The Chanukah Oil That Was Lost and A Prayer That Changed Everything

“We had been married for eight years and still had not been blessed with children,” Uri begins his remarkable personal story. “The long wait was an extremely difficult test, filled with heartbreaking disappointments, sadness, and despair. We tried many different segulot (spiritual remedies), including drinking juice made from pomegranates that had hung in seven sukkot, eating bitter almonds and mandrakes, and traveling to the graves of tzaddikim.

“Among the segulot I heard about was one that was complicated and almost impossible to carry out. The segulah was to light the Chanukah candles with olive oil produced from the first pressing of each olive, prepared by an observant Jew without electricity or any electronic equipment. In other words, olive oil pressed in an ancient-style olive press, just as it would have been in the time of the Temple. This precious oil was then to be mixed with ordinary olive oil.

“I did not know whether to believe in it or not, but I decided to try. I still had no idea how I would accomplish it, but I was certain of one thing: I would not involve my wife in the process. Our situation was already painful enough for her. If I failed to obtain the oil, the disappointment would be devastating.”

The Search for a Special Flask of Oil

After extensive inquiries, Uri was given the name of a man named Elimelech who might be able to produce the oil according to these requirements.

“He was a Jewish man of about sixty who lived alone in a small cabin overlooking the Judean Hills. His home had no telephone, electricity, or running water. He lived on vegetables he grew in his garden and raised goats, sheep, and chickens, which provided him with eggs, milk, wool, and other necessities.

“I traveled to see him. My story touched his heart, and he agreed to help us. He asked only that I bring him ten kilograms of olives.”

It was no simple task. Purchasing such a small quantity of olives from a wholesaler was difficult, and reaching Elimelech’s home required an off-road vehicle. But Uri was prepared to do whatever he could for the dream he and his wife had been waiting so long to fulfill.

“Producing even a small amount of oil entirely by hand took almost a full day. We crushed the olives with special tools and separated the oil from the liquid produced during the crushing process. The work was exhausting.

“At one point I found myself wondering, ‘What am I doing here, for Heaven’s sake? What haven’t we already tried in order to have a child? Well, I’ll add this effort to the list as well.’”

Toward evening, Uri finally returned home.

“I was exhausted, filthy, and tired, but happy. In my possession was a tiny bottle containing a dark yellow-green liquid. I carefully hid the precious bottle in the display cabinet behind the menorah.”

The Precious Oil Disappears

That evening, Uri excitedly approached the cabinet, opened its glass doors, and searched for the bottle.

It was gone.

“I moved the silver items from side to side, hoping somehow I would find the precious oil. I searched everywhere, but it simply wasn’t there.

“My wife noticed me searching and asked what I was looking for. A little anxiously, I told her that I couldn’t find the bottle with the red cap that I had put in the cabinet.

“She answered casually, ‘Oh, that? I saw a bottle filled with cloudy liquid. It looked like spoiled oil that had been sitting in a falafel shop’s fryer for two weeks. I thought it had gone bad, so I poured it down the sink. Why are you looking for it? What was in that bottle?’”

Uri was stunned.

“All that effort had been for nothing. I felt as though I was going to explode. I almost told her everything I had gone through to produce that precious oil.

“At the very last moment, I managed to stop myself.

“I knew I had no one to be angry with. She certainly hadn’t poured out the oil maliciously. And if I told her what she had unknowingly thrown away, our home would feel like Tisha B’Av that evening instead of the first night of Chanukah.”

Summoning a strength he still does not know where he found, Uri went over to prepare the wicks and fill the cups of the menorah with ordinary oil.

“I remained silent, mostly because I was afraid that if I started talking, the words would come pouring out uncontrollably. I did not want, God forbid, to hurt my wife.

“‘I’m going out. I’ll be back for candle lighting,’ I managed to say, and I rushed out of the house.”

“Not the Oil. Only You”

Uri wandered through the city streets. Around him, people hurried to purchase items for the holiday, while the warm aroma of sufganiyot drifted from the shops.

“I walked quickly without knowing where I was going. I was confused, sad, and completely shattered. Eventually, I entered a small Yemenite synagogue.

“‘Nobody here knows me,’ I thought.”

And there, Uri finally broke down. He cried like a small child.

“Why, Master of the Universe? What do You want from me? What did I ask for? Just one little bottle of olive oil. One flask of pure oil. I wanted a segulah for children. Give me children! The key to life is in Your hands. Only You can save me. Not Elimelech. Not the oil. Only You.”

It was a prayer born of a broken heart.

“I didn’t know how I would return home and face yet another unbearably painful evening. But suddenly I had absolute clarity: it was the Holy One, blessed be He. Only Him. There is no one else.”

A Different Kind of Chanukah Candle Lighting

The hour was growing late. Uri left the little synagogue feeling renewed and hurried home.

“I may be lighting tonight with olive oil from the supermarket,” he thought, “but I have no doubt that this candle lighting will be accepted Above.”

He returned home with a firm decision.

“Fervent prayers from a tearful heart, greater care in observing halachah, beautifying mitzvot, and working on my character can only help. From now on, I decided, the time I had been spending pursuing segulot would instead be devoted to acts of kindness. Surely this is what Hashem wants from me.”

Less Than a Year Later, Twins Were Born

Uri concludes his story with the words everyone had been waiting to hear.

“The story has a happy ending. Less than a year later, twins were born to us. ‘These are children filled with the light of prayer,’ our relatives and friends often tell us.

“I nod and smile. Only the One Who sits in Heaven knows what I mean.”

The Special Power of Prayer Beside the Chanukah Candles

It is also worth recalling the teaching attributed to the Arizal that at the time of lighting the Chanukah candles, the Thirteen Attributes of Divine Mercy are revealed, as during the Ten Days of Repentance, and that one should pray to merit receiving this Divine compassion.

Our Sages also teach that the first half hour following the lighting is an especially auspicious time for prayer. Let us use those precious moments beside the Chanukah candles to pray sincerely from the depths of our hearts, and may we merit to witness great salvations and miracles.

Courtesy of the Dirshu website.