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Chanukah: The First Night
Wed, Dec. 1st, 2010 05:55 pmHappy Chanukah, everyone! Tonight we light the first candle of Chanukah. We commemorate the miracle of the lamp that burned for eight days instead of just one in the wake of a battle for Jewish identity. As Jewish holidays go, it's not all that important a holiday, but I love it. I love lighting the candles and beating back the darkness. I like the idea that as the Temple was rededicated, so are we.
As I mentioned here a couple of nights ago, last year, I offered up a virtual gift for each night of Chanukah. This year, I'm going to do it again (I think two years means it's a tradition--we'll see.)
Tonight's virtual gift is getting so much play elsewhere on the Web that I feel like I'm being scooped, so here it is. Matisyahu, the Yiddishe rap/reggae star, has released a new song to celebrate the holiday. As always, he's hip and reverent at the same time, and is making some great music--it just happens to be thematically Jewish. As the kids say, check it:
And because we should tell the Chanukah story, here: you should read, you should learn. There's also a more historical, more complex way to look at it. As with so many Jewish holidays, it boils down to: They tried to defeat us, they failed, let's eat!
As I mentioned here a couple of nights ago, last year, I offered up a virtual gift for each night of Chanukah. This year, I'm going to do it again (I think two years means it's a tradition--we'll see.)
Tonight's virtual gift is getting so much play elsewhere on the Web that I feel like I'm being scooped, so here it is. Matisyahu, the Yiddishe rap/reggae star, has released a new song to celebrate the holiday. As always, he's hip and reverent at the same time, and is making some great music--it just happens to be thematically Jewish. As the kids say, check it:
And because we should tell the Chanukah story, here: you should read, you should learn. There's also a more historical, more complex way to look at it. As with so many Jewish holidays, it boils down to: They tried to defeat us, they failed, let's eat!