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Chanukah too

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Hanukkah
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hanukkah, also known as the Festival of Lights or Festival of Dedication, is an eight day Jewish holiday that starts on the 25th day of Kislev, which generally is in December, or sometimes, late November. The festival is observed in Jewish homes by the kindling of lights on each of the festival's eight nights, one on the first night, two on the second night and so on.

In Hebrew script, the word Hanukkah is written חנכה, ḥănukkāh, or חנוכה, ḥănūkkāh. It is most commonly transliterated to English as Hanukkah or Chanukah.

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Light the way

Helen Gray
Knight Ridder Newspapers
Dec. 3, 2004 12:00 AM

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Through the darkness of the winter nights, candles can be seen flickering in the windows of Jewish homes for the celebration of Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights.

For Jews, light is rich in symbolism, and more than just at this time of year. It is symbolism that pervades the Jewish faith, starting with light as the first act of creation: "Let there be light."

"So light is the symbol of godliness, holiness and completeness," said Rabbi Arthur Nemitoff of Congregation B'nai Jehudah in Kansas City. "Light has always played a major role in all faiths. The notion of lighting the Shabbat candles or for any holiday is a way of re-enacting that first moment of creation, saying, 'Let God's presence be there.' "
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In Judaism, this is particularly important because all holy days begin in the evening, when light is disappearing.

"With the physical disappearance of light, we bring light into our homes by lighting the candle," Nemitoff said. "We are reminded of that first light (creation), but, more importantly, we are reminded of the source of that light, who is God."

For Jews, light represents the essence of who they are supposed to be, said Rabbi Amy Wallk Katz, a director of adult Jewish learning.

"In Proverbs it says the soul of man is God's candle," she said. "This means we as individuals are supposed to bring light to the world. Jews were called the 'light unto the nations.' They were given the Torah, and they bring this to the world."

Light has a special significance for Hanukkah. Each night Jewish families light candles on an eight-branch menorah, starting with one candle the first night, two the second night, and so on, until all eight are lighted the eighth night. The menorah is placed in a window or near the front door, visible to the outside world.

Traditionally it celebrates the victory of a small band of Jews, led by Judah the Maccabee, who defeated the militarily stronger Syrian Greeks, whose ruler had forbidden the practice of Judaism and was attempting to absorb them into the prevailing Greek culture.

After the Jews succeeded in recapturing Jerusalem, they started the process of purifying their Temple, which had been desecrated by idol worship. The miracle of Hanukkah is that a one-day supply of pure oil burned for eight days until more pure oil arrived. Thus, the eight-day observance.

Both Judaism and Christianity have light as the pivotal symbol of their respective holidays that fall at this time of year - Hanukkah for Jews and Christmas for Christians - Nemitoff said.

"For Christians, it is the star of Bethlehem and from there to Christmas lights, lights on trees, candles in homes, all coming from this notion that Christmas is a time of light. The birth of Jesus for Christians is the light of Jesus.

"Jews have the exact symbol, light. We light the candle for eight days at Hanukkah," he said.

"Why do we use light? Both holidays probably emerge out of a common story that is probably pagan-based on the winter solstice. Both of these holidays took that ancient notion of fear of darkness and the need to dispel that darkness and layered over that a religious or theological meaning."

Whether the story of the oil is based on historical fact is unimportant, he said. What is important is the meaning behind the light.

"For Jews, the meaning beyond the light for Hanukkah is religious freedom," Nemitoff said. "That is the story of Hanukkah, the first recorded history of a fight for religious freedom. This is the light of Hanukkah."

Katz agrees that the pagan roots are unimportant.

"For 2,000 years, the lights on the Hanukkah menorah have been symbolic of religious freedom, what it means to be a minority people in a majority culture, and proud of being who we are as Jews. For 2,000 years, this is what we Jews have understood the symbolism to mean, so even if there was a pagan association with the lights, that is meaningless to me."

Nemitoff said he likes the words to a song by Peter Yarrow, "Light One Candle.". The chorus says:

Don't let the light go out.

It's lasted for so many years.

Don't let the light go out.

Let it shine through our love and our fears.

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OTHER LIGHTS IN JUDAISM

-The eternal light: This hangs in front of the ark, which contains the Torah, the five books of Moses. In Exodus 27:20, the children of Israel were told "to cause the lamp to burn continually" in the tabernacle.

"This mirrors the idea of the light that would shine in the tabernacle and holy temple," said Rabbi Sholom Wineberg of Chabad House Center in Kansas City. "The light was not so much to illuminate the inside but to go outside. It's the concept of taking the light of holiness and imbuing the world with that light."

-The menorah: The seven-branch menorah is a symbol of the seven days of Creation. God created the earth in six days and rested on the seventh day. It brings the light of spirituality into the world, Wineberg said. (The eight-branch menorah is used only for Hanukkah.)

-Shabbat candles: Shabbat begins at dusk. A girl from the age of three3 and up lights one candle, and a woman who is married lights two candles, Wineberg said. It also is the custom in some families to light one additional candle for each child.

One idea is that light has the capacity not to change things but to illuminate, Wineberg said. The things that one has accomplished for six days may seem mundane, but the Shabbat candles help one to see them in their true light.

So one is not viewing in a dark manner but celebrating what one did not realize had worth until it was illuminated. "Mundanity has the ability to be transformed," Wineberg said.

-Mourning light: When a loved one dies, there is a week of mourning with the lighting of a candle that burns for a week.

"The light is symbolic of the soul of the person," Katz said. "Also on the anniversary of a loved one's death, we light a candle. When I light candles before a holiday, it is to mark that the sacred day has begun. When I light the candle on the anniversary of a loved one's death, it is to remind me of them."
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elimeir27's avatar
תודה

Thanks for posting