 Hanukkah |
 Kwanzaa |
Hanukkah -
Begins
December 7, 2004
Blakes Medley
Every year between the end of November and the end of December, Jewish people around the world celebrate this holiday. Hanukkah begins on the 25th day of the Hebrew month of Kislev, but the starting date on the western calendar varies from year to year.
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Summary: This extra special
activity book is sure to help parents, grandparents, teachers,
and children extend and enhance holiday traditions with all kinds
of colorful, memorable projects and fun-filled ideas.
The dreidel is a 4-sided toy marked with Hebrew letters and spun like a top. It is used in a children's game of chance played especially at Hanukkah. |
Booth
Library (Book):
In America, families celebrate Hanukkah at home. They give and receive gifts, decorate the house, entertain friends and family, eat special foods, and light the holiday menorah.
Jews celebrate Hanukkah (also spelled Hanukka, Chanukah or Chanukkah) to mark the victory over the Syrians and the rededication of the Jerusalem Temple in 164 B.C.
In the land of Judea, the Syrian king, Antiochus, ordered the Jewish people to reject their God, their religion, their customs and their beliefs and to worship the Greek gods. There were some who did as they were told, but many refused. One who refused was Judah Maccabee.
Judah and his four brothers formed an army and chose as their name the word "Maccabee", which means hammer. After three years of fighting, the Maccabees were finally successful in driving the Syrians out of Israel and reclaimed the Temple in Jerusalem. The Maccabees wanted to clean the building and to remove the hated Greek symbols and statues. On the 25th day of the month of Kislev, the job was finished and the temple was rededicated.
When Judah and his followers finished cleaning the temple, they wanted to light the eternal light, known as the N'er Tamid, which is present in every Jewish house of worship. Once lit, the oil lamp should never be extinguished.
Also called the Feast of Lights or the Feast of the Macabees, Hanukkah lasts for eight days to commemorate the miracle of the oil. The word Hanukkah means "rededication."