The Percelay Museum of Temple Emanu-El, established in the early 1950s at the behest of Rabbi Eli A. Bohnen, z’’l, with the support of Emanu-El member Natalie Percelay, z’’l, houses a treasure trove of Jewish ritual objects.

A museum is not simply a venue to display interesting or visually pleasing objects. Ritual objects and artwork tell us about our history, our people, our collective past, dor l’dor. The synagogue is a Beit Knesset, a house of assembly; a Beit Midrash, a house of study; and a Beit T’fillah, a house of prayer. Our museum is a vital part in helping our synagogue to bring these visions into reality. In addition, the concept of hiddur mitzvah, “to glorify the mitzvah,” is achieved by enabling us to use the objects in the museum to “beautify the commandment,” and thus enhances our performance of the mitzvah. As a communal resource, our synagogue uses many of these ritual objects in our Jewish daily, monthly or annual observances, and in rituals of the Jewish life cycle. Contemporary, as well as more traditional examples of Judaica are scattered throughout the synagogue, as well as within the four walls of our museum. The Percelay Museum is a living entity, and its precious holdings are not mere artifacts, but vital, vibrant reminders of what was then, what is now, and what can be—as we grow from strength to strength. To schedule a visit to this jewel in Temple Emanu-El’s crown, contact the Museum Director at: museum@teprov.org.

Museum Musings

December 2025/Hanukkah 5786

The True Meaning of Hanukkah: Profiles in Courage

As we celebrate the Festival of Light, our minds are drawn to the tale of the most heinous Jewish civil war, the Maccabean Revolt. We are reminded of Judah Maccabee, the hero of the Hanukkah story, who in 164 BCE, with a hodgepodge of Jewish cohorts, galvanized by his ability to inspire religious enthusiasm, resisted and was able to overcome the powerful Greek Syrian army which was intent on destroying Jewish life and practice. Judah Maccabee’s guerrilla warfare strategy played no small role in his accomplishing this goal. Yet, over the centuries, when speaking of the Hanukkah story, we are reminded again and again of the miracle of the tiny cruse of oil, found after the devastation of the paganized Temple, which allowed the Temple menorah to be relit, and to continue to burn for eight days. The emphasis on the miracle, nes gadol hayah sham ("a great miracle happened here") is indicated by inscribing "nun, gimel, hey, peh," (the first letters of those words) on all dreidels, an icon of Hanukkah. Commentators have long agreed that the story of the miracle of the oil was created to deemphasize the militaristic facet of the Maccabean event, in order to shift the narrative from a combative incident to a spiritual moment in history. 

It is in that vein that my thoughts are drawn to another time in history, when Jews were the target of another heinous group, which was intent on destroying Jewish life and practice. Many years ago, I traveled to Poland with a group of students on The March of the Living, I was reminded of a different hero of Jewish history and how he responded to a similar treacherous situation. Janusz Korszak, the penname of Henryk Goldszmidt, 1878-1942, was born in Warsaw to an assimilated Jewish family. He studied medicine at the University of Warsaw and belonged to liberal Jewish literary and educational circles. He was drawn to the world of children, and was appointed director in 1912 of a new Jewish orphanage in Warsaw. There, he discovered the inner life of the child, and there he implemented his educational methods. Primary among them was that he wanted the world of the child to be understood and given respect. He felt that within each child burned a moral spark that could vanquish the darkness at the core of human nature. To prevent that spark from being extinguished, one had to love and nurture the young, make it possible for them to believe in truth and justice.

Janusz Korszak with his children (photo courtesy of Times of Israel)

When the Nazis appeared out of that darkness, with swastikas and whips, Janusz Korszak was prepared to shield his Jewish children, as he always had, from the injustices of the adult world. With the establishment of the Warsaw ghetto, in which the orphanage was located, he made efforts to ensure tolerable living conditions for the children. The house was run as in normal times, upholding the internal rules of conduct. Urged by Polish friends to move to the Polish side of town, he refused, unwilling to leave his children. In August 1942, he was expelled, and together with his children, he was sent to the Umschlagplatz, to be transferred to Treblinka. A witness who saw the last parade of the orphanage children described it to Emmanuel Ringlebaum, whose chronicles of the Warsaw Ghetto were discovered after the war, hidden in metal boxes buried in the ghetto floors: "It wasn't a march to the transport. It was an organized silent protest against the murder! ... All the children were arranged in fours, Korczk at their head. With raised eyes, he held the hands of two of the children and led the lines..." One might interpret this as passive resistance, yet his actions were anything but passive. According to AJ Heschel, “to be is to stand for." The courage Korzak displayed was just as rebellious--and as brave--as that of Judah Maccabee.

Hanukkah is not simply about commemorating the past, about celebrating battles victorious. Do remember the past, and the courageous faith demonstrated in the Maccabean revolt; yet even more, reflect on how this pivotal event in Jewish history is relevant  to us today. Elie Weisel said: "...the opposite of life is not death, it’s indifference. Because of indifference, one dies before one actually dies." The miracle of Hanukkah is in the yearning to rekindle our own burning moral spark, the light so eloquently expressed by Yanusz Korszak. One ancient hero and one modern: role models for the ages. Two profiles in courage. May the legacy of these heroes inspire a moral spark of courage, baziman hazeh, in our time.
 

--Ruth Page, Percelay Museum Director

The hanukkiah, pictured here, is from the collection of the Natalie and Abraham Percelay Museum of Temple Emanu-El. Created in 1998 by American artist, Jeffrey Schrier, it was crafted by hand of wood, brass and gold leaf. The arms holding the hammer represent the Maccabees (meaning "hammer.") The wings are a reference to Isaiah’s verse about Jews being saved on the wings of eagles. The candle holders are bullet casings, connoting the militaristic interpretation of Hanukkah. The top of the hanukkiah opens, holding within, a tiny brass dreidel.

Contributions to the museum are a special way to remember those you wish to honor on memorialize. Send your donations to the synagogue, Attention: Museum

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