Festival of Lights, Happy Hannukkah (Open Thread Discussion)

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meltzerboy said:
There is also a very large menorah in Brooklyn, NY.

Is there perhaps a political issue for some concerning the display of a religious symbol on public property?
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No, not at all for me.

My browser is bing, every day they have a different wallpaper, often going with holidays, other famous dates ( For example on Dec. 7th, they had an image of the Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor). So, I knew it was Hanukkah, so I just added the image in along with thinking, maybe this subforum of “other religions” deserved a mention.

And I do make some of the bing images my wallpaper ever so often, so if people don’t know about them, they are really good. They have Churches, they have all kinds of places on it. National Parks, Mountains, pictures from all over the world.

I ran into some sort of Hindu blogspot which is interesting but I’d have little way of knowing how to tackle that one, some time, I will search just for the sake of interests about that religion.

www.bing.com
 
meltzerboy said:
There is also a very large menorah in Brooklyn, NY.

Is there perhaps a political issue for some concerning the display of a religious symbol on public property?
Click to expand...
I doesn’t bother me at all because I do not believe in saying Happy Holiidays I say merry Christmas and I also wish my Jewish friends a Happy Chanukkah hope I spelled that correctly meltzerboy So I consider it an honor to wish you a very happy Chanukkah meltzerboy and I hope that you are surrounded by family and friends.Oh by the way there is also a giant Menorah here at the Jewish community center here in Dallas Texas and some stupid people tried to get the center closed down because they were offended by the giant Menorah but several of us from both the Catholic and Jewish communities signed petitions to make sure the center stayed open and that the giant Menorah would be on display during the eight days of Chanukkah
 
thequeen said:
I doesn’t bother me at all because I do not believe in saying Happy Holiidays I say merry Christmas and I also wish my Jewish friends a Happy Chanukkah hope I spelled that correctly meltzerboy So I consider it an honor to wish you a very happy Chanukkah meltzerboy and I hope that you are surrounded by family and friends.Oh by the way there is also a giant Menorah here at the Jewish community center here in Dallas Texas and some stupid people tried to get the center closed down because they were offended by the giant Menorah but several of us from both the Catholic and Jewish communities signed petitions to make sure the center stayed open and that the giant Menorah would be on display during the eight days of Chanukkah
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That’s kind of you, thequeen. Thank you.
 
I have a tattoo of a Star of David with a Rose through it on my chest.

Happy Chanukah!!
 
thequeen said:
I doesn’t bother me at all because I do not believe in saying Happy Holiidays I say merry Christmas and I also wish my Jewish friends a Happy Chanukkah hope I spelled that correctly meltzerboy So I consider it an honor to wish you a very happy Chanukkah meltzerboy and I hope that you are surrounded by family and friends.Oh by the way there is also a giant Menorah here at the Jewish community center here in Dallas Texas and some stupid people tried to get the center closed down because they were offended by the giant Menorah but several of us from both the Catholic and Jewish communities signed petitions to make sure the center stayed open and that the giant Menorah would be on display during the eight days of Chanukkah
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Thank you for your (name removed by moderator)ut, this is an open-discussion even if it means calling others “stupid” and making some sort of claim.

Happy Chanukkah
 
Question for people who are more familiar with Judaism than I.

Is it common/traditional for people to decorate for Hannuka, and to “display” mennorahs?

Is that tradition or a cultural response to Christmas lights, symbols etc.

My faith also has a winter holy day, and we have appropriate symbols in our home, but I would never consider making a “display” to show publicly, it’s not how we do things. Nor do I expect folks of other faiths to acknowledge my holy day. Some people, afraid I might be offended if they don’t include my religious holy day in their season’s greetings, say “Happy Solstice!” and I know they mean well and appreciate the sentiment, but it’s really not fitting, if that makes sense.

Winter Solstice isn’t a happy or festive event, it’s holy, extremely important to us but it’s not a time of joyful feasting, gift giving etc.

Some people celebrate Yule, which is festive with gifts and feasts.

Maybe what I’m trying to say is that not all holy days that occur at this time of year are another religion’s version of Christmas.

I don’t need or want some public nod to my holy day to somehow show that I’m not left out of the seasonal festivities. No one is obligated to observe my holy day just to make nice.

In some ways (and this may be just me being petty) I would find it more offensive for there to be Suns displayed in shop widows, and big light up Suns on the city square next to Santa, a Nativity scene, and a mennorah. It would feel like a mockery. I wouldn’t feel honored, I would feel like someone was just doing it out of some idea that they have to appease me or I’d have a little tantrum.

That’s how I feel about the whole “I’m going to be mad if you don’t wish me Merry Christmas” thing that some people get worked up over. What does it prove or show if I say Merry Christmas, just so you won’t go off on me about the reason for the season?

If someone forces a smile and says through gritted teeth “Have a solemn Solstice” I don’t feel as if I’ve won some victory for my side.

I’ve often wondered if Jews feel the same about public Hannuka symbols.
 
schaeffer said:
Question for people who are more familiar with Judaism than I.

Is it common/traditional for people to decorate for Hannuka, and to “display” mennorahs?

Is that tradition or a cultural response to Christmas lights, symbols etc.

My faith also has a winter holy day, and we have appropriate symbols in our home, but I would never consider making a “display” to show publicly, it’s not how we do things. Nor do I expect folks of other faiths to acknowledge my holy day. Some people, afraid I might be offended if they don’t include my religious holy day in their season’s greetings, say “Happy Solstice!” and I know they mean well and appreciate the sentiment, but it’s really not fitting, if that makes sense.

Winter Solstice isn’t a happy or festive event, it’s holy, extremely important to us but it’s not a time of joyful feasting, gift giving etc.

Some people celebrate Yule, which is festive with gifts and feasts.

Maybe what I’m trying to say is that not all holy days that occur at this time of year are another religion’s version of Christmas.

I don’t need or want some public nod to my holy day to somehow show that I’m not left out of the seasonal festivities. No one is obligated to observe my holy day just to make nice.

In some ways (and this may be just me being petty) I would find it more offensive for there to be Suns displayed in shop widows, and big light up Suns on the city square next to Santa, a Nativity scene, and a mennorah. It would feel like a mockery. I wouldn’t feel honored, I would feel like someone was just doing it out of some idea that they have to appease me or I’d have a little tantrum.

That’s how I feel about the whole “I’m going to be mad if you don’t wish me Merry Christmas” thing that some people get worked up over. What does it prove or show if I say Merry Christmas, just so you won’t go off on me about the reason for the season?

If someone forces a smile and says through gritted teeth “Have a solemn Solstice” I don’t feel as if I’ve won some victory for my side.

I’ve often wondered if Jews feel the same about public Hannuka symbols.
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I don’t mind the public display of the menorah during Hanukkah. At the same time, I hope it is not offensive to others. There are all kinds of traditions and thoughts about WHERE and HOW to place the menorah in one’s home: whether in the doorway, on the window sill, on the dining room table, in front of the door on the OUTSIDE of the home, on the left-hand side of the door as you enter the home since the mezuzah (Torah scroll) is on the right-hand side, at least two-and-a-half feet off the ground but not higher than 30 feet, and so on. The general idea is that the light of the menorah should be VISIBLE to the whole world as well as to Jews, not for the purpose of any kind of boastful display but to proclaim the light of freedom and the miracle of Hanukkah to the whole world. However, I also agree with you that the display of the menorah in a person’s place of business solely to appease Jewish customers may be the wrong idea. As I commented in a prior post, it might be preferable for people who do not celebrate Hanukkah in their faith tradition to find a way of celebrating the festival of lights according to their OWN beliefs.
 
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