Hanukkah
5 nurses share their pandemic holiday plans — and their hopes people take the virus seriously
By Lyra Walsh Fuchs — December 24, 2020
(RNS) — ‘It pains me because I think when this all dies down and we get back to Mass, there will be a lot of empty pews,’ said one nurse, who has worked at a hard-hit nursing home throughout the pandemic.
In ‘Can Robots Be Jewish?’ rabbis weigh in on a Jewish pastime: disagreement
By Yonat Shimron — December 16, 2020
(RNS) — The questions in this collection, part of Moment Magazine’s long-running feature ‘Ask the Rabbis,’ offer a model for what is fundamental to Judaism.
This year, American Jews are taking Hanukkah outside
By Yonat Shimron — December 9, 2020
(RNS) — Many American Jews have previously shied from overtly public menorah displays out of a sense of vulnerability, if not an outright fear of persecution. Not this year.
How Hanukkah came to be an annual White House celebration
By Jonathan D. Sarna — December 4, 2020
(RNS) — Since 1979, when Jimmy Carter helped light the National Menorah, every president has recognized Hanukkah with a special ceremony.
RNS holiday gift guide 2020: Puzzles, prayer cards and more gifts for staying in
By Emily McFarlan Miller — November 25, 2020
(RNS) — Religion News Service is bringing back our holiday gift guide, full of ideas for all the people of faith — or no faith — on your list.
Do humanists celebrate Christmas?
By Emily McFarlan Miller — December 23, 2019
(RNS) — Ethical humanist leader Anne Klaeysen on what people of any faith or no faith can take from the Christmas story and how the holidays can unite the country.
Why can’t the New York Times get Hanukkah right?
By Jeffrey Salkin — December 6, 2018
Hanukkah Harry? Bah, humbug!
Why is Hanukkah so darn long?
By Mark Silk — December 4, 2018
So here we are, well into Hannukah, and across the land Jewish parents are racking their brains and clicking on two-day deliveries from Amazon. Too bad that little box in the closet can’t supply enough stuff to last the whole holiday. You get the joke. After recapturing their desecrated Temple from Syrian King Antiochus in […]
Anti-Semitism casts long shadows over Jewish festival of lights
By Yonat Shimron — December 3, 2018
(RNS) — As they celebrate an ancient military victory, in which a band of Jewish rebels rose up against their Greek-Syrian oppressors, many U.S. Jews are still reeling from a new wave of anti-Semitic episodes.
How Hanukkah came to America
By Dianne Ashton — December 2, 2018
(The Conversation) — Hanukkah is ranked one of Judaism’s minor festivals, but in the United States it has gained popularity as an expression of American prosperity and religious freedom.
RNS holiday gift guide 2018: Books, Barbies, subscription boxes and more
By Emily McFarlan Miller — November 29, 2018
(RNS) — Not everybody celebrates a religious holiday in December. But almost everybody likes presents, and there's something for just about everybody in our annual holiday gift guide.
A rediscovered latke recipe links generations beyond the grave
By Lindsey Rose Weiss — December 14, 2017
(RNS) — As I looked through my emails to find the one containing the recipe for Grammommy Rose’s latkes, I said a prayer. How fortunate am I that the internet gives me a connection to my history, my namesake, my ancestors and my Uncle Jeff?
Kids’ holiday books: Christ, candelabras — and critters
By Cathy Lynn Grossman — December 14, 2017
(RNS) — Some are clearly rooted in religious messages, while others focus on family, kindness and generosity in ways that may appeal to interfaith and secular families – and everyone else.
Celebrating Hanukkah where the dominant winter holiday isn’t Christmas
By Lauren Markoe — December 12, 2017
(RNS) — Hanukkah in the Holy Land gives Jews who have immigrated to Israel a sense of belonging they don’t feel anywhere else.
Menorah lightings planned around the world for Hanukkah
By Jerome Socolovsky — December 11, 2017
(AP) — Hanukkah begins Tuesday night and lasts for eight days.
