Fr. Z's Blog – What Does The Prayer Really Say?

It think it depends on what you mean by “observe”. We can sure watch with respect what Jews do at this time of year. After all, the Jewish festivals are our heritage as well. They have significance for Christians because they concern the history of our salvation.

I don’t see anything wrong with making use of some Jewish customs, especially so as to impress on children the fact that Christianity and Judaism are deeply interconnected. But there must always be the clear instruction that the New Covenant in Christ fulfills and surpasses the Old Covenant and all its observances just as the real thing surpasses its images or shadows.
And because of the story of Judith and Holofernes there may be some cheese or other milk products involved.  Judith fed Holofernes salty cheese in order to make him very thirsty, thus provoking him to drink lots of wine.  The wine went to his head.  Judith thereafter removed said head from said Holofernes’ neck.  The connection: Judith is thought to have been connected to the Maccabees; her intervention parallels that of the Maccabees with the miracle of the oil, and thus she is also a figure revered at Hanukkah.
There are some great paintings of the scene of Judith sawing away at poor old Holofernes.  One of my favorites is the version by Artemisia.  She has a look of real satisfaction on her face as she hacks away.  I have included here, however, a less common depiction of the meal wherein Judith is setting Holofernes up for his demise with the meal of cheese and wine.  It is by Cranach the Elder.  A few other versions here.   But I digress.
dreidel
Children also play with the famous little top called a “dreidel”.  The top, which sometimes the children make from clay (there is a famous song about that which I learned from a childhood friend), is decorated with the letters. Nun (נ), Gimel (ג), Hey (ה) and Shin (ש), and acronym for “A great miracle happened there”. Some driedels from the Holy Land have the last letter as Pe (פ) to make the acronym say “here” instead of “there”. To play, you spin the top and, depending on the letter that turns up, you get a little prize or perhaps nothing. There are variations, as you can imagine.
Read More: Fr. Z's Blog – What Does The Prayer Really Say?

Fr. Z's Blog – What Does The Prayer Really Say?

Classic Potato Latkes

Line a large tray with paper towels. Peel the potatoes and grate them either by hand or with a food processor. Set aside in a sieve to drain for 10 or 15 minutes. Meanwhile, peel and chop the onion. In a small bowl, lightly beat the eggs.

Place the drained potato in a large mixing bowl. Stir in the chopped onion, lightly beaten eggs, salt and flour. Stir very well.Pour enough vegetable oil into a heavy frying pan to reach a depth of ½ inch and heat over medium heat. When the oil is hot, scoop tablespoonsful of the potato mixture into the pan and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, flattening the latkes slightly with the back of a spoon. Turn and cook on the other side until golden brown. Transfer the latkes to the paper towel-lined tray to drain.
Read more: Classic Potato Latkes

Classic Potato Latkes

Giant menorah to mark start of Hanukkah

A giant menorah will light the sky above 
New York on Wednesday to mark the start of Hanukkah, a Jewish holiday celebrated for eight days and nights.Jews celebrate Hanukkah by lighting candles each night in a menorah, an eight-branch candelabra with a ninth, elevated branch known as a shamash.Organizers will light the first candle of what they called the world's largest menorah at Central Park. Lighting of the menorah will be held at 5:30 p.m. daily through December 8The 32-foot high, gold-colored, 4,000 pound steel structure features genuine oil lamps, according to organizers. It has glass chimneys to protect the lights from strong winds.

The menorah marks Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights that mostly falls in December.
"The menorah stands as a symbol of freedom and democracy, strength and inspiration, delivering a timely and poignant message to each person on an individual basis," said Rabbi Shmuel M. Butman, director Lubavitch Youth Organization.
The shamash, which is lit first, is used to light the others candles each night of the holiday.
The holiday of Hanukkah celebrates the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem after Syrians were chased out of the Holy Land. It also marks the eight days that a menorah burned with one day's worth of oil.
Read More: Giant menorah to mark start of Hanukkah

Giant menorah to mark start of Hanukkah

Dec. 1: Happy Hanukkah!

It's the first day of the festival of lights in Forest Hills and there is a lot to do. You can choose from any number of Hanukkah events across the community. You can head over to a ceremonial menorah lighting or celebrate a little more privately, and it's all available right on our events listing page and in our Hanukkah round-up.

In addition to all the holiday preparation and celebrating that's happening across your neighborhood, there's also quite a bit going on with everyone from police to the schools.
Here are five things you need to know today:
Read More: Dec. 1: Happy Hanukkah!

Dec. 1: Happy Hanukkah!

Happy Hanukkah! (with Info and Fun Stuff)

Whew - Hanukkah starts darn early this year! Why is that? Because Jewish holidays are based on the ancient Hebrew calendar, which accounts for leap year differently than the secular calendar. Hanukkah always begins on the eve of the 25th of the Hebrew month of Kislev, and it celebrates “the triumph of light over darkness.”

In Hebrew, the word “Hanukkah” means “dedication” — specifically, the re-dedication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem, which had been destroyed during Syrian-Greek rule in the 2nd century BCE. Following the Maccabean Revolt, “the victorious Israelites were able to reclaim their beloved Temple.” But they only found one tiny last remaining vial of pure olive oil needed to light the Temple’s menorah. Yet miraculously, the menorah continued to burn for eight days while a messenger journeyed to another region to fetch more oil.  So began the ritual of lighting one candle per night until all eight Hanukkah candles are lit. That taller candle you see in the middle of the Menorah is the Shamash, or “helper candle” used to light the others. Tonight, we use it to light the first candle only, tomorrow two candles, and so on.
Read More: Happy Hanukkah! (with Info and Fun Stuff)

Happy Hanukkah! (with Info and Fun Stuff)

Hanukkah: Festival of Lights; Home Rituals Reflect Freedoms

Commonly known as the "Festival of Lights," the Jewish holiday Hanukkah is marked by lighting one candle on a nine-branched menorah for eight nights. Jewish families will come together at sundown today as they illuminate their homes and sing blessings of the first night. 

But the real meaning lies in its historical significance of being the first recorded struggle for the freedom of religion in Human history.

As Rabbi Emeritus Amiel Wohl of Temple Israel of New Rochelle explains, "In 165 BC the Greek Syrians, the successors to Alexander the Great who were ruling the holy land then— ancient Israel—wanted to destroy the Jewish religion. So they placed statues of the King in the temple and forced the Jews to worship the Greek gods. The Jews resisted. Their religion was being traduced."
"If they hadn't succeeded in throwing off the tyranny of the Greeks at that point, Christianity wouldn't have been born a century and a half later," he said.
What the Hanukkah story teaches us, Rabbi Wohl said, is that "the freedoms that the U.S. has understood have to be fought for in every generation because freedom really can't be passed down."
More than 2,000 years ago, Judah Macacabee and his army celebrated a victory over Jewish persecution. After restoring their ruined temple, the Jews found only a small amount of oil with which to light the candelabra, or great menorah. It is considered a miracle that the oil burned for eight days, and this miracle is celebrated as part of the festival.
Rabbi Robert Weiner, of the Temple Beth Am in Yorktown, said Hanukkah is a home celebration where each family celebrates with a ritual, and somehow everything is connected to oil to commemorate the miracle of the tiny flask of oil. 

Families will gather with friends and family, make fried potato latkes (similar to pancakes), jelly donuts (heavily made with oil), exchange gifts and play games.
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Hanukkah: Festival of Lights; Home Rituals Reflect Freedoms