Big Tent Judaism

Add Meaning to Hanukkah This Year

Celebrating Hanukkah is certainly an exciting part in creating a Jewish home. We light the hanukiyah, sing songs, play dreidel, and commemorate the triumph of religious freedom. Of course many of us also exchange gifts and participate in the season’s theme of giving. There are plenty of smiles during the gift-giving, but it also may seem overwhelming; one may feel that a sense of meaning has been lost if the activity does not take into account the world we live in today. As we prepare for Hanukkah this year, consider using Hanukkah as an opportunity to look beyond our home and to our greater world.

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Beyond the “Dilemma”

As soon as the fall holidays pass and a chill descends upon the Northeast, we at the Jewish Outreach Institute (JOI) start receiving calls about Hanukkah programming.

“What can we do for Hanukkah?” a Jewish communal professional asks in hopes of reaching the unaffiliated. “Do you offer a December Dilemma class?” a synagogue educator asks in hopes of welcoming interfaith couples.

These calls mark progress in the Jewish community. We can see a shift among Jewish institutions in that they are thinking more about how to serve a broader spectrum of Jewish households. We applaud this growing awareness and encourage the Jewish community to offer many more programs around the holidays that are low-barrier, easy-access, and serve people where they are. This includes the many intermarried households that are not yet engaging with the organized Jewish community.

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