As my daughter-in-law comes from a family with a history in Russia’s 19th century Jewish community, we are celebrating Hanukkah this year, creating our first Christmukkah experience! It was an entertaining and educational evening to read about lighting the first candle on the menorah and talk about its history at the end of our Christmas roast dinner.
“This year, we interfaith couples face a bit of a challenge. The Jewish calendar is based on the lunisolar cycle, which does not sync with the Gregorian one. So Hanukkah and Christmas rarely end up on the same dates. Roughly every 10 to 20 years, though, they do; 2024 is such a year, the first since 2005 (Jewish holidays start at sundown the night before their first day.).”
To all our Jewish friends and colleagues, “Chag urim sameach!”