Hanukkah: December 2007 Archives

A holiday debate erupted in Long Beach, NY when city officials chose a 7-foot Christmas tree to display in the plaza in front of City Hall earlier this month. The size of the tree might not have offended residents, except for the fact that the tree was planted next to a 20-foot menorah that had already been erected. The Associated Press reported that residents were so irked ("What's up with the giant menorah and the Charlie Brown Christmas tree?" resident Rick Hoffman asked), that officials eventually dug up the 7-foot tree and donated it to a mall, replacing it with a 20-foot blue spruce that matched the menorah's size.

For the first time in 20 years, the city of Pittsburgh held a menorah lighting in a public place, in front of the building that houses the Allegheny County government. According to Chabad-Lubavitch, the Hasidic Jewish group that erects menorahs in public places all over the world, the move represents "a new chapter in its sometimes stormy relationship with public menorah displays" in Pittsburgh.

In the late 1980s, a brouhaha erupted when Pittsburgh's American Civil Liberties Union chapter sued, arguing that the menorah constituted a state sponsorship of religion. The case reached the Supreme Court, which ruled that the menorah could remain standing. But though the city did not take it down, they never lit it either - until this year, when a crowd of 200 people showed up for festivities that included the lighting, music, and sharing traditional Hanukkah latkes.

Chabad is famous for erecting massive Hanukkah menorahs in prominent locations, and now they have a tool to let you find one in your area. Their Global Events Search locator lists the hundreds of Chabad-sponsored lightings, latke parties, and other Hanukkah festivities across the U.S. and in 38 other countries around the world.

Is there a lesson for modern Christians in the story of Hanukkah? Yes, says Ted Olson in this provocative article he posted on ChristianityToday.com. Olson recounts the story of how Judah Maccabee and his band of warriors successfully rebelled against efforts by the Syrian King Antiochus IV to integrate the Jews into Greek religion and culture. In the story, Olson sees a metaphor that should humble any Christian who believes that it is his or her right to say "Merry Christmas" to anyone, regardless of their faith.

To these folks, Olson says, "Just say Merry Christmas? To everyone? Regardless of whether they actually celebrate Jesus' birth? To borrow a line from Band Aid (creators of the worst holiday song of all time), "Do they know it's Hanukkah?" For the story of Hanukkah ironically sheds light on the aggressive "Merry Christmas!" trend."

Click here to read Olson's entire essay.

Chanukah Vs. Christmas - Click here for the funniest movie of the week

We all have probably seen by now the humorous commercials in which a stiff, buttoned-up PC computer stands next to a hip, relaxed Mac. This video, posted on Metacafe.com, applies that concept to the holidays of Hanukkah and Christmas. Christmas is wearing an absurd plaid bowtie and a Santa hat, while Hanukkah dons a casual sweater and long hair. Christmas is about "presents - lots and lots of presents," whereas Hanukkah is "more about spiritualism than commercialism." Hanukkah is, like the Mac, trying to be patient with Christmas, who insists on saying things like everyone should "celebrate the birth of your savior, whoever he might be!"

Some viewers of this video will likely giggle at its clever take on our cultural moment, but some others might wonder, given the expansion of Hanukkah merchandise and gift-giving in recent years, if Hanukkah gets off too easy in what could have been a spoof of how every faith struggles with how it relates to others in December.