Rabbi Sacks said: A people that can walk through a valley of shadow of death and still rejoice is a people that cannot be defeated by any force or fear.
That capacity for faith is the light of the Jewish people.
As Hanukkah begins, may it shine from menorahs around the world. pic.twitter.com/fw91jGO6iH
— President Biden (@POTUS) December 25, 2024
The story of Hanukkah reminds us that even in darkness, we can find the light. May the next eight nights of reflection bring you hope, joy, and love. Happy Hanukkah. pic.twitter.com/krqPTyVlwk
— Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) December 25, 2024
With @VP’s support, I’ve lived openly and proudly with Jewish joy over these past 4 years. Today, I rededicate myself to finding light in the darkness and spreading that light to others. Wishing everyone meaningful and happy Hanukkah! pic.twitter.com/J13fVAI6s1
— Douglas Emhoff (@SecondGentleman) December 25, 2024
Today, we mark both Christmas and the beginning of Hanukkah. It is very good that in Ukraine we can celebrate such holidays with respect for each other, communicate, live together and wish different people the same victory—the victory of light over darkness.
And today, together… pic.twitter.com/GxSQNm7jTr
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) December 25, 2024
Today, we mark both Christmas and the beginning of Hanukkah. It is very good that in Ukraine we can celebrate such holidays with respect for each other, communicate, live together and wish different people the same victory—the victory of light over darkness.
And today, together with the rabbis of Ukraine, I lit Hanukkah candles. This particular Hanukkah menorah was presented to me by President of Argentina Javier Milei during his inauguration last December.
I congratulate the Jewish community on this holiday. I wish Jewish families peace, joy, and a prosperous future. May the Hanukkiah shine in every home, granting strength, filling hearts with new hopes, and deepening faith in the power of truth and justice
Sending love and light to everyone celebrating Hanukkah in #Texas30, and all across the globe. In a world where so many are fighting for justice, may this season bring you strength, peace, and the courage to keep pushing forward. Chag Sameach!
— Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett (@repjasmine.bsky.social) December 25, 2024 at 10:22 AM
chag sameach, everyone
— Micah (@rincewind.run) December 25, 2024 at 8:32 PM
NASA astronaut celebrating Hanukkah in space! pic.twitter.com/Rikq01ko6n
— Rabbi Shmuel Reichman (@ShmuelReichman) December 24, 2024
Today we welcome Hanukkah — the Festival of Lights.
In a time of uncertainty, may this celebration shine a light on brighter days to come.
Happy Hanukkah!
— Sen. Adam Schiff (@schiff.senate.gov) December 25, 2024 at 3:34 PM
Happy Hanukkah!
— Mueller, She Wrote (@muellershewrote.bsky.social) December 25, 2024 at 11:30 AM
Merry Christmas 🎄 and Happy Hanukkah 🕎
— @NYAnna22 (@nyanna22.bsky.social) December 25, 2024 at 7:44 AM
Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanza, happy holidays, or just a happy Wednesday. Be kind. Everything starts there, and nothing ends there.
— Patrick Skinner (@pmskinner.bsky.social) December 24, 2024 at 7:38 PM
eclare
I like that Two Traditions poster. Happy Hanukkah!
Baud
Jewish voters really showed up for the country in November. They deserve the best Hanukkah possible. Maybe add an extra day to the season.
satby
Thank you Anne Laurie for always remembering the first day of Hanukkah for me and every year reminding me how to spell Chag Sameach. I get stolen valor points from my Jewish cousins for being thoughtful and remembering to wish them a Happy Hanukkah properly because of you!
Chag Sameach to all
(and Happy Boxing Day to whoever celebrates)
Ohio Mom
Here is my new favorite Hanukah song:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=F70M_iBPo6g
eclare
@Ohio Mom:
Well that was totally unexpected!
Ohio Mom
@eclare: Wasn’t it!
La Nonna
As an Italian Jew (so few of us left), it’s my honor and pleasure to celebrate all the Jewish holidays here. Now, if only there were a community closer than Trani, I would have an even more joyous holiday. Happy that balloon-juice remembers us. CHAG SAMEACH.
eclare
@Ohio Mom:
He’s from Oakland, and IIRC Kamala said she liked his music. Bet Doug likes this song too!
Princess
@Baud: we’ve seen this movie before and we know how it ends.
Torrey
I just discovered Six13. They have a number of Hanukkah songs (and songs for other holidays and observances). I particularly liked the West Side Story one.
Dorothy A. Winsor
After writing about Trump’s bizarre statements on Panama, Canada, and Greenland today, Paul Krugman linked to this beautiful version of Dire Straits’ Brothers in Arms.
Princess
@Dorothy A. Winsor: the column is great too. As I write my textbook on medieval Spain, I can confirm his argument that pre-industrialized countries need to conquer more territory just to break even. And his hunch that Trump’s own sabre rattling is mostly about trying to look tough and in charge after Musk stole his ball and glove seems the simplest explanation.
TBone
My inner Dorothy Parker is too active today and I’m thinking “what fresh hell awaits this week” when I should be lighting and lightening regardless of recent experience. Arise!
satby
@Dorothy A. Winsor: @Princess: I’m loving the new, unshackled Krugman!
Betty Cracker
Happy Hanukkah, Happy Boxing Day and Happy St. Stephen’s Day to all who celebrate.
Do Brits watch boxing matches on Boxing Day? Probably not. Americans would have turned it into a garish, gory spectacle if it was a thing here. We can always be counted upon to commercialize holidays in the most tacky way.
I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas. We did, though it was the quietest Christmas Day we’ve spent in a few decades. Bill was happy about that since he’s a hermit at heart. (He not so secretly loved pandemic distancing protocols.)
I was a little sad about it, but only a little. It was so stress free! I’m not used to that.
p.a.
Love the holidays, and love when the active parts are over. Now’s the best Xmas time; sit back, enjoy leftovers, check out gifts, and hopefully clean & store away at your leisure.
rikyrah
Good Morning Everyone 😊 😊 😊
rikyrah
Happy Hanukkah 🕎
Baud
@rikyrah: Good morning.
Betty Cracker
@Princess: It is an excellent column. I was struck by the truth of this:
One could make a similar argument about countries that practice laissez-faire capitalism. Before and after the U.S. implemented the Marshall Plan, which Krugman rightly praises, the government and its corporate partners operated as international gangsters extracting resources from smaller, weaker countries by propping up dictatorships worldwide. That’s been the case for well over a century, and the blowback is mind-boggling.
kalakal
@Betty Cracker:
Generally Christmas Day is when you do the family stuff, Boxing Day is when you get together with your friends. And go for a walk to work off the excesses of the previous day
Ohio Mom
We are having our first dinner party of the season tonight, having over my dementing friend and her daughter, sister and BIL.
It is interesting, watching Friend’s brain fray. Some moments, she’s her old self, insightful and funny. Other moments are scary glimpses into the future. I did not know the road to dementia was so uneven.
Anyway, I like the idea of having people over much more than actually doing it. I am not a born hostess.
Soprano2
I didn’t either until I started experiencing it. I’m sorry for your friend, and for you having to experience it. Hubby can function pretty well most of the time, but two minutes after we ordered food yesterday he asked if we had ordered. :-( He still has the same sense of humor he’s always had.
tobie
@La Nonna: If I’m not mistaken, the Jewish community in Italy is the oldest in Europe. I have a Jewish friend from Rome and the rituals in her family are really unique.
For the first night I lit a blue and a yellow candle in honor of Ukraine.
Kay
@Soprano2:
All of my clients who are going thru it with a family member say that – that people think it’s a smooth progression – a gently sloping predictable line- but it’s nothing like that. It’s jerky with dips up and down and it’s unpredictable.
Ohio Mom
@Soprano2: Yes it’s very weird to me how humor — which can be abstract — seems to stay longer than short-term memory.
There were probably hints at the restaurant table that you ordered, the menus are closed or gone, but that information doesn’t get processed. I see similar gaps with my friend.
Her sister, who lives out of town, arranged for her to move into a skilled nursing facility. That is a relief to me, because I know she’s safe, and a source of sorrow because it makes my friend sad to have had her life taken away.
There are no good options with this condition, so every option is equally good.
Bex
In the clip, Zelenskyy offers condolences to the the Chief Rabbi of Ukraine whose son died in the war this year. May his memory be a blessing.
RevRick
@Betty Cracker: St. Stephen’s Day wasn’t so happy for St. Stephen, because he is remembered as the first martyr of the Church. He was one of seven Hellenistic Jews appointed to the role of deacon to provide care for that element of the community. His public teachings got him accused of blasphemy. His trial is recorded in the book of Acts chapter 7 and ended with his being stoned to death.
The word martyr by the way originally meant someone who was a witness at a trial, but has come to mean someone who dies for a cause, because of stories like Stephen’s in the early church. The use of witness and testimony in the book of Revelation is pregnant with such meaning.
RevRick
@eclare: We live the two traditions as our son-in-law is Jewish and he sang the Hebrew song and lit the first candle last night with our granddaughter. We have often celebrated Thanksgiving with his extended family at their homes in New Jersey.
Ohio Mom
@RevRick: it is sung but it is not a song, it is a prayer and a blessing, thanking God for giving us the commandments and instructing us to light the Hanukah lights.