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Chanukah's Secret to Greatness
Published:
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Visitor Comments: 62
(61) Anonymous, December 27, 2011 2:48 PM
(60) Anonymous, December 26, 2011 1:47 AM
you are great!!
(59) Anonymous, December 25, 2011 4:25 AM
(58) Mr and Mrs Jacobs, December 22, 2011 11:53 PM
We absolutely love you Rabbi Harary
(57) polina, December 22, 2011 8:01 PM
(56) Limor Kopel, December 21, 2011 9:37 PM
AMAZING!!!
(55) Elisabeth Soros, December 21, 2011 2:15 AM
Chanuka.s Secret to Greatness
(54) fred waltzer, December 19, 2011 5:56 AM
enlightening message!
(53) Ann Brady, December 19, 2011 3:16 AM
A Tiny Drop of Oil and One Spark
(51) Rabbi Howard Shub, December 18, 2011 4:50 PM
Negative comment about Alexander the Great
I am a great fan of Charlie Harary but I take exceptiont to his negative comment about Alexander the Great. Although the conqueror of a good part of the known world wished to Hellenize the world which he had conquered, he did not force the Jews to adopt Hellenization but instead encouraged them to observe the Jewish religion. In fact, in gratitude for this, Jewish boys for a certain amount of time were called "Alexander," in appreciation of Alexander the Great.
(50) Sonja Noullet, December 18, 2011 1:26 AM
(49) Joey, December 15, 2011 1:08 AM
(48) Jossef, December 13, 2011 5:14 PM
Very Inspiring
(47) Anonymous, December 1, 2011 5:32 PM
(46) Anonymous, December 8, 2010 2:41 AM
nice article
(45) , December 5, 2010 9:03 PM
Anonymous, December 18, 2011 5:38 PM
(44) Debbie, December 5, 2010 4:06 AM
beautiful message; the images are distracting and sometimes inappropriate, and therefore detract from the message. So many of your films are visually inspiring. This is like the old Sesame Street; if our visual attention span is limited to 3 seconds, how do we maintain our auditory attention for the 8 minutes it takes to process the message of greatness given here??
(43) Keren, December 2, 2010 5:59 AM
Truly amazing and inspirational!
(41) Anonymous, November 29, 2010 2:36 AM
Wow!
(39) , November 23, 2010 3:12 PM
Hebrew Letter Tops are Like Flames
Wonder if you have ever noticed the tops of all the Hebrew letters, pointing upwards. I don't know if our Rabbis have offered an explanation for this custom. But it suggests to me the idea that Hebrew words are like flames of illumination and energy. On Chanukah, we kindle the lights to renew our enthusiasm for Torah study...These letters also suggest to me the idea of learning Torah at night, by candle light. In the darkness of night, in our confusion, Torah lights the way. HAPPY CHANUKAH Harry@RochesterNY
(38) Anonymous, November 21, 2010 8:39 PM
(37) Anonymous, November 18, 2010 11:23 AM
Alexander and Holidays
Its brought down that when A. The Great came to Jerusalem the Kohen Gadol came out to the street in the Kohanic Garb. Alexander stopped in his tracks and declared that this was the man that he saw the night in his dreams before every battle which lead him to victory. He then as Ira stated never oppressed the Jews and enabled them to continue to live as an independent commonwealth. Secondly, It is for discussion in terms of the last holiday of the year - it is important to note that the modern state of Israel's symbol is indeed the Menora as minted on the money and legal emblems. While authorities disagree over the status of modern state, no-one can dispute the miracles that occurred and that are still occurring each and everyday in the homeland. I even noticed that one of the pictures used in the backdrop was from the post 6 day war after we were privileged to have won back Har Habayit
(36) Pessy, November 16, 2010 3:09 AM
Great message, greatly articulated
(35) Anonymous, November 14, 2010 7:50 PM
OBSESSED
(34) yael, June 17, 2010 5:32 PM
wow.
(33) Anonymous, February 1, 2010 7:56 AM
putting one last effort
Greatness is putting that one last effort when everything has been exhausted and letting G-d complete the work. It is like deciding and pushing oneself to light the last remaining candle in one's life when it is tempting to just settle in the darkness. As a sage once said that G-d's redemption comes suddenly when one gives an effort. Thank you for the message! G-d bless you!
(32) Ira S. Saposnik MD JD PhD, December 29, 2009 10:37 PM
correction to Alexander the Great and the Jews
I am a PhD in military history. This was an excellent presentation by Mr. Harary, but I am aware, through my training, of things he may not have known. A source of this was also Aish.com OWN site about Alexander and the Jews. Like Napoleon, Alexander NEVER disturbed or persecuted conquered peoples for the obvious political reason that a happy people is far better than disloyal, possibly 5th column . While he personally MAY have disliked Jews and everyone else as well, he did absolutely NOTHING himself, and this portrayal of him is inaccurate. It was his one of his three lieutenants, Antiochus of the Seleucids, who started all the trouble. No doubt at all about Alexander. My position is supported by both the Talmud and Josephus. This in no way is a revering of this man, but an historical fact. Inevitably, history shows that when a people is subjugated, resistance follows, and is always ultimately successful. (examples..the Nazis in Europe, The USSR after WW2, etc) But the point is that Alexander himself had absolutely nothing to do with Chanukkah any more than Napoleon did with the Dreyfus case in France. I welcome any discussion that elucidates more on this topic. Again, just do a search, Alexander and the Jews, and you get this website which explains exactly what happened. What Mr. Harary represents is not correct on this point, but absolutely correct on those that followed him.
(30) Anonymous, December 25, 2009 5:26 PM
Fantastic
(29) esther b, December 21, 2009 8:22 PM
(28) Yael Gruen, December 21, 2009 1:09 AM
(27) Anonymous, December 19, 2009 9:56 PM
Brilliant
(25) Tzvi, December 18, 2009 5:55 PM
(22) Susan, December 17, 2009 10:26 AM
I am so incredibly moved
What an unbelievably powerful video. I cannot wait to share this with my students and colleagues. It is not only the content which is superb ; the delivery by Charles Harary is exceptional. Thank you for the amazing inspiration to continue lighting the flames of potential with whatever oil is available--and to recognize the true meaning of "greatness."
(20) Anonymous, December 16, 2009 11:19 PM
wow
(19) gb, December 16, 2009 7:14 PM
this was beautiful.
(18) Chana Leah, December 15, 2009 11:01 PM
(14) Gedalyah, December 15, 2009 10:40 AM
"nichts ist gutes - ausser man tut es!"
(13) Anonymous, December 15, 2009 6:48 AM
I really liked this!
(12) Anonymous, December 15, 2009 3:19 AM
(11) Anonymous, December 14, 2009 3:05 PM
wow!!!
(10) Anonymous, December 14, 2009 4:01 AM
(8) Anonymous, December 13, 2009 11:04 PM
Inspiring message that talks to our soul !!
Thanks for this beautiful message, that relates to what we best have in ourselves, that is, our love and potential to release it to benefit the world and all living things in it.Create light to transform this world in an ever better one that is worth living in, is certainly our most noble mission, be us religious people or only philosofical humanists. It's always rewarding hearing these inspiring messages full of wisdom and hope we get in this site. Congrats !!!
(7) Anonymous, December 13, 2009 7:47 PM
Thank you, I love it!
(6) Marie F., December 13, 2009 7:16 PM
Great job!!
(5) elisabeth, December 13, 2009 5:41 PM
Inspiring
(4) ruth, December 13, 2009 3:24 PM
the i is a candle
A beautiful message about life, about light. Maybe we shouldn't be seeking greatness at all, because it's not in greatness as a goal that we achieve, but in being true to the beauty within our souls, to BE a Macca BEE. It's the NO BELL prize, and we're all capable of being the bells, the I AM in chime. God wrote this story, and we're all knocking on those doors. And as you say, take the opportunity that's here for us all, because THAT's the miracle, the candle in the darkness, all of us, and what we can do, for each other, this most beautiful world.
(1) Anonymous, December 13, 2009 1:49 PM
You are the jolt we all need!! Simple to the point.
About the Author
Charlie Harary
Charlie Harary is the First Vice President of Residential Operation and Legal Counsel of RXR Realty, a multi-billion dollar Real Estate Company based in New York.
He received his J.D. from Columbia Law School where he was awarded the James Kent Scholar and the Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar. Mr. Harary received a B.A. in Political Science and Communications from Queens College, where he graduated magna cum laude.
Mr. Harary is an active volunteer in many community organizations, most notably the Orthodox Union. At the Orthodox Union, he sits on the Board of Directors and Executive Board and is the Founding Chairman of the Young Leadership Cabinet. Charles is also the Chairman of New York NCSY.
Mr. Harary is a prolific speaker and has traveled all over the country and abroad speaking for a plethora of organizations on a variety of topics to audiences of various sizes - particularly for affiliate organizations, various schools, synagogues and college campuses.
For more, please visit www.CharlieHarary.com







