The Eight Myths of Hanuka

<BODY BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" LINK="#000000" VLINK="#000000" ALINK="#000000"> <CENTER><TABLE><TR><TD WIDTH=20% VALIGN="TOP"> <A NAME="top"> <P> <B><a href="http://betmish.org/text/ch5761drash.html">Text-Only Version</a></B> <P> <BIG><B><a href="http://betmish.org/index.html">Home</A></B></BIG> <P> <BIG><B><a href="http://betmish.org/whatsnew.html">What's New</A></B></BIG> <P> <BIG><B><a href="http://betmish.org/calendar.html#July8">Coming Events</A></B></BIG> <P> <BIG><B><a href="http://betmish.org/drashot.html">D'rashot</A></B></BIG> <P> <BIG><B><a href="http://betmish.org/do.html">What We Do</A></B></BIG> <P> <BIG><B><a href="http://betmish.org/who.html">Who We Are</A></B></BIG> <P> <BIG><B><a href="http://betmish.org/contact.html">Contact Us</A></B></BIG> <P> <BIG><B><a href="http://betmish.org/faq.html">Frequently Asked Questions</A></B></BIG> <P> <BIG><B><a href="http://betmish.org/archives.html">Archives</A></B></BIG> <P> <BIG><B><a href="http://betmish.org/links.html">Links</A></B></BIG> <P> <BIG><B><a href="http://betmish.org/member.html">Membership</A></B></BIG> <P> <BIG><B><a href="http://betmish.org/credits.html">Credits</A></B></BIG> <P> <BIG><B><a href="http://betmish.org/addbook.html">Guest book</A></B></BIG> </FONT></TD> <TD ALIGN=CENTER VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="80%> <CENTER>    <table border="0" align="center"> <tr> <td align="center"> <a href="http://betmish.org/index.html" target="_top"><IMG border=0 src="http://betmish.org/images/banner2.gif" align=center height="104" width="512" hspace=5 alt="Bet Mishpachah banner"></a> </td> <td align="left"> <font size="-5"><a href="http://betmish.org/child/descriptions/banner.html">Banner<br>Description</a></font> </td> </tr> <tr> <td align="center"> <p><font size="-1"><i>Washington, DC's Egalitarian Synagogue</i><br> <i>Embracing a Diversity of Sexual and Gender Identities</i></font> </p> <p> <b><font face="Arial"><font size="+1">Rabbi Bob Saks<br> </font></font></b><br> <font face="Arial"><font size="-1"><i>Founded in 1975 by Members of the GLBT Community<font color="white" size="-4"> </font></i></font></font></p> </td> <td align="left"> <font size="-4" color="white"> </font> </td> </tr> </table> </center> <H1 align=center>The Eight Myths of Hanuka</h1> <center>By Milton E. Stern <BR>December 22, 2000 <BR>Kislev, 5761</CENTER> <P>Shabbat Shalom, Happy Hanuka, and Season's Greetings</P> <p>How many of you when you were growing up and going to a mostly non-Jewish elementary school as I did felt a little put off by all the hooplah over Christmas. The decorations, the songs, the parties, the songs, the stories, the songs, the Christmas cards and the songs? The problem with the Hanuka is that it falls on the 25th of Kislev, which usually falls somewhere around the 25th of December. As a result, if you ask many non-Jews to name one Jewish Holiday, the answer very likely will be Hanuka, which in itself presents may misconceptions about this holiday. Although many talk about the gift-giving aspect of holiday, little else is generally known about Hanuka.</p> <p>And so in the spirit of the season and in an effort to educate the masses, I present to you the Eight Myths of Hanuka.</p> <p>1. Myth number one, How many of you were asked by your elementary school classmates if Hanuka was the Jewish Christmas? You probably answered no and then tried to give them an explanation of the holiday. I was asked by my fifth grade teacher to stand in front of the class and tell the story of Hanuka, and one student screamed out, "Go ahead Jew-Boy tell us about it." Needless to say, I chose not to.</p> <p>So, Next time your are asked if Hanuka is the Jewish Christmas, give the answer I have given since:</p> <p>Hanuka is not the Jewish Christmas, Christmas is the Jewish Christmas. After all, Mary and Joseph were Jewish, and therefore, Jesus was Jewish, and at least one of the Wise Men was Jewish. That would be the one who brought the fur.</p> <p>2. Myth number two: Hanuka is our holiest of holidays. Although Hanuka ranks up there with Passover as one of our most observed holidays, it is neither a High Holy Day, nor a particularly religious one, and although many eight year-olds would consider it a High Holy Day, it is not. Hanuka is a patriotic holiday, which commemorates the victory of the Maccabees over the Helenistic Syrians and the miracle of one days worth of olive oil lasting for eight days. This to me is hardly a miracle because my grandmother could accomplish the same thing with one tea bag.</p> <p>Here are some little known facts about Hanuka:</p> <p>The seasonal references of Hanukkah are much less known. Long before the Maccabees, there was some kind of established winter festival at this season of the year, which had several motifs:</p> <p>One motif had to do with the gradual increase in daylight after the ominous, steadily darkening days of late autumn. A number of legends connect Hanukkah with the winter solstice, which usually occurs during the holiday, as it did yesterday.</p> <p>Another motif had to do with the kindling of fire, an ancient Jewish custom at the dedication of the Temple altar and related to the events described at 2 Maccabees 1:18-22, for those of you who brought reference materials with you this evening to go with all our other handouts.</p> <p>A third motif was a festive act, related to Sukkot. The customs of this motif were to carry wands wreathed with leaves, branches with their fruit, and palm fronds. </p> <p>A possible fourth motif was a camping-out custom, also related to Sukkot.</p> <p>The central motif, as with most Jewish customs, is light. Light plays a central role in Judaism. Candles are lit at the beginning of all holidays and at the end of the holidays during Havdala. Candles are also lit on the anniversary of the death of a loved one. The only special mitzvah related to Hanukkah is to kindle the lights of the menora each night. Which brings us to myth number 3.</p> <p>3. Myth number 3: It is a Mitzvah to get a present every night of Hanuka. Of the 613 laws in the Torah, there is none that says we must get a gift every night of Hanuka. Actually, the giving of presents is essentially an American Custom:</p> <p>The giving of presents came to be as a result of Hanukkah's close proximity to Christmas. Since the majority of Jewish people live in integrated communities in the United States as opposed to the villages of Pre-W.W.II Eastern Europe and North Africa and Asia, as well as in Israel, American Jewish children were given one present each day so they wouldn't feel "left out" since many of their non-Jewish friends would be getting presents on Christmas. Which brings us to myth number four.</p> <p>4. Myth number four: The giving of Hanuka Gelt is an age-old custom that dates back to biblical times. This of course is not true, but "Hanuka Guilt" is an ancient custom, carried on today by many parents throughout the world. If you grew up in my house, you know exactly what Hanuaka Guilt is. We would get a present on the first night, and a lecture about how our parents grew up during the Depression on the subsequent nights.</p> <p>A little history:</p> <p>In Kurdistan, dolls or effigies of Antiochus, the Hellenistic Syrian King who occupied Israel at the time of the holiday's Maccabeean origin, were carried around by children collecting money for charity. The money that was collected was known as "Hanukkah Gelt." The chocolate coins today are representative of this money. And, at the end of the day, the dolls were set on fire to the cries of, "Antiochus, Antiochus!!" Which brings us to myth number five.</p> <p>5. Myth number five: All menorahs are made so that the candles are set far enough apart so that the flames do not touch and the Shamash is set apart from the other eight candles. This myth is half true. Some menorahs are electric with Christmas type light bulbs that are screwed in, which presents the eternal question -- do you leave it on and screw in a new bulb each night or do you turn it off every night -- Only in America.</p> <p>A little history:</p> <p>In Turkey, there is a custom of weaving candles sticks with palm fibers. After Hanukkah, the candle remains are formed into another candle, which is then used by children for the searching for "hametz" prior to the beginning of Passover. This gives a continuity to the holidays as one tradition leads to another. Tradition brings us to myth number six.</p> <p>6. Myth number six: Jews eat latkes on Hanukah because we like eating tasteless foods that are fried in oil and difficult to digest. This myth is half true. The reason we eat latkes, or sufranot, which is a Sephardic treat that is fried in oil and similar to a jelly donut, is to symbolize the one day's worth of oil that lasted eight days.</p> <p>Ironically, it takes eight days to pass a latke.</p> <p>7. Myth number seven: There are many Hanuka songs for us to enjoy. Wrong! Aside from "Dreidel Dreidel Dreidel," and "Adam Sandler's Hanuka Song," and the Ladino song about "Candelicas," I don't know any.</p> <p>Ironically, most Christmas songs were written by Jews. The most popular, "White Christmas," was written by a Jew, and my favorite, the one that starts "Chestnuts roasting in an open fire, Jack Frost Nipping at Your Nose," was co-written by a Jew -- Mel Torme. And as my mother would say, "If Mel Torme wasn't Jewish, he missed an excellent opportunity!" Which brings us to Myth number eight.</p> <p>8. Myth number eight: Barbara Streisand has recorded a Hanuka Album. Wrong! She has recorded seven Christmas albums, but no Hanuka album. What a shame that the Queen of Jewish Divas has neglected her own people in furthering her career. I personally think she would have had hits with:</p> <p>"Maccabees who need Maccabees are the most lucky Maccabees in the World"</p> <p>"The Way We Spin Our Dreidel" </p> <p>and my personal favorite</p> <p>"Don't Rain on My Menora"</p> <p>Shabbat Shalom, Happy Hanuka, Good Yuntev, and Merry Christmas!</p> </TD></TR></TABLE></CENTER> <P><HR> <p align="center"><FONT face=Arial><small><small><b>For a description of any of the graphics on this page, click on the D next to the graphic. <BR>For more information, contact our office at <a href="mailto:office@betmishpachah.org?SUBJECT=Request for Information from Web Site">office@betmishpachah.org</a><br> Send comments about this site to <a href="mailto:webweaver@betmishpachah.org?SUBJECT=Comments About Web Site">webweaver@betmishpachah.org</a>.<br> Copyright 1996 - 2008 Bet Mishpachah.</b></small></small></FONT> <CENTER><font face=Arial size="-1" color="#999999"><small><small><P><b>This page last modified on Sunday, May 18, 2003 at 07:58 PM EDT.</b></small></small></font> </CENTER> </body>