The mitzvah of having a routine lighting of the menorah in the sacred Mishkah (Tabernacle) is mentioned after the holy days cycle is presented in chapter 23 of Leviticus. Why the juxtaposition?
The mitzvah of having a routine lighting of the menorah reminds us that every day is a day to connect with the Divine and focus our energies on mitzvot and living out Jewish values.
More than the light has to remain burning a fire must burn in every Jewish generation’s heart and soul to be keepers of the flame. Our Ner Tamid, eternal lamp, is the symbol of the commitments we make to Jewish life both as a community and as individuals. IThe lamp above the ark comes to replace the Menorah in the Temple; in every synagogue an Eternal Lamp reminds us to come to the Torah for the firey glow of its teachings and then to spread the light of Torah into the world.
As Maimonides said, “A small amount of light may banish a large curtain of darkness.”
Please come early to synagogue when we take the Torah to the table
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Bolton