I don’t know if I have ever written about being Jewish before. But, I am Jewish! I want to write this post to talk about some of the facts of Hanukkah that I am always asked about. I love that people are always interested in learning more about Judaism, but I wanted to write something to clear it all up for you!
I am writing about how I personally celebrate the holiday season.
A little more about my family dynamic: My mom is Jewish and my dad was raised Methodist, but does not live a religious life and I was raised Jewish, I am not “half and half.”
- No I do not also celebrate Christmas. Because my father is not Jewish, we do give him Christmas presents on Christmas and as a kid we would get a few things to open along with him, but I no longer receive presents as well. My sister and I would help decorate my grandparent’s tree, but we did not have our own nor did we have lights.
But let me tell you, we do have some really beautiful menorahs! - Hanukkah is not our most important holiday. While I was in class last week, I overheard a few girls talking with one-another and one said “I feel so bad for Jewish students because we don’t get off of school for Hanukkah.” It was so sweet of her that she was thinking of us Jewish students, but this holiday is only as well-known as it is because it is happens around the same time of year that Christmas does! 🙂
- “Wow you get a present a day for eight days?”- This is something I hear a LOT. So first let me say that EVERY family does presents for Hanukkah differently!
- “Oh, so do you celebrate the birth of Jesus?”- Something that really makes Judaism and Christianity different is that we do not consider Jesus to be G-d’s son nor do we consider him our Messiah. (I know, we’ve been waiting a while, haha!)
- I LOVE the holiday season! I love the look of Christmas lights, Christmas trees and every thing that is dripping with holiday cheer! I do not know one Jewish person who is “anti-Christmas.”
I hope this really cleared some stuff up for you! If you have any other questions/comments please feel free to comment below or reach out to me on social media!
Oy, what would we even DO with eight days off work? I know it’s a common misconception, but it annoys me that people even think this. I wish we got off for Rosh HaShanah & Yom Kippur so I didn’t have to miss school/work & catch up afterward just to observe our most important holidays. But Hanukkah? JUST FOR FUN, YOU GUYS.
You’re much less cranky then I am. 😛 Well done. And happy Hanukkah!
I hope you are having a fantastic Hanukkah, Kate!