Christmas and Hanukkah both are important to Lipscomb junior Leah Raich.
“Each night my family gets together to have the daily prayers and to light the Menorah. Then we eat Latkes, which are like potato pancakes, and play dreidel,” said the public relations major.
As Messianic Jews, the family embraces the importance of both celebrations.
Hanukkah is already well under way. It began this year on Dec. 1, which this year was the 25th day of Kislev on the Jewish calendar, according to Raich.
The eight-day celebration includes a number of traditions.
One tradition is that on each night, one candle is lit on the Menorah (a nine-branched candelabrum) that represents each night of Hanukkah, with the ninth branch used as a light, according to Raich.
“I loved celebrating both Christmas and Hanukkah as a kid,” continues Raich, a native of Memphis. “Having both just made more times for us to get presents. We also loved sitting around lighting the Menorah as a family.”
Raich’s favorite aspect of the holiday is eating the latkes, a part of the traditional holiday diet.
Latkes are cooked in a traditional Hanukkah oil, which makes them crucial to the celebration and ritual of the season.
“Although my traditions are very different from most people’s, having both Christian ceremonies and Jewish rituals, it just makes the holidays all the more special.”