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45 °F Forecast | Road Cams Monday, January 24, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Opportunities Moving to Southern Oregon? MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend December 12, 2004 Hanukkah traditions endure an overshadowing glare By JOHN DARLING for the Mail Tribune In a culture inundated with Christmas music, decorations and stories, Jews — whose Hanukkah predates Christ’s birth by more than 160 years — often struggle not to feel "different" and to keep their menorah candles shining bright this time of year, leaders say. To share and nurture their faith, Jews light a candle of their menorah, prepare traditional ethnic foods, play games and hold celebrations throughout the eight-day season, including several planned for today. "We feel great about our culture and the story of Hanukkah, which, ironically, is not unlike the struggle we have here today in America, the struggle to retain identity in a different majority culture," said Rabbi David Zaslow of Havurah Shir Hadash in Ashland. Hanukkah celebrates Jewish resistance to the Syrio-Greek empire, which tried to wipe out Judaism in the second century B.C. The Jews planned a celebration in the temple but could find only a small amount of oil to light their holy lamps. It was thought to be enough for just one night, but it lasted for eight. "How do Jews today maintain eight little schlemozzley candles in the midst of a million lights in downtown Ashland?" said Zaslow. Advertisement "How do we teach our children that they’re special when the Chamber of Commerce, although they didn’t mean it in a disparaging way, calls it (the annual holiday illumination) the ‘Festival of Lights,’ a phrase taken directly from the Hanukkah tradition? "It made eyebrows go up and it’s one more aspect of submerging minority religions in the majority culture," Zaslow said. "Christianity is certainly not trying to submerge Jewish culture, but we do face this assault of commercialism and materialism." To buck the onslaught of Christmas, Manny and Linda Cohen of Ashland teach their son Daniele, 15, traditional stories, have friends over to sing songs of a religious-cultural nature and make festive foods, especially potato latkes — grated potatoes cooked in oil and symbolic of the oil used by the early Jews to light the menorah. "The lighting of that oil was the first known example of people standing up to fight for religious freedom," said Linda Cohen, who has lived in Israel. "I’ve learned to love our religious holidays and to love the holidays of other religions, but it’s a lot of struggle for many (Jews) to be a minority because Christianity is the dominant religion in our culture." In her play to be presented today at Havurah, Debra Zaslow of Ashland has her protagonist, a 12-year-old girl, afraid to be "different" by lighting the traditional menorah and placing it on public view in her window. "What she wants is a Christmas tree and to stop feeling like she doesn’t fit in when the mailman asks if she’s mailed her Christmas cards yet," said Debra Zaslow. "The family says no to the Christmas tree because Hanukkah is about religious freedom." The girl’s grandmother, a refugee from Russian pogroms, tells the story when, as a child, she ran out to warn Jews — whom she could only identify by the menorahs in their windows — that Cossacks were coming to wipe them out, thus enabling them to flee and survive. "From that, the girl gets a whole different feeling about how brave her ancestors have been and why it’s important to share the light and stand up about being different." Rabbi Avi Zweibel of Chabad helps members with education well in advance of holidays so they have pride and "a sense of who they are" as Jews living in a majority Christian culture. The challenge for Jews, said Rabbi Marc Sirinsky of Temple Emek Shalom, is not living in a Christian culture but rather in a consumer culture, trying to "see the gifts of spirit" and to give of oneself, rather than "just things." "The menorah in the window signals a rededication to values we hold dear," Sirinsky said, "like bringing more light into the world and paying attention to the miracles of everyday life, emphasizing people of courage in history, such as Yitzhak Rabin, who went from being a warrior to a peacemaker and helped change the world." Jews pass along the holiday tradition of playing with the dreidel, he added, because it honors ancient Jews who used the spinning top toy to fool authorities into believing they were gambling, rather than conducting forbidden religious studies. Local celebrations Havurah Shir Hadash plans its Hanukkah Fair at 2:30 p.m. today at the temple, 185 N. Mountain Ave., Ashland. There’ll be menorah making, face painting, games, a dreidel table, prizes, raffle, crafts and bake sale. A play called "A Gift from Bubbe" will be presented at 5 p.m. by students of Havurah’s Hebrew School. Temple Emek Shalom will hold a family Hanukkah celebration from 4 to 6 p.m. today at the temple, 1800 E. Main St., Ashland. Chabad Jewish Center of Ashland plans Hanukkah parties today at private homes in Jacksonville and Grants Pass and Monday in Ashland. John Darling is a free-lance writer living in Ashland. E-mail him at [email protected]. Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. 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