Hanukkah: A reflection on time

On the evening of December 31, 2024, as multitudes ring in a new year, Jews around the world will be engaged in one of the singular rituals of their faith: kindling candles on the seventh of the eight evenings of Hanukkah. The lighting recalls the menorah, or candelabra, of the Temple in Jerusalem, and its purification by the Maccabees after its desecration by the Seleucid Greeks. According to the Talmud, only one ritually pure flask of oil remained, enough to last one day; but the flames fueled by this sacred...