Politicsholidays-2014HanukkahPolitics

Obama: 'May This Hanukkah Embolden Us To Do What Is Right'

Obama: 'May This Hanukkah Embolden Us To Do What Is Right'
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Senior Editor, Breaking News, HuffPost

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US President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama sort toys and gifts for the Marine Corps Toys for Tots campaign on December 10, 2014 at Bolling Air Force Base in Washington, DC. The gifts were donated by staff of the presidential office. AFP PHOTO/MANDEL NGAN (Photo credit should read MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images)

President Barack Obama sent a message with wishes for a happy Hanukkah on Tuesday, the first day of the Festival of Lights.

Obama wished for this Hanukkah to "embolden us to do what is right."

Read Obama's full statement on Hanukkah below:

Over the eight nights of Hanukkah, Jews across America, Israel, and the world will remember an ancient triumph of freedom over oppression, and renew their faith in the possibility of miracles large and small.

Even in the darkest, shortest days of winter, the Festival of Lights brims with possibility and hope. The courage of the Maccabees reminds us that we too can overcome seemingly insurmountable odds. The candles of the Menorah remind us that even the smallest light has the power to shine through the darkness. And the miracle at the heart of Hanukkah – the oil that lasted for eight nights instead of only one – reminds us that even when the future is uncertain, our best days are yet to come.

May this Hanukkah embolden us to do what is right, shine a light on the miracles we enjoy, and kindle in all of us the desire to share those miracles with others. From my family to yours, Chag Sameach.

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Before You Go

Hanukkah 2014
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Poland's chief rabbi Michael Schudrich, left, lights the first candle celebrating the beginning of Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of lights, on Grzybowski square in Warsaw, Poland, Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2014. (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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The first flames of a a giant Hanukkah Menorah in front of a Christmas tree at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany, Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2014 burn at the launch of the eight-day Jewish Festival of Lights, named Hanukkah. (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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The first lamp of a large scale menorah lights in front of the Brandenburg Gate on December 16, 2014 in Berlin, Germany. (credit:Carsten Koall via Getty Images)
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German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere attends the ceremony to light the first lamp of a large scale menorah in front of the Brandenburg Gate on December 16, 2014 in Berlin, Germany. (credit:Carsten Koall via Getty Images)
(05 of15)
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STUTTGART, GERMANY - DECEMBER 16: Jews gather in front of the Neue Schloss for the lighting of the Menorah on the first night of Hannukah on December 16, 2014 in Stuttgart, Germany. (credit:Alex Quesada via Getty Images)
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STUTTGART, GERMANY - DECEMBER 16: Jews gather in front of the Neue Schloss for the lighting of the Menorah on the first night of Hannukah on December 16, 2014 in Stuttgart, Germany. (credit:Alex Quesada via Getty Images)
(07 of15)
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Jewish men gather to mark the start of Judaism's festival of light, Hanukkah in central Moscow on December 16, 2014. (credit:DMITRY SEREBRYAKOV via Getty Images)
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Jewish men gather to mark the start of Judaism's festival of light, Hanukkah in central Moscow on December 16, 2014. (credit:DMITRY SEREBRYAKOV via Getty Images)
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Mayor of the French city of Beziers Robert Ménard (L) lights the first of nine lights on the Hanukkah Menorah as president of the Beziers Jewish society Maurice Abitbol (R) looks on at the start of the Jewsh festival of Hanukkah at the city hall in Beziers on December 16, 2014. (credit:PASCAL GUYOT via Getty Images)
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WASHINGTON, DC DECEMBER 15: Pre-schoolers look at the candles on the menorah, the day before Hanukkah starts, as Adas Israel Congregation's education director Rabbi Kerrith Rosenbaum talked about the tradition on December 15, 2014 in Washington, DC. (credit:The Washington Post via Getty Images)
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CHICAGO, IL - DECEMBER 08: A menorah adds to the festive season at Daley Plaza's Christkindlmarket on December 08, 2014 in Chicago, Illinois. (credit:Chris McKay via Getty Images)
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Vice President Joe Biden speaks after the national menorah was lit during a ceremony marking the start of the celebration of Hanukkah, on the Ellipse near the White House in Washington, Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2014. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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JERUSALEM - DECEMBER 16: The menorah of the Hanukkah, nine branched candelabrum is lighted in front of the Western Wall as the sun sets during the Jews' Hanukkah Feast after, in Jerusalem on December 16, 2014. (credit:Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
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JERUSALEM - DECEMBER 16: Jewish men pray in front the holy Western Wall as the sun sets during the Jews' Hanukkah Feast after the menorah of the Hanukkah, nine branched candelabrum lighted, in Jerusalem on December 16, 2014. (credit:Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
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The first lamp of a large scale menorah in front of the Brandenburg Gate lights after it was lights by Rabbis Yehuda Teichtal and German Interior Minist Lothar de Maiziere on December 16, 2014 in Berlin, Germany. (credit:Carsten Koall via Getty Images)
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