Hanukkah begins today
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- December
- 5
Today is the first full day of Hanukkah, the joyous eight-day Jewish holiday also known as “The Festival of Lights.�
Hanukkah is an eight-day celebration marking the re-dedication of the Jerusalem temple after a freedom war fought by Judah Maccabee and his brothers and followers against the Greeks and Syrians.
The Maccabees were eventually victorious, but the Greeks had defiled the temple.
According to the tradition, the Temple needed to be cleansed during the re-dedication. There was one container of pure oil for the lamp – one container that should have lasted only one day. It lasted for eight days.
The most recognizable symbol of Hanukkah  and one that you will see again and again around Rockland, which is home to an estimated 100,000 Jews  is the nine-branch Hanukkah menorah (or Hanukkiah).
A popular holiday activity is the dreidel game (where children spin a four-sided top). People eat potato pancakes known as “latkes,” and many people also give gifts on each of the eight days.
Hanukkah gelt is usually given to children. “Gelt”  the Yiddish word for “money”  has traditionally been given in the form of small coins.
The holiday began at sundown yesterday.
This entry was posted
on Wednesday, December 5th, 2007 at 12:35 pm by Suzan Clarke.
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