Rahm Emanuel Lights National Menorah At White House (PHOTOS)

WASHINGTON -- White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel lit the National Menorah in celebration of Hanukkah.

The Sunday ceremony marked the 30th anniversary of the first National Menorah lighting in 1979. President Jimmy Carter attended that ceremony.

Hanukkah commemorates the rededication of the Jewish Second Temple in Jerusalem in 164 B.C. after its desecration by the Syrian-Greeks. The eight-day festival began on Friday.

Emanuel, who is Jewish, was the guest of honor at the lighting on the Ellipse in front of the White House. He stood in a cherry picker to light it in front of more than 1,000 onlookers on a cold, rainy day.

Rabbi Abraham Shemtov, left, Rahm Emanuel, center, and Rabbi Levi Shemtov light the National Menorah in front of the White House.

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Comments

[naschkatze]

09:53 PM on 12/14/2009

No religious celebrations of any kind in any governmental agency or participated in by any governmental employee. Let the citizens celebrate what they will in their own homes with peace of mind. That's all I ask.

[mesioul]

01:37 PM on 12/15/2009

I see your point. But the tradition of xmas trees etc. would be hard to break. And these are really festivals, no preaching or indoctrinating involved. In Judaism, Chanukah is considered a festival, not a High Holy Day like Yom Kippur.

[b1986]

07:22 PM on 12/14/2009

Mortifyd replied on Dec 14, 2009 at 18:32:53
“Israel is a Jewish country. Christianity is a minority religion and should know it's place. Kind of how American Christians want Jews to "get over it" and just be Christian.”

Yeah... Um no. American Christians (at least the ones that I know) don't what Jews to just get over it and become Christian. Jews at 2% are a small minority in the American population but we don't boycott their businesses if they have a menorah in the window. By your statement I guess you believe that Americans shouldn't hold them to the same standards of tollarance.

[mesioul]

02:13 PM on 12/14/2009

It seems some kristians & @thiests have a common fear of diversity. Only white bread and mayo allowed.

Relax, folks, nobody is changing policy or forcing conversions. Just a little enjoyment of diversity. So the WH does Eid, Xmas & Chanukah... I hope they do Kwanzaa too... if you look at Kwanzaa before getting hysterical, I think you will find nothing objectionable about it, unless you object to anything with African roots... and since Egypt is part of Africa, you'd have to go all the way to China or India to escape African influence...

I think a Hindu festival on the WH lawn would be way cool...

[Oleg1]

03:39 PM on 12/14/2009

Co sign on Hindu festival. Any place that can put together an activity that involves garlic naan, some Kathak dancing and Mahabharata play -- I am all for it.

[Mortifyd]

08:12 PM on 12/14/2009

Me too!

[aseasonforreason]

01:34 PM on 12/14/2009

How sad to see this digress into a political thread - and a fairly ugly one at that. If ever we could benefit from a season encouraging tolerance and love, this seems to be the time. Regardless of your religious beliefs - or non-religious beliefs, it is rough out there and we are facing tough issues in a climate of so much fear.

It's the holidays, folks. And people in the White House are celebrating them, too. Don't worry, there is plenty of Christmas and Christian representation and the White House celebrating -some- of America's diversity during what is an important and special time of the year for many of our citizens does not mean infiltration of the Church into government. There are other issues to worry about there - on other threads.

Happy Hanukkah. Merry Christmas. Good festivus. Merry Kwanzaa. Happy holidays, one and all. May all of us find some peace, contentment, good will - and faith in whatever form it takes - during the season and into the New Year. And maybe even on a thread or two...

[US1st2009]

01:51 PM on 12/14/2009

aseasonforreason - first, happy holidays to you and yours. :-)

they are putting a meorah in our most political of spaces so it's not possible to separate the two. they should either have a display that represents all the religions, beliefs, and atheists in this country, the diverse melting pot that supposedly makes our country great, or none. having such an outsized symbol that represents less than 2% of our population is inappropriate and sends a message to the "other" 98%.

[aseasonforreason]

02:36 PM on 12/14/2009

Thank you! Happy holidays to you, as well.

I'd love to see some kind of symbol that represents all of us, our diversity and our tradition of separation of Church and State. That would be a great national project, open to all to enter. What inspiration could come from such a project!

But to say that the presence of a menorah 'sends a message' to the other 98% seems wrong, unless it is a good message. I'm not Jewish but I feel that menorah in WA represents me in some fundamental way in that it represents a respect that I value. There are MANY Christian and Christmas symbols, including at least 51 Christmas trees. (What percentage of the population do they make up?) Other religions are not represented, and I appreciate that point. The non-religious are also not represented, though given it is a season primarily dedicated to a set of religious holidays, I'm sort of iffy on whether that matters to them. If it does, I am all about striving for inclusion.

Beyond that, many comments here fall into themes of being anti-semitic or "me, Me, ME!" and that's what I object to in my prior post. All of us could benefit from a spirit of good will and tolerance during what is meant to be a peaceful season that brings us together. Being presented with such symbols gives us the chance to practice those principles and celebrate together. It's been a rough year - and decade.

[mesioul]

02:04 PM on 12/14/2009

Thank you!

[Bulldog96]

01:22 PM on 12/14/2009

jackumup,
The Menorah is paid for privately nor is it the official Jewish symbol (star of David).
Annually there is a national Christmas tree set up within the White house grounds and 50+ state and territory XMAS trees setup nearby.

Steve

[Albert Amato]

01:30 PM on 12/14/2009

I have never heard of facts changing a bigot's view of events.

[US1st2009]

11:53 AM on 12/14/2009

the worlds largest menorah brought to you by goldman sachs and partners via their hundreds of billions in taxpayer bonuses and trillions in toxic derivative assets.

[mesioul]

11:55 AM on 12/14/2009

Um, I think the menorah was provided by Chabad.

[US1st2009]

12:08 PM on 12/14/2009

from The Jerusalem Post: Nov 14, 2007 21:38 | Updated Nov 15, 2007 11:20 - Chabad heads suspected of major embezzlement - http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1195036609095&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

[indy169]

12:04 PM on 12/14/2009

I get the feeling the US is a subsidiary of Israel.

[Mortifyd]

06:39 PM on 12/14/2009

So you don't want all that tech the Israelis give us? OK then!

[Oleg1]

11:05 AM on 12/14/2009

After reading some of the primitives on this thread, I was inspired to made a donation to ADL..
So should you.
http://www.adl.org/donations.asp

[kentah]

12:42 PM on 12/14/2009

Yes. Advertisements and money solve everything.

[Oleg1]

01:20 PM on 12/14/2009

ADL does great work to counter some of the primitives posting here.

[nditf]

11:04 AM on 12/14/2009

the feast of of festus is more appropriate...

[SCLAW]

11:03 AM on 12/14/2009

2 relevant queries:

Can it be seen from outer space;

does it have espionage capability?

[mesioul]

11:40 AM on 12/14/2009

lol

[ZimboChick]

02:20 PM on 12/14/2009

heheheheheh

[BeenieMon]

10:39 AM on 12/14/2009

"why didn't you get the big one?"

-Jerry Seinfeld

[lastep]

10:30 AM on 12/14/2009

dual citizen rahm

[Bulldog96]

01:26 PM on 12/14/2009

Rahm Emanuel is a tool of J Street which is largely financed by the Iranian and Saudi Arabian governments.

[byla]

08:28 PM on 12/14/2009

A lot of people in this country have duel citizenship from all over the world. What's your point?

[rcampbell]

10:19 AM on 12/14/2009

Hey Rahm, you've had your photo op, now get the heck over to the Senater and start busting some heads!!!

[US1st2009]

09:58 AM on 12/14/2009

what happened to the rabbis selling organs in NJ? that got buried in the msm real fast.

[ProCynic]

10:26 AM on 12/14/2009

Whats your point? My Rabbi sells guitars, trumpets, and drums. He may sell organs too, but I see a lot of keyboards in his store.

[gakabani]

10:51 AM on 12/14/2009

Human organs?

[US1st2009]

09:57 AM on 12/14/2009

2% of the US population dwarf all around them.

[Oleg1]

11:09 AM on 12/14/2009

Well, you could've studied hard, went to the best college and made somethin' of yourself too.
What stopped you?

[US1st2009]

12:09 PM on 12/14/2009

or i could be like blankfein and do god's work?

[US1st2009]

12:35 PM on 12/14/2009

jack abramof went to the finest schools. jeff picower funded multi-million dollar projects at MIT. or do you mean like stanley chais?

[Quisqueyano]

09:48 AM on 12/14/2009

The thing about Judaism is that they demand others to open their tents while they themselves throw out and then close their tent to others. If you don't believe me ask a Palestinian.

[JanPoore]

10:46 AM on 12/14/2009

Stop making raci$t and innaccurate statements. Do your homework. First you're confusing Judaism with the state of Israel. Second, you're confusing Palestinians with terrorists. Third, you need to study the history. Fourth, Israelis don't teach their children to h8 Palestinians and strap b0mmb$ on themselves to k1ll as many as possible. Palestinians, on the other hand, teach their children in school to h8 Jew$ and make m@rtyr$ of themselves by being $u1 cide b0mmber$.

[GO-BAMA]

10:47 AM on 12/14/2009

It must be tough, being such a ridiculous person.