious way, and may we never see a time when we give up or lose the ability to do so.