An interfaith, justice-forward Hanukkah: 5 holiday takeaways for every couple or community

Hanukkah, the holiday of “dedication” or the “Festival of Lights”, is an eight-day holiday in the Jewish tradition that commemorates the destruction and re-dedication of the historic Second Temple in Jerusalem. While the holiday will always remain tied to that historical period, exploring how its message reverberates today allows couples of all religious configurations – including atheists! – to explore a beautiful tradition and make new meaning for themselves and their blended families and friends. Below are five suggestions for where to start:

1. The most hallowed perk of Hanukkah, whispered about incredulously by my Christmas-celebrating friends in middle school, was its eight-day span. At the time, that translated to eight potential opportunities for presents – an opportunity my family personally never availed itself of, but did exist in Jewish tween myth.

As an adult, I’ve found that the length of Hanukkah makes it a beautiful opportunity to expand the typical expectation of spending holidays with nuclear families that tends to happen around Christmastime, which is conveniently (or inconveniently, though I like to think not!) when Hanukkah starts this year. Make the holiday into a cooperative occasion by hosting a potluck dinner on one of the early nights of Hanukkah with friends, colleagues, chosen or biological family where everyone can bring a piece of their palate to the table.

2. In keeping with Hanukkah’s focus on time and natural resources (a very classic and cross-cultural holiday ethos), the modern Hanukkah celebration cannot help but focus on the modern implications of making the Temple’s oil last for eight nights. This is the reason for the holiday’s length and menorah-lighting practice. In today’s world, that tale translates to sustainability, a value closely reflected in the Jewish mandate of tikkun olam, repairing the world. Sustainability is both an accessible and imperative inroad for discussing Hanukkah with those who want to learn more about the holiday.

Making a menorah (the Hanukkah candle holder) or Hanukkah decorations from found or recycled materials is a fun way to personalize your menorah to your home, partnership or family. It also reinforces the importance of using what we already have and celebrating the gifts it can keep giving us.

Here’s a great tutorial on turning scrap paper around your home into handmade, recycled paper for notes, gifts or even sculpting! (Note: for those who are not artistically inclined, taking a winter walk and sourcing trash and litter to either recycle, dispose of or use for Hanukkah crafting by others is a great way to take part. See if you can find eight pieces or more around your home and neighborhood!)

3. I have found that Judaism’s strong foundation of social justice engagement and advocacy has been a welcome starting point for helping others to learn more about – and for me to crystalize – my Jewish practice. In thinking about the Jewish values most strongly represented in the celebration of Hanukkah, one dynamic that comes to mind is oppression: the seemingly endless cycle of the powerful and the powerless.

Have a discussion with your partner (or a friend) about instances of power and powerlessness, on a personal, local, national or global scale. This can allow for both of you to share the way your identities and experiences shape how you move through the world, and identify avenues of social action like mutual aid, group advocacy and local volunteering as a strong pillar of your relationship.

Here are some local organizations that could use your time and energy, and who have been partners to the Alliance:

OpenDoors RI – OpenDoors Rhode Island takes a “holistic approach” to support individuals returning from incarceration and reintegrating into our communities. The organization provides people with the material and emotional tools to create stable routines and move toward addiction treatment and recovery.  It helps them find consistent work, particularly through its transitional housing initiatives, and employment program. I’ve worked with them on testimony to end solitary confinement in Rhode Island and found them to be wonderful partners. Volunteer here.

Youth Pride, Inc. - Youth Pride, Inc.’s mission is to meet the specialized and ongoing needs of LGBTQ+ youth and young adults “through direct service, support, advocacy, and education.” You can get involved here.

Jewish Collaborative Services - Jewish Collaborative Services (JCS) serves the greater Rhode Island area, without regard to religion, in senior housing, counseling, nutrition, and other services. Reach out here.

4. Finding light in the darkest times is a crucial way to rest and renew yourselves. It encourages us to commit to the continued work ahead and connect with others who want to make a positive impact on their communities and the world. It may sound simple, but listing eight experiences, people or elements in your life that you value (or sharing one each night of Hanukkah) helps to ground you and your partner in gratitude.

5. When in doubt, do something Jewish that’s new to BOTH of you. For example, as a Jew of Ashkenazi (Central/Eastern European Jewish) heritage, I never grew up familiar with Mizrahi (Middle East/North Africa/Parts of Asia) or Sephardic (Spanish/diasporic from Iberian Peninsula) Jewish practices for Hanukkah.

Even the playing field by exploring an element of Judaism neither of you have tried: lighting your menorah and cooking your holiday dishes with coconut oil, as is preferred by Jews in India. Or, honor the Yiddish word and Jewish communal theory of doikayt, or “hereness,” reflecting on diasporic homelands that have welcomed Jewish families. Do this by lighting an extra candle each night as has become “a hallmark [for] Sephardic-Syrian Jews,” writes Jewish Journal columnist Tabby Refael, a Persian Jew.

“According to one interpretation, they arrived in safety in Syria after the expulsion on the first night of Hanukkah,” writes Refael.

“They viewed their arrival in safety as their own miracle.”

For Mizrahi Jews in Yemen and North Africa, the seventh night of Hanukkah is the “Festival of Daughters”, known as Chag Ha’Banot in Hebrew or Eid Al Banat in Judeo-Arabic. This festival celebrates “one of the best things Judaism has ever given to the world: Jewish women,” writes Refael.

This year, the festival falls on Dec. 31, 2024, which is also New Year’s Eve on the Gregorian calendar. Refael describes a celebration that “involves singing, dancing and lighting the hanukkiah [menorah] in honor of Jewish women.” Expand that notion and use the last night of 2024 to celebrate all the women and LGBTQIA+ individuals in your life, at a time when the country’s incoming administration has sent the message that its back is turned.

Plan to meet for a walk or coffee in the waning winter days of Hanukkah, send a sweet, natural surprise of local winter veggies, or reach out with messages of positivity and commitment to action to the women and LGBTQIA+ people you love. Trust me, it will go a long way toward keeping our guttering flame lit. We need it, however small, as we head into January 2025.

EMMA NEWBERY (enewbery@jewishallianceri.org) is a staff writer and podcast host for Jewish Rhode Island.