At this time of year people of all different faiths are celebrating the beginning of winter. We all have customs which include lighting candles at this dark time of year so as to beckon the sun and moon to brighten and warm our days and nights.

Whether we celebrate the winter solstice or Christmas or Hanukkah or Kwanzaa, we are all coming together as family and friends to try to bring “holiday cheer” or love, kindness and generosity into our lives.

Hanukkah commemorates the battle the Maccabees waged about 2200 years ago in Israel. They waged a war against Syrian invaders who had taken over Israel and desecrated the sacred Temple in Jerusalem by erecting statues and sacrificing pigs to their gods.

Today, Hanukkah marks our celebration of the few over the many. It celebrates the victory for religious freedom, for minority rights, for the right to be different.

We remember how important it was then to protect the value of freedom and tolerance and we remind ourselves today how critical it is to protect the values of pluralism and diversity. All people have the right to express their differences.

Pluralism is an important value for the Jewish people and for Israel. Israel still struggles for minority rights as a Jewish homeland.

Israel is a democracy in an area of the world where democracy is not practiced. Israel is the only country in the Middle East where women have equal rights and where women can choose how they wish to live and dress.

Israel is the only country in the Middle East where there is an annual gay pride parade and where gay marriages are accepted by the nation’s Supreme Court. Unlike her neighbors, Israel protects all of her citizens’ rights to religious freedom, including the one and a half million Muslim, Christian, Bahai and Druze Israelis. Israel protects freedom of the press and has a literate population who has access to many newspapers and also total access to the Internet. These are some of the critical factors which indicate a modern day democratic and free society.

The Jewish people are still finding it necessary to assert the truth of documented history including the Holocaust. We must not allow others to distort or deny historical facts because of shame or because of agendas which include hatred, chauvinism, anti-Jewish or anti-Israel prejudices.

The recent conference in Iran for Holocaust deniers shows us how deeply anti-Jewish some of the Muslim world is. It is a sad statement that the president of Iran constantly denies the Holocaust and threatens to destroy the state of Israel.

During this Hanukkah season (the Hebrew word means dedication), may we dedicate ourselves to the causes of freedom and tolerance for all, especially our minorities. May we overcome the tide which we are witnessing worldwide by providing equal rights to women, Jews, gays and lesbians and to people of color. May we light our candles so that all people will be able to live in freedom and dignity, without fear of threats from others, all of us living with hopefulness and in peace.

Additionally, may the lights we use to illuminate our homes be environmentally friendly compact fluorescent light bulbs. Our greatest concern as a planet needs to be global warming. It sure doesn’t feel like winter out there this December! If only we were a planet at peace, we could concentrate all of our energies on keeping our planet cool! In the words of the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life,

“The Jewish community has an intrinsic responsibility to respond to the daunting environmental problems confronting us and future generations. Jewish tradition, values, and teachings speak of our moral obligation to protect creation. In particular, we need to address the global climate change crisis which well may be the issue of the century.”

So while we are in our warm homes this winter, let us all do what we can to generate our warmth and our light in as green a way as possible.

Happy holidays! May 2007 be a year of change so that peace becomes the path for all people and so that green becomes the color of our lives as global citizens.

Rabbi Barry Krieger is the rabbinic facilitator for the Hillel organization at the University of Maine in Orono. He may be reached via bkrieger56@aol.com. Voices is a weekly commentary by Maine people who explore issues affecting spirituality and religious life.