Hanukkah: A festival of lights

Houlton Pioneer Times Photo/Joseph Cyr
HAPPY HANUKKAH — Iva Sussman of Houlton lights a candle on her family’s menorah Wednesday, Dec. 1 the first night of Hanukkah. The menorah has been in her family for three generations.
By Joseph Cyr
Staff Writer
HOULTON — Most everyone knows that Hanukkah is a Jewish celebration, but few may know its origins or its significance as a holiday. Hanukkah began at sundown Wednesday, Dec. 1 and continued until Wednesday, Dec. 8.
    Also known as “The Festival of Lights,” Hanukkah is an eight-day holiday commemorating the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem after its desecration by the forces of the King of Syria at the time of the Maccabean Revolt of the 2nd century. It is observed for eight nights and days on the 25th day of Kislev, according to the Hebrew calendar. It can occur any time from late-November to late-December.
    Dr. Ted Sussman and his wife Iva of Houlton are among the Jewish families in Aroostook County who celebrate Hanukkah.
    “The holiday is actually a relatively minor one in the Jewish faith,” Ted said. “It has grown over the years to compete with Christmas, which has grown bigger, and more commercial over the years.”
    According to Wikipedia, the significance of Hanukkah, in North America especially, “gained increased importance with many Jewish families in the latter half of the 20th century, including large numbers of secular Jews, who wanted a Jewish alternative to the Christmas celebration that often overlaps with Hanukkah.”
    Many Jewish families also observe the tradition of giving gifts on each of the eight nights of Hanukkah to prevent children from being left out of the Christmas gift giving practice.
    According to the Sussmans, Hanukkah is observed by lighting one candle on a menorah for eight consecutive nights.
    “The symbolism is, when they [the Maccabeans] went into the temple, which had been destroyed, there was not much oil to light the eternal lamp,” Ted said. “They had one day’s worth of oil, but it lasted miraculously for eight days. That’s why we burn eight candles.”
Houlton Pioneer Times Photo/Joseph Cyr
LIGHTING THE MENORAH — Dr. Ted Sussman, left, and his wife, Iva, light a candle on their menorah Wednesday, Dec. 1 on the first night of Hanukkah. The Jewish holiday concludes Wednesday, Dec. 8.
    Hanukkah lights must burn for at least one half hour after dark and can only be lit by first lighting the “shamash,” a candle located above or sometimes below the other eight. When lighting the candle a short prayer is also spoken.
    “During that time, it is a time for relaxation, meditation or family time,” Iva said.
    The nearest Jewish temple is located in Bangor and the Sussmans said they often travel to that temple for the major Jewish holidays, such as Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah.
    Iva said Hanukkah also grew in popularity thanks to immigrants coming to the United States.
    “In the 1880s and 1920s as more immigrants came over, there was a sense that people were not able to practice their faith in their old countries,” she said.