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Kiddush Hashem

By: Mrs. Sima (Cohen) Blaustein

Vayar adonav ki Hashem ito v’chol asher hu oseh Hashem matzliach b’yado” “And (Yosef’s) master saw that Hashem was with him and that Hashem brought him success in all his endeavors”.
How do we know that Yosef credited Hashem with all of his successes? Rashi comments, “Shem Hashem shagur be’piv”-“ the name of Hashem was constantly on Yosef’s lips”. Though we are aware that all of our achievements can be directly attributed to siyadta deshmayah (“help from G-d”), we often mistakenly attribute our successes to our own efforts. Certainly, we cannot be successful if we do not put in a sufficient amount of effort, but our effort together with Hashem’s help, is ultimately what ensures our success. Yosef had the name of Hashem “shagur b’piv”. According to Rabbi Meir Twersky, this meant that Yosef attributed every triumph to Hashem. He established himself as a true maamin beHashem- a true believer in G-d, and in so doing, was consistently creating a kiddush Hashem.
  
This idea is timely during the month of Kislev, for we know that the Greeks sought to create chillul Hashem or the absence of G-d in daily life, by forbidding the practice of the fundamental mitzvot that remind us of Hashem’s constant presence in our lives, only to replace it with worship of one’s own body and achievements. Ultimately, the forces for kiddush Hashem were victorious, and we established a chag that focuses mainly on pirsumei nisah, our glorification of Hashem’s name throughout the world.
This year, when lighting Chanukah candles, let us all focus on making a commitment to act in a way that brings kiddush Hashem to the world.