Hanukkah
Why Did Hanukkah Become ‘Jewish Christmas’?
An exploration of the Christmasification of December holidays.
Photo by Bobbi Lin
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12 Comments
Maddalen
December 19, 2022
When I was a child, my family would head to the Borscht Belt for the four-day Christmas weekend. Great way for a Jewish family to ignore Christmas hoopla! As an adult, my friends and I always ate out at whatever restaurants were open that day. Not until I moved away from NYC in 1998 did I find out that Chinese food on Christmas day was a "thing". Happily, it's a fun thing, and a tradition my husband and I enjoy.
copywolf
December 19, 2022
There is no such thing as "Jewish Christmas." I had never seen that usage until this article. Jewish and Christ go together about as well as ham on a matzo. As a Jew, it is certainly nice to go to the homes of Christian friends and enjoy Christmas with them. Equally, it's nice to invite them in to enjoy Jewish traditions like latkes at Hanukkah or a Passover seder. Kids don't suffer from not having Santa or a tree. It just requires a bit of explanation. Articles like this that muddy the waters do Jews a disservice and suggest that somehow we must participate in the wider culture or feel inferior for not doing so. I love Food52 and this is ground you probably shouldn't be treading. Very insensitive now in a world filled with burgeoning anti-Semitism.
Ellen
December 26, 2021
Christmas Day is a day for Chinese food in our family. I thought that was because it is the only restaurant open! I would never have a blue Christmas tree with a Star of David on top. I would feel it is an insult to Christians: defacing one of the item they use to celebrate Christmas. I grew upon a small town on New Jersey with my closest friends being Christian. My mother saved one Chanukah gift for Christmas morning so we would feel like we had a gift when our friends did. That was as an elementary school child only. After that we only got gifts on Chanukah.
Lynn Z.
December 25, 2021
This is an offensive micro aggression. You are defining an ethnoreligious minority by the dominant group-who throughout history (no blame to current members of this group) have performed multiple genocides and oppression.
Against popular myth this is is actually NOT a minor holiday to the Jewish people. It marked, one of many, major, history altering events upon our people.
Please be sure that ethnic groups cultures are treated w greater depth, nuance and sensitivity.
Against popular myth this is is actually NOT a minor holiday to the Jewish people. It marked, one of many, major, history altering events upon our people.
Please be sure that ethnic groups cultures are treated w greater depth, nuance and sensitivity.
Marla K.
November 27, 2021
Not to be that person, but...
Hanukkah is not Jewish Christmas. True, both holidays fall around the same time of year, but there's no equivalence between them. Christmas is a big damn deal to Christians and secular people alike and Hanukkah is a relatively minor festival which we make a big deal out of so that our kids don't feel like they're missing out of something that the larger culture celebrates.
Who doesn't love the trappings of Christmas? The tree and all the shiny, sparkly decorations? The fresh scent of pine? The wonderful pageantry? The celebrations of family and friends?
But Hanukkah isn't the Jewish version of Christmas. It's its own very special thing. It's not a substitute.
Hanukkah is not Jewish Christmas. True, both holidays fall around the same time of year, but there's no equivalence between them. Christmas is a big damn deal to Christians and secular people alike and Hanukkah is a relatively minor festival which we make a big deal out of so that our kids don't feel like they're missing out of something that the larger culture celebrates.
Who doesn't love the trappings of Christmas? The tree and all the shiny, sparkly decorations? The fresh scent of pine? The wonderful pageantry? The celebrations of family and friends?
But Hanukkah isn't the Jewish version of Christmas. It's its own very special thing. It's not a substitute.
pam
November 28, 2021
And if I may add as a non-church participating baptized Christian, I can’t stand how overdone Christmas is. It is meant to be one day, but business has turned it into a multi-month event. And we all buy in because we love to get stuff
Chaya
November 27, 2021
I’ve always loved Hanukkah; it’s such a fun, low key holiday. My family never did anything on Christmas when I was a kid. It was just another vacation day. I always thought Hanukkah was so much better than Christmas! When my kids were young, we often went skiing on Christmas Day. It’s a great day to hit the slopes!
Gale M.
November 27, 2021
Our Jewish family enjoys Christmas brunch every year, and it is never the same. We’ve had tamales, fancy frittatas with fruit, eggs with lots of bacon, and French toast. One year we had an all-pie menu: shepherds pie, tuna pie, chicken pot pie, and pumpkin pie. After eating, we take turns revealing our stocking stuffers, until the stockings are empty. Not spiritual or religious in any sense, but full of love and togetherness.
cyanpineapple
November 27, 2021
While it's not a spiritually significant holiday, Chanukah is HUGE throughout the diaspora. The food is delicious, and it's a good excuse to light candles during the dark parts of winter. Not every holiday needs to be spiritually important. Sometimes they're just fun.
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