BY LYNNE INOUYE AND SYDNEY WESCHCKE
STAFF WRITERS
Hanukkah, or the alternate spelling Chanukah, is a Jewish holiday celebrating the Maccbees’s victory over the Greek army and them restoring the menorah, or the lamp, of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. The holiday, meaning “dedication”, begins on the 25th of Kislev on the Hebrew calendar, with it normally being in late November or December. During the holiday, you light one candle per night in a special menorah, or candelabra. Saying thanks to God in the form of a special blessing, singing a hymn, and lighting the eight candles with a shammash (a ninth candle) is traditional. Families also give and exchange gifts every night and play games.
Traditions like these are long-standing, as the holiday has been around for ages. There are many stories of how Hanukkah started way back then. The most common one states that the Jews working on the rededication of the Holy Temple witnessed a miracle. They only had enough oil to light the candles for a day, but it burned for eight days straight – enough time to find more oil. Hence, the eight days of Hanukkah. Another talks about how, in order to see, they put candles on eight iron spears. Both explain the significance of the eight days and the candles, as well as offer historic background.
Hanukkah, as you can see, is an interesting holiday. This Festival of Lights goes back to the second century B.C.E. and is still celebrated today. Whether you celebrate Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, or nothing at all, I hope you have a good break and happy holidays!
Sources
https://www.whychristmas.com/customs/hanukkah.shtml
Image Link: https://www.history.com/.image/ar_16:9%2Cc_fill%2Ccs_srgb%2Cfl_progressive%2Cg_faces:center%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_768/MTY5MTE2NjA5ODU0NTgwMDAx/hanukkah-gettyimages-157389389.jpg