Hanukkah on Huffington Post

Rabbi Jason Miller: Hanukkah Comes Early This Year

2013-01-07T12:08:58Z

The Jewish calendar situation this year is unique. In fact, it has not occurred since 1899 and will only occur once more. Ever.

Read more: Jewish Calendar, Jewish Holidays, Hanukkah, Hanukkah 2013, Judaism, Lunar Calander, Interfaith Holidays 2013, Religion News

William B. Bradshaw: When Should Holiday Decorations Come Down?

2013-01-02T12:17:46Z

Now that Hanukkah and Christmas are over and we are wishing "Happy New Year" to everyone we see, when is, or when was, the proper time to take down holiday decorations? There are several answers to this question, depending on what one means by "holiday" decorations.

Read more: Holidays, Holiday Season, Christmas Decorations, Christmas, Hanukkah Decorations, Hanukkah, Interfaith Holidays, Religion News

Melissa T. Shultz: How My Mother Helped Me Transition To An Empty Nest

2012-12-31T10:31:20Z

And so here we are, on the eve of the New Year -- a year that will be all about saying goodbye to the old way of doing things and hello to our new stage of life. A year in which I need to accept that the traditions that revolved around my children can evolve and yet still be meaningful and intimate.

Read more: New Year's Resolutions, Holidays, Women, New Year's Eve, Chanukah, Empty Nest, Moms, Grandparents, Parents, College Students, Teenagers, Fifty News

Diana M. Raab: Musings on Our Life Stories

2012-12-26T19:14:11Z

Thankfully, the Mayans were wrong and as we gracefully approach 2013, we will face many new beginnings to talk and write about. In addition, holiday time is a natural time to reflect on our past and what brought us to where we are now.

Read more: Don McAdams, Holocaust, Hannukah, Frank Bures, Christmas, Christmas Tradition, Vienna, Christmas Tree, 2013, Mayan Calendar, Fifty News

Judith Greenberg, Ph.D.: Christmas Gifts In A Jewish Home

2012-12-25T16:28:55Z

How we read and approach the stories of others is all-important. How can we interpret with a reflective heart? We can simultaneously celebrate our own traditions and welcome the beauty of those of others.

Read more: Hanukkah, Holiday Season, Revelations, Christmas, Holiday Gifts, Interfaith, Christianity, Interfaith Families, Judaism, Religion News

Rabbi Rachel Gartner: Who Will Retell? An Interfaith Miracle

2012-12-25T16:11:37Z

The miracles we choose to retell shape our sense of what is possible. We owe it to our children to tell and retell the glowing stories of cooperation between Muslims and Jews on college campuses.

Read more: Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, Hanukkah, Interreligious Understanding, Georgetown University, Faith on Campus, Interfaith Dialogue, Interfaith, Religion News

Mirabai Starr: Season Of Light

2012-12-24T18:00:11Z

In this light all barriers melt and we remember our essential interconnectedness. In this light we notice that there is no such thing as the Other.

Read more: Christmas, Islam, Hanukkah, Winter Solstice, Taos Pueblo, Advent, Luminarias, Peace, Interfaith, Prayer and Meditation, Interfaith Prayer, Religion News

Erica Shaps: Brandeis' Christmas: Kosher Cookies Will Be Served

2012-12-24T16:17:01Z

Brandeis' identity presents challenges: How can the school celebrate its Jewish roots and accommodate its large Jewish population while still being inclusive and welcoming to all of its students? I would be lying if I said we never experience awkwardness as we try to strike a balance.

Read more: Interfaith, Christmas, Judaism, Hanukkah, Interfaith Christmas, Religion in College, Jewish Students, Brandeis University, Religion on Campus, Religion News

Avital Norman Nathman: Jews and Santa

2012-12-24T12:51:24Z

As the boys were all running around, the other child told my son, You better behave, Santa is watching." Without missing a beat, he answered, "Nah, he doesn't watch me because I'm Jewish!"

Read more: Hannukah, Christmas, Raising Jewish Children, Jewish Holidays, Santa, Holidays 2012, Jews and Santa, Jews and Christmas, Parents-Moms, Parents News

Menachem Rosensaft: Stop the Massacres of Our Children: The Case for Meaningful Gun Control Legislation

2012-12-24T08:44:19Z

We cannot change the past. We cannot bring back to life a single murdered child. But all of us, regardless of party affiliation or political orientation, can and must do everything in our collective power to stop the carnage of our children in the future.

Read more: Chris Christie, Hanukkah, Rush Limbaugh, Assault Weapons, Gun Control, Joe Biden, Lindsey Graham, Nra, Barack Obama, Larry Alan Burns, Wayne LaPierre, Obama Newtown School Shooting, Joe Scarborough, Newtown Elementary School Shooting, Bob Casey, Mark Warner, Joe Manchin, Assault Weapons Ban, Connecticut School Shooting, Guns, Gun Violence, Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting, Politics News

Food52: 12 Easy, Tasty Holiday Cookies

2012-12-23T07:30:54Z

It's the season for baking holiday cookies for the endless family gatherings, and there's no harm in sneaking some for yourself (in the name of quality assurance, of course).

Read more: Holiday, Cookies, Hanukkah, How-To, Recipes, Christmas, food52, Baking, Food, Slidepollajax, Holiday Entertaining, Taste News

How To Beat The Gay Holiday Blues

2012-12-22T07:41:00Z

Being gay isn't easy ... especially around the holidays.

We're just days before the big "C" — Christmas. Chanukah has passed and Thanksgiving is ...

Read more: LGBT Lifestyles, Chanukah, Hanukkah, Gay Relationships, Gay Holiday Seasons, Christmas, Gay Relationship Advice, Gay Holidays, Gay Christmas, Gay Voices News

Carl Sandler: Homo For The Holidays: An 8-Point Survival Guide

2012-12-21T21:25:00Z

For many gay people, spending the holidays with their families is an uncomfortable, nerve-wracking experience that means repressing their true selves to avoid conflict, taking a step backward on the path to self-acceptance they fought so hard to forge.

Read more: Coming Out, Holidays, Chanukah, Coming Out of the Closet, Gay, Gays, Gay Issues, Christmas, Hanukkah, Home for the Holidays, Holidays With Family, Gay Home for the Holidays, Christmas 2012, Hanukkah 2012, Gay Voices News

Rob Taub: A Holiday Note From Rob Taub

2012-12-21T04:59:40Z

I look forward to a prosperous 2013, and while I haven't been following politics lately, I believe that both parties are capable of bringing us back to times we've only read about -- like the ice age.

Read more: Manhattan, Summer Camp, Ice Fishing, Politics, Chanukah, Sports Agents, Christmas, Comedy News

Rabbi David Saperstein: Hanukkah's Lesson In Cultural Preservation

2012-12-21T14:24:51Z

The plight of a group that has been systematically oppressed resonates with us as Jews. As descendants of the Maccabees, we empathize with the excitement about and importance of maintaining and reclaiming a national and communal identity.

Read more: Violence Against Women Act, Native Americans, Hanukkah, Religion and Politics, Holocaust, Judaism, Genocide, Religion News

Rabbi William Plevan: Praying For Comfort And Strength

2012-12-21T13:19:39Z

What do we do now in the face of tragedy? Though Joseph may have, we do not need to have capacity to forgive; that can be for some other time. Right now we need to build our capacity for light, for hope and for strength, slowly, one candle at a time.

Read more: Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting, Prayers and Poetry, Newtown Sermons, Newtown School Shooting, Judaism, Scripture Commentary, Jewish Wisdom, Torah, Scripture Study, Hanukkah, Religion News

Rabbi Barry Block: Sadness At The Season Of Light

2012-12-21T12:16:41Z

We are horrified by the tragic mass murder in Connecticut, a tragedy we can scarcely fathom. Even though our revelry is dampened by the sadness, we will not let our celebration be swallowed up.

Read more: Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting, Hanukkah, Prayers and Poetry, Newtown Sermons, Newtown School Shooting, Judaism, Shabbat, Scripture Commentary, Mourning, Scripture Study, Religion News

Rabbi Evan Schultz: Continue To Light The Flames

2012-12-21T12:44:21Z

We must not wait around for miracles. Only we can counteract the evils in our world. Only we can impart upon our children a vision of light, of hope for the future, and pray for them to find a way to actualize that dream.

Read more: Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting, Hanukkah, Prayers and Poetry, Newtown Sermons, Newtown School Shooting, Jewish Wisdom, Judaism, Religion News

Rabbi Michael Bernstein: Face-To-Face With Darkness

2012-12-21T12:31:33Z

Having spent this week celebrating light during this Season of Light, we now are called upon to be face to face with a darkness that also runs deep. We are beset with the lingering fears and heartbreak that will be imprinted by this terror. How can we turn once more to the light?

Read more: Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting, Hanukkah, Prayers and Poetry, Newtown Sermons, Newtown School Shooting, Good and Evil, Judaism, Religion News

Martha Burk: What Price the Princess Cult? Toys, Our Kids, and Harmful Messages

2012-12-21T10:11:43Z

Our daughters are awash in princesses and pink. Is this pinkification and princess obsession harming our girls? Is being a princess a career? I put these questions to Peggy Orenstein, author of Cinderella Ate My Daughter: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the New Girlie-Girl Culture.

Read more: Girls, Toys, Miley Cyrus, Pink, Toy Marketing, Disney Princess, Princess, Christmas, Hannukah, Boys, Disney, Gender, Parents News

Shira Lazar: Comedian Heather McDonald Dishes About Her Very Kardashian Christmas Gone Wrong (VIDEO)

2012-12-20T12:59:17Z

At the first annual Tube-a-Tweet-a-Thon, presented by Virgin Mobile and What's Trending, author and comedian Heather McDonald (Chelsea Lately) share...

Read more: Dish, Hanukkah, Charity, Tweet, Children, Special, Bash, Hysterical, Wrong, Shira Lazar, Holiday, Virgin, Show, Stars, Fundraise, Kids, Christmas, Homeless, Sick, Amiss, Spectacular, Celebrities, Candy, Covenant House, Funny, Khristmas, Chelsea Lately, Story, Youth, Anecdote, Author, Money, Comedian, Mobile, Khloe Kardashian, Nutcrackers, Party, Hilarious, Kourtney Kardashian, Youtube, Tubeathon, Live, Kim Kardashian, Scoop, Giant, Kardashian, What's Trending, Video, Comedy News

LearnVest: Sneak a Peek at Real Moms' Holiday Spending

2012-12-20T15:09:26Z

The most wonderful time of the year? Not for your checking account. According to the National Retail Federation, the average holiday shopper spends $750 on gifts and décor at Christmas time. But where do they get the extra dough?

Read more: Hanukkah Presents, Hanukkah Budget, Hanukkah Spending, Christmas Presents, Homemade Gifts, Holiday Budget, Hanukkah Gifts, Christmas Budget, Holiday Gifts, Holiday Spending, Holiday Gift Ideas, Parents News

Arnold M. Eisen: Lights Against The Darkness

2012-12-20T14:20:29Z

The news about the school shootings in Connecticut reached me just before Shabbat, the seventh day of Hanukkah. Candle-lighting seemed more needed than usual that evening.

Read more: Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting, Prayers and Poetry, Newtown Sermons, Newtown School Shooting, Judaism, Hanukkah, Good and Evil, Jewish Wisdom, Religion and Politics, Religion News

Annette Powers: 'Mommy, Why Don't You Have A Christmas Tree Like Daddy?'

2012-12-20T14:00:57Z

For parents of different faiths, December often brings holiday challenges. For divorced parents with joint custody, these challenges can be amplified.

Read more: Marriage, Religion, Hanukkah, Chanukah, Divorce, Christmas, Interfaith, Christianity, Parenting, Divorce News

Rabbi Marc Schneier: The Making Of Modern-Day Miracles: Hanukkah With The Chief Rabbi, Imams And Barack Obama

2012-12-20T12:06:18Z

Presiding over this historic gathering, the first time a chief rabbi of Israel has sat down together with American Muslim leaders, I reflected that its very occurrence showed about how far Muslims and Jews have come together in six short years.

Read more: Religion and Politics, Martin Luther King, Barack Obama, Foundation for Ethnic Understanding, Islam, Hanukkah, Peace, Interfaith, Judaism, Chief Rabbi of Israel, Muslim-Jewish Relations, Peacemaking, Religion News