Day of Revolt: Hanukkah is not Christmas Jr.
So this Jew guy I know recounted how his politically correct office asked everyone to bring a symbol of their holiday and tell the meaning behind it. He brought a gun. They were all like, um, wha?! “Hanukkah,” he said. “A revolution against an oppressive regime.”
I love this story. It happened in the Bay Area. I can so imagine it.
Seriously, when the f*** did Hanukkah become Christmas Jr. – flying in the face of the entire point of the holiday? We were fighting assimilation, people. In the Middle East, Hanukkah was not a ho-ho-ho holiday, but a ho-hum holiday. You light candles. You sing a song. If you’re Moroccan, you eat a donut.
And you give money to yeshivoth, Jewish learning institutions. Because the whole point of Hanukkah is Jewish tenacity and continuity. Not a shiny new iPod.
Happy Hanukkah.
Loolwa Khazzoom has worked with 
Dec 20, 2010
That’s a funny story indeed! Though, as I wrote in my blog about the winter holidays, the origin of Hanuka is slightly different than revolting and using guns ;-).
(http://www.altglobe.com/blog/winter-holidays-sun-and-beyond)
For me, Hanuka, as well as Xmass and the other holidays being celebrated in the Northern Hamisphere at this time of the year, is more about hope. Hope for warmer weather hope for more light.
Light can be very physical, but, as many Jewish holidays, it hindes a secret wish for light from within to fill in our hearts and bring us together. What can be better than being with your family and friends in such darkness…
Blessings and happy holidays to you and to your readers.