Chanukah begins this coming Wednesday evening, December 25th. Here is some fun Chanukah trivia: The last time the first night of Chanukah fell on Christmas Day was in 2005. Chanukah and Christmas won't overlap again until 2035 and then not again until 2054.
Unlike Christmas, Chanukah is not a major Jewish holiday. It is considered to be a minor festival on our Jewish calendar. It is not mentioned in the Torah. We learn about Chanukah from the four Books of Maccabees, which are not included in either the Jewish or Christian bibles, rather, they are part of the Apocrypha. The Apocrypha are a collection of books that are considered to be similar to biblical literature, and have value and meaning, even though they are not part of our biblical canon.
The Hebrew word “
chanukah” means “dedication.” Historically, our holiday is a celebration of religious freedom – freedom of the Jewish people’s right to practice our own religion in our own country in safety and security, peace and harmony. We celebrate the rededication of our Temple in Jerusalem which had been desecrated by the Greco-Syrian army in 165 BCE. The actual ritual celebration evolved long after the initial events themselves took place, to become a “Festival of Lights.” With that understanding in mind, the traditional greeting for Chanukah is: “
Chag Urim Sameach – Wishing you a happy Festival of Lights.”
(For a more complete description of Chanukah – please see the list of Chanukah Resources section below.)
There are those who still threaten to fracture our world today. As we are all too well aware, every day, we either witness or read about incidents of xenophobia (fear of foreigners or “the other”), antisemitism, hatred, violence, war, bloodshed, refugees with nowhere to go, hunger, poverty, homelessness, racism. The list of maladies afflicting us seems never-ending.
Yet, Chanukah is all about hope. The flames on the candles remind us that all it takes is one spark to light a flame: a flame that leads to justice, a flame that leads to healing and wholeness. One flame in the darkness can bring great light and great warmth to a very dark place. One spark of righteous deeds can inspire to do the same.
This Chanukah, this Festival of Lights, as we kindle our Chanukah candles beginning this coming Wednesday, I hope that we can dedicate ourselves anew to bringing peace, justice, hope, and light to our broken world. Let each of us be that spark or flame that ignites others to join in repairing our world: “
ani v’atah n’shaneh et ha’olam” – together, you and I can change the world.
We’ll work together to keep the flame alive, as Peter, Paul and Mary sang: “
Don’t Let the Light Go Out .”
Please join us for our special Chanukah dinner, Chanukah service and candle lighting next Friday, December 27th. See below for details and registration information.
Beginning this Wednesday evening, TBS will light our large
chanukiyah (menorah for Chanukah) in the Old Towne Orange Circle at 6:00 pm each night of Chanukah (except for Friday, Dec 27th when we will celebrate Shabbat and Chanukah at TBS). We invite you to join us for our blessings, songs and mini-
sufganiyot (filled donut holes).
Wishing all of you a
Chag Urim Sameach – a light-filled and joyous Chanukah and a
Shabbat Shalom!
CHANUKAH RESOURCES:
Chanukah Blessings – with a printable version and an MP3 (Candles are added to the chanukiya – menorah for Chanukah – from right to left, but are kindled from left to right. The newest candle is lit first. On the Shabbat of Chanukah, we light the Chanukah candles first and then the Shabbat candles.)
History – The Chanukah StoryCustoms and Rituals
Practice a Jewish Value Each Night of Chanukah
Recipe: Rabbi Sharon Sobel’s Chocolate Wontons for Chanukah
Some More Chanukah Recipes
A Chanukah Song Playlist
Song: Tonight We Light the Chanukah Candles from Left to Right Traditional Chanukah Songs 
