Not Quite the Same…
Parshas Tetsaveh opens with HaShem’s instructions to Moshe about the lighting of the Menorah in the Mishkan. This Menorah was not quite the same as the one you light nowadays on Chanukah:
A Chanukah Menorah has 8 candles (plus one Shamesh), but the Menorah in the Mishkan had a total of 7 lights, 3 on each side and one in the middle – all the same height.
As mentioned in Parshas Terumah, the Menorah was made of one solid block of pure gold, but a Chanukah Menorah can be made from any material, whether it is gold, silver or simple tin. You can even make a no-frills “Potato Menorah”! You can make a miniature size Menorah or a giant Menorah. You can also decorate it just about any way you want… just use your imagination!
But HaShem wanted the Menorah in the Mishkan to have specific measurements and shape it with the exact decorations He wanted – “Decorate the branches of the Menorah with 3 shapes: 22 cups, 11 buttons, and 9 flowers,” Hashem commanded Moshe.
In addition, a Chanukah Menorah can be lit with either candles or oil. This was not the case in the Mishkan.
