The Festival of Lights begins today at sundown. This is a Jewish celebration to commemorate the re-dedication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem which needed to be purified after the Maccabean Revolt.
A celebration of love and family
This is a family celebration that was initially designed for children as a way to attract them to synagogues, says Dianne Ashton, professor of American Studies at Rowan University in New Jersey who talked with NPR.
Hanukkah Lights at NPR
“With its 20th anniversary on the horizon, Hanukkah Lights again unveils brand new literature for the holiday season — stories of a single menorah that illuminates a liftetime’s journey; a youthful discovery that brings new meaning to the original Hanukkah miracle; and a weary mother who finds fresh strength in a daughter’s love — all read for you by Susan Stamberg and Murray Horwitz.” Holidays 2010
Interview with Professor Ashton about Hannukah
Here is an excerpt from an interview today. There is also a link so you might listen to the full conversation.
“There is nearly no record of people celebrating Hanukkah just a couple of centuries ago. But it began to be an important Jewish holiday in the second half of the 19th century when two Rabbis in Cincinnati noticed their Jewish children didn’t have much connection to the synagogue.
“The Rabbis developed a new celebration for children at Hanukkah that was held in the synagogue and included giving presents. National newspapers publicized the new celebration, and it was soon being celebrated all around the country.
“Hanukkah was being reinvented at a time when the American culture had a booming holiday in Christmas. The Jewish community began to reshape Hanukkah as something their children and families could do when American families were doing the same thing around Christmas.
“Ashton says it was a way for the Jewish community to be a part of something that was happening in America. ” Scholar: Hanukkah More Modest Holiday Outside U.S.
Dianne Ashton is writing a book about the history of Hanukkah.
This from the Huffington Post. 8 Facts about Chanukah that you (probably) didn’t know, maybe. –
Copyright 2010 Rita Watson/ All Rights Reserved