Across the Golden Triangle, a small group has been hosting some big celebrations for one of its best-known holidays.
Sunday, Dec. 2, was the first day of the Hanukkah season, which runs until Monday. The holiday celebrates the Maccabees’ victory in the battle against the Syrian Army and the miracle of the oil following the victory in the year 165 B.C.E. Jewish tradition holds that there was only enough oil left to light the temple for one day. However, the lamp burned for eight days.
Students from Hillel, the Jewish student association at Mississippi State University, discussed the meaning of Hanukkah and how the holiday is celebrated.
“(They had) a drop of oil,” said Hillel Program Chairman Jason Stein. “It was supposed to last a little bit into one night, but that oil burned for eight days. That is where the name Hanukkah, Festival of Lights, comes from.”
Hillel President Tyler Daniel said the holiday’s greater focus was to celebrate the miracle of the goodness of God.
“Without miracles, Hanukkah would not have occurred,” Daniel said. “The oil lamp would not have burned. It was for that miracle and greatness that we celebrate Hanukkah.”
Daniel emphasized that Hanukkah was a relatively minor Jewish holiday from a religious standpoint, being well-known and heavily celebrated because of its proximity to Christmas and other winter festivals.
“Because of the hubbub of Christmas, people inflate Hanukkah to be a big significant holiday, but it’s much more minor,” Daniel said.
Some Hanukkah traditions include eating fried foods, such as potato pancakes called latkes and jelly-filled doughnuts called sufganiyot in commemoration of the oil. Candles on a candleholder called a menorah are also lit each evening of Hanukkah from a central candle called a shammash.
One candle is lit each night of Hanukkah until all eight candles are burning in addition to the shammash. A prayer is recited while each candle is lit.
“What happens after that can vary by person,” Daniel said. “Since I live alone, I kind of just watch the flames burn and take it as a moment of meditation.”
Exchanging gifts is yet another Hanukkah tradition.
“Children receive gifts for each night of Hanukkah, and generally they progressively get better. They start out with maybe a dollar or two, or maybe a small toy, and as the nights go on, they get a little bit nicer.”
Stein also explained the game of dreidel, another tradition. The game is played by spinning a top and taking a different amount of gelt, or coins, depending on the symbol the top lands on.
“From a college student’s perspective, it’s mainly about celebration,” Daniel said. “At Hillel, we always have a Hanukkah party. It allows all our members to gather together. It usually occurs around the finals, so it’s a much-needed party to relax and be with friends.”
Both Daniel and Stein emphasized the holiday’s role in bringing people together, with Stein recalling family Hanukkah celebrations from his childhood.
“It was the one thing that kind of brought the family together,” Stein said. “We would celebrate it with extended family and do a lot of gift-giving. It was always one of those things. That was the excuse for everybody to be in the same room.”
Daniel and Stein said the shooting at Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh brought the MSU Jewish community together and made several Jewish students more passionate about their faith.
They both felt the shooting, which left 11 Jewish faithful dead, had not dampened their Hanukkah celebrations.
“That has actually reinvigorated a portion of students who were previously not as involved with Hillel,” Daniel said.
In addition to Hillel’s party, Golden Triangle Jews had opportunities to celebrate the holiday earlier this week at Temple B’nai Israel in Columbus and on Columbus Air Force Base.
Jewish holidays more religiously significant than Hanukkah include the High Holy Days of Yom Kippur, a season of penance and Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Both days fall in autumn, with Rosh Hashanah falling 10 days before Yom Kippur.
Daniel said the most sacred day was Shabbat, the Sabbath acknowledged every Friday evening.
“It occurs every week, so oftentimes people forget about it,” Daniel said.
Daniel and Stein both wished the community happy holidays, and invited all Jewish people in the area who lack a community to visit Hillel.