Happy Hanukkah 2016

Today is the first night of Hanukkah, which will run until January 1.   I wanted to take the time to wish all my Jewish friends a very happy one.

It's been a while since Hanukkah and Christmas occurred at roughly the same time, and after the emotional rollercoaster year we've all had that is ending on a down note, nice that these two major religious holidays are happening now.

I'm also thinking about at this time my friends the Chen family, who welcomed a new child into their family December 13 and she will be experiencing her very first Festival of Lights under the watchful eye of her two big brothers.

So once again Happy Hanukkah!    May the lights of this season brighten all of your lives and extend into the coming year.

Happy Hanukkah 2014!

Wanted to take a moment to wish all my Jewish trans family, friends and allies a Happy Hanukkah.

This year it starts at sundown tonight and will run until Christmas Eve.

Hanukkah is also known as the Festival of Lights, and celebrates the rededication of the Second Temple of Jerusalem during the second century B.C., when Jews led by the Maccabees revolted against their Greek-Syrian oppressors.

When the Maccabees rededicated their temple which had been desecrated under their oppressive occupation in which the Jewish religion had been outlawed and pigs had been sacrificed on its altar, they needed to light the menorah in the temple as part of that process.   They only had enough consecrated oil to do that for one night, but miraculously that was enough to light it for eight days and find a fresh batch of oil.

Each night during the eight days of Hanukkah a candle is lit on a menorah from a central helper candle.  They are lit from left to right.

So for my Jewish friends, trans family and allies, Happy Hanukkah!   

Happy Hanukkah 2012

To all my Jewish TransGriot readers, wanted to take a moment to wish you all a very Happy Hanukkah!

The dates for the Festival of Lights shift every year, so the 2012 edition of it starts today at sunset and runs through December 16 this year.   Here are the Hanukkah dates for the next three years.: 

2013:   November 27-December 5
2014:   December 16-24
2015:   December 6-14

With the backdrop of conflict and drama once again ensnaring Israel, Syria, Palestine, Gaza, Egypt, Iran and other countries and territories in the region, we hope and pray as fellow travelers on this big planet we share that one of the things the Middle East gets to see during this holiday season is a lessening of tensions and eventually a lasting peace.  

Happy Hanukkah!

Wanted to take a moment to wish all of my Jewish TransGriot readers a happy Hanukkah!

The Festival of Lights is a significant Jewish holiday that starts at sunset tonight and runs through sunset on December 28.   It celebrates a miracle that occurred after the second century BCE Maccabean rebellion ousted the Greek forces occupying their land and they regained control of the second Jewish Temple in Jerusalem.

The Temple had been desecrated by the Greeks and the Maccabean  troops were determined to reconsecrate it for Jewish spiritual purposes by burning ritual oil in the temple's menorah for eight days. To their dismay they discovered that the Temple only contained a one day supply of ritual oil in the single flask they discovered inside it. 

They lit the oil and miraculously the tiny flask of oil fueled the temple’s menorah for eight nights.

This miracle is what Jews all over the world celebrate during Hanukkah.   The first candle is lit on the first night, then two, and it continues until all eight candles on the menorah are lit.
.

\n"; document.getElementById('resselect').value=zoomres; } -->