Free Republic

Chanukah is incredibly pertinent to what we're going through right now in America. It's about winning a seemingly unwinnable culture war. In the second century B.C., the rulers of Israel -- the powerful Syrian empire -- had forced paganism on the country with a ruthless force. Pagan holidays, customs, and religious practices were imposed on the citizens of Israel, and statues of pagan gods were erected throughout the country. People who refused to bow down to idols, or make sacrifices to them, were tortured and killed. People were allowed to have some "private" religious beliefs, but no public acknowledgement of...

Todd and I would like to offer our best wishes to the Jewish community as they celebrate Hanukkah. Known as the Festival of Lights, Hanukkah commemorates the eight-day miracle that took place when the Temple in Jerusalem was rededicated. Though there was only enough consecrated oil for one day, the flame miraculously burned for eight – just long enough to prepare more. This beautiful story is rich with life lessons for members of all faiths. With hope and dedication nothing is impossible, and the Almighty never abandons those who seek the light. - Sarah Palin “Trace the universe back to...

Todd and I would like to offer our best wishes to the Jewish community as they celebrate Hanukkah. Known as the Festival of Lights, Hanukkah commemorates the eight-day miracle that took place when the Temple in Jerusalem was rededicated. Though there was only enough consecrated oil for one day, the flame miraculously burned for eight – just long enough to prepare more. This beautiful story is rich with life lessons for members of all faiths. With hope and dedication nothing is impossible, and the Almighty never abandons those who seek the light.

Just because no one is too worried about gate crashers showing up at the White House Hanukkah party doesn't mean the guest list isn't being watched very carefully. The annual celebration has grown in recent years into an important bellwether in American Jewish circles, a sign of which leaders are in good graces and who is losing clout. So the Obama administration's announcement that it was cutting the size of the Dec. 16 party by more than a third has left many wondering who will make the cut, and what some might do to get their name added to the...

The law did not require Jews to be at the Temple in Jerusalem, as this was not one of the pilgrimage festivals. Every one observed it in his own place, not as a holy time. Jesus was there that He might improve those eight days of holiday for good purposes. Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon’s porch when the Sadduciens asked him “How long dost thou make us to doubt? If thou be the Christ tell us.” They pretended to want to know the truth, as if they were ready to embrace it; but it was not their intention....

Are today's American Tea Party patriots anything like the Jewish Maccabees of ancient times? The Jewish eight-day holiday of Hanukah began Friday night. The holiday marks the successful BCE revolt of the Jews of Judea over their Greco-Syrian occupiers. For many years, the Jews of Judea were resigned to their fate and accepted the presence of their conquerors. With the passage of time, however, the Greco-Syrian occupiers began to force their pagan ways upon the Jews and prohibit Jewish religious practices. The loss of rights proved too much to bear for many Jews and a grassroots opposition movement began, led...

At the White House, as the Obama administration is learning all too well, a party is never a simple affair. One bone of contention has been the guest list: Administration officials say they are inviting 550 people, just 50 less than President Bush invited to his White House Hanukkah parties. But reports in the Israeli press spawned fast-spreading rumors that the Obama White House was only inviting 400 – and that the Bush White House had actually invited twice that number. It was, some suggested, a snub – and one that critics said should not come as a surprise. The...

This evening we light the first candle on the Hanukkah menorah, for it's the first night of this minor eight-day Jewish holiday that's become a major one over the years. There are blessings to be recited, songs to be sung, latkes to be eaten . . . . But just what does Hanukkah celebrate? Answer: A successful Jewish revolt against a Syrian empire ruled by the Seleucid dynasty of Greek kings some 2,200 years ago. Well, not exactly. The revolt was not so much against the Syrian emperor, Antiochus Epiphanes, as against his attempt to impose Hellenistic culture on ancient...

The law did not require Jews to be at the Temple in Jerusalem, as this was not one of the pilgrimage festivals. Every one observed it in his own place, not as a holy time. Jesus was there that He might improve those eight days of holiday for good purposes. Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon’s porch when the Sadduciens asked him “How long dost thou make us to doubt? If thou be the Christ tell us.” They pretended to want to know the truth, as if they were ready to embrace it; but it was not their intention....

"...If you love your G-d but fear your government, tell others about the destruction of the Second Temple by the Hitlerian Antiochus Epiphanes, and help your children internalize these lessons of Hanukkah. If you would be reminded of the importance of preserving second-amendment freedoms, recall this chapter in the long story of the disarmament of the Jews. Honor the memory of Hannah and her sons by kindling the lights of Hanukkah with firm resolve. If you should ever doubt that righteousness will always prevail so long as we love G-d and fight for his spiritual and physical territory, let your...

When the news broke on Thursday of a freakish traffic accident that injured several people at the Chanukah Wonderland workshop run by the Lubavitch community of Woodmere, on Long Island, the story was picked up by the usual suspects: Newsday, The Daily News, The New York Post and The Associated Press. It also happened to be that day’s top North American offering of a much smaller — and somewhat more specialized — journalistic venture: Chabad.org News. Written and produced from a small home office in Israel by a husband-and-wife team, Chabad.org News is a nonprofit international reporting operation that focuses...

The holiday season is all ablaze, with lights to brighten the eye and warm the spirit. The candles of Hanukkah, recalling the triumph of the Maccabees in repulsing an army of Syrians who tried to evict the Jews from ancient Israel, twinkle for eight days in the Jewish "festival of the lights." The lights of Christmas celebrate the birth of Christ, symbolizing the coming of the Messiah and the triumph of light over darkness in a world of suffering. It's a season about survival, of standing up to evil forces. The lighting of the candles for the rededicated temple commemorates...

MUMBAI: "Is it safe to be here, all of us together?'' asked a Jewish woman before seating herself on a chair facing the Gateway of India. A retired colonel reassured her. Fighting back fears of congregating at a public place, a sizeable number of Jews-both Indians and foreigners-came forward to attend a prayer meeting organised by Chabad House on the occasion of Hanukkah, the Jewish festival that celebrates the victory of good over evil. While Moshe, the orphaned child of Rabbi Gavriel-who was claimed by the terror attack at Nariman House-was conspicuous by his absence, his grandparents-Shimon and Yehudit...

Take note all ye cultural fascists out to annihilate Christmas: The Catholic League has a nativity scene on public property in New York City, right in Central Park. We deliberately put it on the corner of 59th and 5th so that New Yorkers taking the 5th Avenue bus downtown can’t avoid seeing it. Indeed, it’s impossible to miss. Next to it will be the world’s largest menorah, a religious symbol that some dunce lawyers still think is a secular symbol. “Every year we get a permit from the New York City Parks Department to display our life-sized crèche in Central...

Governor Sarah Palin celebrates the first day of Hanukkah with members of the Jewish community in downtown Anchorage.

Hanukkah for Dhimmis (excuse us, Dummies) by Bill Levinson (originally posted in December 2006) Hanukkah is often called “the Jewish Christmas” because it takes place at about the same time of year. There is in fact a very strong connection between the two holidays; had it not been for the events that Hanukkah commemorates, there would be no Christmas. Hanukkah is about standing up to those who menace one’s home, family, or way of life as opposed to singing “Kumbaya” with them. We have often pointed out that science fiction and fantasy societies are based on real human societies, and...

Polish president, in historic first, visits Warsaw synagogue for Hanukkah celebration By VANESSA GERA | Associated Press Writer 2:15 PM EST, December 21, 2008 WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Poland's president celebrated the start of Hanukkah in a Warsaw synagogue Sunday in a gesture the city's Jewish community greeted as a historic step in its revival. Lech Kaczynski's visit marked the first time the head of state has attended a religious service at a synagogue in Poland, whose Jewish population was nearly wiped out in the Holocaust and later suffered from communist-era repression. The visit "means we're in a normal country...

The power of Hanukkah is rooted in miracles, including the legend of one night's oil that burned for eight days after Jewish warriors reconquered a sacred temple. The second century BC rededication of the Temple of Jerusalem is commemorated by Hanukkah, an eight-day festival that begins tonight. Today, more than 2,000 years later, Jewish leaders say that faith and hope continue to resonate as appropriate themes for a celebration taking place in difficult times. They cite the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the economic crisis and, locally, what police describe as the hate-crime death of an Ecuadorean immigrant in Patchogue....

Presidential Message The story of Hanukkah recalls the miraculous victory of a small band of patriots against tyranny, and the oil that burned for eight nights. Through centuries of exile and persecution, Jews have lit the menorah. Each year, they behold its glow with faith in the power of God, and love for His greatest gift -- freedom. This Hanukkah we celebrate another miraculous victory -- the 60th anniversary of the founding of the state of Israel. When President Harry Truman led the world in recognizing Israel in May of 1948, many wondered whether the small nation could possibly...

Baby Jesus disappeared last year from a Nativity scene on the lawn of the Wellington, Fla., community center, village officials didn’t follow a star to locate him. A GPS device mounted inside the life-size figurine led sheriff’s deputies to a nearby apartment, where it was found face down on the carpet. An 18-year-old woman was arrested in the theft. Giving up on old-fashioned padlocks and trust, some churches, synagogues, governments and ordinary citizens are turning to technology to protect holiday displays from pranks or prejudice. About 70 churches and synagogues eager to avoid the December police blotter jumped at a...

You may find the title confusing. After all, religious Jews don’t celebrate Christmas. So why should a Jew care if a store clerk says “Merry Christmas?” Why should the public disappearance of Christmas matter to the Jewish people? Patience. All will be explained in due course. In the meantime, ‘tis the season to be politically correct – a coast-to-coast harkening-free zone and the tyranny of hyper-sensitivity. The increasingly successful effort to purge Christmas from our culture (correctly called the War on Christmas) proceeds apace – municipal Christmas trees are re-christened (no pun intended) “holiday trees,” schools ban Christmas decorations and...

MAF Announcing Honoring Heroes at the Holidays IIMove America Forward is thrilled to announce that we are bringing back Honoring Heroes at the Holidays to honor our troops again this Christmas and holiday season! Last year, MAF introduced Honoring Heroes at the Holidays and traveled to cities all over the country. We were so excited by the results that we had to do it again for 2008! Our troops deserve to know that we love and appreciate them! Starting December 13th, we’ll once again be hitting the road to take our message to the people of America who want to...

SPOKANE, Wash. - They made a list, but they should have checked it twice. In a December newsletter to the families of elementary school students, Spokane Public Schools' list of "important dates" didn't include Christmas. Hanukkah, Human Rights Day, winter break, the Islamic holy day Eid al-Adha, first day of winter and Kwanzaa all made the list. But no Christmas. "It was absolutely an error of omission," district spokeswoman Terren Roloff said. "In our efforts to be inclusive, we missed the obvious." The omission drew complaints from some parents that in an age of political correctness, Christians are being overlooked...

Christopher Hitchens’ attack on Chanukah has received no major push-back to date in major media outlets. Several weeks ago, the Jewish world shook its collective fist at Ann Coulter’s audacity in admitting on CNBC (Oct. 8) that she, a Christian, believed in Christianity: “We just want Jews to be perfected,” said Coulter. “That’s what Christianity is.” The Anti-Defamation called her “anti-Semitic.” They lectured her about the power of words “to injure others and fuel hatred.” On the Web, the popular blog Wonkette, blared, how will Coulter “finally complete Hitler’s Dream? She’s going to convert all the poor lost Jews to...

The President and First Lady spent the weekend in Washington attending church in the morning and the taping of "Christmas in Washington" later in the day. Today the President met with Jewish leader in the Roosevelt Room and also attended a Hanukkah reception at the White House. Today The First Lady makes opening remarks in the Roosevelt Room of the White House during a video teleconference regarding the situation in Myanmar, also known as Burma, in recognition of International Human Rights Day. Today Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice spokes at the Women's Foreign Policy Group's annual Luncheon in Washington. Pray...

Please click on the link and then on the "play video" to hear President Bush's speech at the annual White House Chanukah Party. Afterward, Daniel Pearl's parents, Ruth and Judea light the chanukiah. (No offense to anyone, but I'd turn it off after "Maoz Tzur".) Text of speech: 5:27 P.M. EST THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Good evening. Laura and I welcome you to the White House. Mr. Attorney General, thank you for being here. Secretary Chertoff, and family. Hanukkah is a time of joy and festivity in the Jewish religion. We're honored to gather with members of the Jewish community...

Holiday Shopping: Putting Our Money Where Our Mouth Is Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah FRiends! This is the time of year that is special because is engenders the spirit of giving and selflessness of its sacred origins. Each of us, in his or her own way, has a special place in our heart for this joyful time. As we put others' needs and desires first, as we look forward to the expression of surprise and delight on our loved ones' faces as they receive our gifts, as we peruse the ailes, let us consider the economic import of our duty. Some...

Are you having trouble trying to figure out what to buy your favorite Jihadist for Christmas this year? Look no further, The Rogue Jew is here to help you out so that you don’t LOSE YOUR HEAD this holiday season, we wouldn’t want to disappoint that favorite IslamoNazi in your life. Is there a Muslim that you know that likes to go camping in Iraq or Iran? Perhaps he or she enjoys those nice long weekend getaway at their favorite cave in the mountain regions of Afghanistan? For that special Islamofacist/Outdoor enthusiast, the Koran now comes in two ply. No...

A posh food store in New York's Greenwich Village has found itself red faced after offering hams for sale with the slogan "Delicious for Hanukkah," the current Jewish religious holiday. The non-kosher labelling was spotted at the weekend by Manhattan novelist Nancy Kay Shapiro, 46, who decided instead of alerting management to take a picture of the unorthodox sign and post it on the Internet. "I just thought it was funny," Shapiro, who described herself as an unobservant Jew, told the New York Post. "I wasn't offended in any way. I just thought, here's somebody who knows nothing about what...

And so we have a semiofficial celebration of Hanukkah, complete with menorah, to celebrate not the ignition of a light but the imposition of theocratic darkness. Jewish orthodoxy possesses the interesting feature of naming and combating the idea of the apikoros or "Epicurean"—the intellectual renegade who prefers Athens to Jerusalem and the schools of philosophy to the grim old routines of the Torah. About a century and a half before the alleged birth of the supposed Jesus of Nazareth (another event that receives semiofficial recognition at this time of the year), the Greek or Epicurean style had begun to gain...

In a campaign that has spread like wildfire across the Internet, a group of Israeli environmentalists is encouraging Jews around the world to light at least one less candle this Hanukka to help the environment. The founders of the Green Hanukkia campaign found that every candle that burns completely produces 15 grams of carbon dioxide. If an estimated one million Israeli households light for eight days, they said, it would do significant damage to the atmosphere. "The campaign calls for Jews around the world to save the last candle and save the planet, so we won't need another miracle," said...

Jewish men celebrate Hanukkah at Manezhnaya square in the centre of Moscow December 4, 2007. The Hanukkah holiday, or the Festival of Lights, is one of the most important Jewish holidays and is celebrated by Jews worldwide. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin (RUSSIA) ALOUETTE'S SON Jewish men celebrate Hanukkah at Manezhnaya square in the centre of Moscow December 4, 2007. The Hanukkah holiday, or the Festival of Lights, is one of the most important Jewish holidays and is celebrated by Jews worldwide. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin (RUSSIA) Ultra Orthodox Jewish men light candles on the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah in a Jewish neighborhood of...

Who are the bad guys in the Hanukah story? And who are the good guys? These are serious questions with serious consequences. Most Jews (and certainly most Christians) dismiss the winter holiday as a trivial, feel-good festival about candles, potato pancakes, spinning tops (dreidls),and eight nights of gifts, without coming to terms with its serious, relevant and distinctly uncomfortable messages. While frequently (and fatuously) described as a “celebration of tolerance,” Hanukah is more properly designated as an annual re-dedication to the values of the Religious Right. No wonder that so many American Jews (with their reflexive, often ignorant liberal instincts)...

Link through to build a snowman on PBS' childrens website. Step 2 is to pick your favorite winter holiday. Pick your favorite winter holiday: Now is it: Chinese New Year? Groundhog Day? Valentines Day? Kwaanza? If not . . . that's not a choice the PBS kids site offers the children.

"Put down the candles and step slowly away from the menorah." That's what I felt like shouting at Jennifer Michael Hecht. In her pay-per-view New York Times column of today, she managed to turn the Festival of Light into a celebration of multi-culturalism and the rejection of traditional Judaism. Hanukkah celebrates "a revolution against assimilation and the suppression of Jewish religion." Syrian-Greeks had colonialized Israel, overturned the Temple, and turned Jews away from their religion. A small band of faithful Jews defeated the Greek army, drove them from the Israel, reclaimed the Holy Temple in Jerusalem and rededicated it...

In Warsaw, hundreds gather to celebrate Hanukkah and light menorah The Associated Press Published: December 17, 2006 WARSAW, Poland: Jewish leaders and Poland's first lady lit candles of a large menorah in central Warsaw on Sunday as they celebrated the third day of Hanukkah, or the Jewish Festival of Lights. The country's Chief Orthodox Rabbi Michael Schudrich chanted prayers in Hebrew before Maria Kaczynski, the wife of President Lech Kaczynski, lit a candle and wished happy Hanukkah to the hundreds who gathered on Grzybowski Square, which lies in the heart of the capital's once-thriving prewar Jewish community. Israeli Ambassador David...

Hanukkah has an identity problem — and not just because it’s overshadowed by Christmas. It is often disowned by the very people who celebrate it. Must my fellow Jews forever explain to Christians how Hanukkah is not a real holiday, even though it is the only Jewish holiday represented at the local drug store? Maybe if they knew more about Hanukkah, they’d understand that it is celebrated precisely because it is a Jewish alternative to Christmas. The story of Hanukkah is old; only its celebration is new. In the 19th century, many Jews lived secular lives, practicing few of the...

Countdown: One week left for Christmas… and Hanukkah begins today at sunset. Many have been ready for months. Many haven’t started preps. Many will have NO preps but just go out elsewhere. For those last minute gifts….last minute food prep… last minute decorating… Let’s share our ideas. Gifts Gift cards, gift certificates are ALWAYS great. For gasoline, Malls, specialty shops, book stores, food stores etc. People really like to pick out their own stuff. They really do. Budget tight? Homemade is so nice..or make your own “gift certificates”.. Good for one(or more)..back-rubs, foot-rubs, car washes, window cleaning, car cleaning,...

After nine kids, the annual nursery school Hanukkah parties lose some of their luster. To be perfectly honest – they even become something of a pain. That is until Grandma, an Auschwitz survivor, reminded the Green family of what the holiday spirit is all about Mali Green Published: 12.14.06, 23:39 The invitation sent home for the upcoming Hanukkah party assumed its traditional place of honor on the refrigerator door, where three other invites immediately joined it. One shaped like a menorah, the second a dreidel and a third the spitting image of a sufganiya (traditional Hanukkah pastry). The only common...

Sharply Divided Court Upholds City's Anti-Christian Ban of Nativity in New York City Public Schools ANN ARBOR, MI — A sharply divided panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled that it is constitutionally permissible for New York City public schools to ban the display of the Christian nativity during Christmas, while permitting the display of the Jewish menorah and the Islamic star and crescent during Hanukkah and Ramadan. The legal challenge to this policy was brought by the Thomas More Law Center on behalf of Ms. Andrea Skoros and her two children, who attend...

The Chanukah Candle that Inspired George Washington Given by Reb Given to Rebbetzen Sternberg to type five years ago by Rabbi Yehuda Mandelcorn zt"l . May this be a blessing and inspirtation for you, in his Memory Chanukah (1775) 5537. A difficult winter. Terrible cold. We are sitting in Valley Forge and waiting. Why? I don’t know. Perhaps for better days than these. I am the only Jew here. Perhaps there are other Jews among us, but I haven’t seen any. We hunger for bread. We have no warm clothing or shoes to protect our feet. Most of the soldiers...

Originally published December 30, 2005 DULUTH, MINN. // For Hanukkah, the eight-day Jewish holiday celebrated this week, the black Jewish community in Duluth is having - Let me rephrase that. There isn't a black Jewish community in Duluth, except me. It used to be my daughter and me about 20 years ago. But we moved from Minnesota to Massachusetts, and now that she's grown and established in her career, she has no immediate need to move back. I did return, and here I am. Duluth aside, there actually are a lot of black Jews. Ethiopian Jews are well known, and...

Jews in Rome Light Hanukkah Candles in Front of Iran Embassy in Demonstration Associated Press Rome, Dec. 28 - Members of Rome's Jewish community lit Hanukkah candles in front of the Iranian Embassy on Wednesday in what they said was a peaceful response to comments by the Iranian president that the Holocaust was a "myth." Two of the people who lit the candles were World War II concentration camp survivors, and a third was an Iranian Jew. "We want to bring the light and not fire to the world," said Rome's chief rabbi, Riccardo Di Segni. "The story of Hannukah...

MOSCOW. (RIA Novosti political observer Marianna Belenkaya.) -- Even now, representatives of all Jewish organizations celebrating Hanukkah in Moscow are unanimous in saying that the real miracle is that Russia has this holiday. Only fifteen years ago no one would have believed it possible to openly celebrate Jewish holidays in this country. The Jewish community in Russia today is a living proof that miracles did not happen only in ancient times and can occur even today. For several successive years, a hanukiah, or a nine-candle menorah, has been placed in the heart of Moscow, in Manezh Square near the Kremlin....

CAMP TAQADDUM, Iraq (Dec. 28, 2005) -- December is a month of celebration for multiple faiths, making the holiday season an extra busy time for chaplains in Iraq. Between Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and the Islamic Hajj, Navy Capt. Vince Arnold, 2nd Marine Logistics Group (Forward) group chaplain, knows the importance of providing for all service members, regardless of religious preferences. “This time of a year the three main religious groups being Judaism, Christianity and Islam, trace back their genealogy to one person: Abraham,” The Newport, N.C. native said. “It’s interesting that we are in Iraq during this season because this...

When did being obnoxious start getting confused with being intellectual? Honestly, I was just in another forum where somebody posted a picture of Jesus hanging on a cross with the caption "Happy Hanukkah, we killed your savior." Didn't these same people bitch and moan when the "Passion Of The Christ" came out because they said Mel Gibson was trying to say just that? But now if you're a left winger you can make a joke out of it and it's okay? The people who do this sort of thing call it "discussion". If you respond to them in like manner,...

A rabbi from Down Under has persuaded the city of Fort Collins to rise above a tradition that excludes menorah displays - but not in time to make tonight's Hanukkah celebration a permanent part of the 2005 holiday landscape. "You'd think we asked to put a stuffed kangaroo on display," said Rabbi Yerachmiel Gorelik, an Australian who moved to Fort Collins four months ago. "They weren't malicious but it was like, 'We don't do things like that.' " Last week the city turned down Gorelik's request to let a menorah remain on the public square - literally - alongside the...

Chabad Gives Chanukah 2005 Greatest Exposure Ever Stopping traffic in Malibu (photo courtesy: Shmais.com) WAIKIKI, HAWAII — Tuesday, December 27, 2005   blue Lego piece clutched in his chubby fingers, Zhak Goldemberg-Levy, just 21 months old, built a menorah with a little help from his grandfather Liviu Goldemberg at Chabad of Hawaii’s Chanukah celebration. Later, Hawaii’s Jewish Governor Linda Lingle lit a ten-foot-tall, 5,000-piece Lego menorah at Waikiki’s Gateway Park. Chabad of Hawaii’s recipe of child-friendly activities, a creative jumbo menorah, and a public figure to light it typified this year’s framework for Chabad-Lubavitch Chanukah celebrations. Spin a globe, plant a...

Kevin Seamus Hasson is busy this time of year. The founder and president of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, a public interest law firm dedicated to protecting religious liberty, Hasson is busy with numerous challenges to Nativity scenes on public property. Author of the new book The Right to Be Wrong: Ending the Culture War Over Religion in America (Encounter, 2005), Hasson once worked under Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito. He spoke to Register correspondent Joseph A. D’Agostino. Some will argue that if we continue to allow Christmas trees and menorahs, some day we will have Islamic crescents, Wiccan...