Hanukkah (or Chanukah) — the Jewish Festival of Lights celebration — is near, and here is everything you need to know about the annual post-Christmas religious observance.
When is Hanukkah in New Jersey?
Hanukkah begins at nightfall on Wednesday, Dec. 25 and concludes on the night of Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025.
That means the holiday begins at 4:41 p.m. in New Jersey.
What is Hanukkah?
Hanukkah is popularly known as the Festival of Lights, but is also the festival of rededication, meant to honor the victory of the Macabee soldiers over the Syrian Greek army.
Though rooted in the Jewish faith and celebrated in December, the holiday doesn’t carry the same religious significance in Judaism as Christmas does for Christians.
“Hanukkah is is an 8-day Jewish festival marking the miraculous victory of the Maccabees, Jewish freedom fighters, over the Seleucidian Greek occupiers in the year 139 BCE,” read a detailed portion of Hanukkah’s origins provided by Chabad.org. “After recapturing Jerusalem’s Holy Temple, which had been converted into a place of idol worship, they searched for pure oil with which to light the Temple menorah.
“They found just enough to burn for one day, but miraculously it burned for eight days until more oil could be brought.”
How to celebrate Hanukkah
Hanukkah is celebrated by lighting a menorah every night, reciting special prayers, and eating traditional food.
“The Chanukah lights are kindled in the evening preceding each of the eight days of Chanukah,” read Chabad.org’s website on Hanukkah customs. The custom of many communities (and such is the Chabad-Lubavitch custom) is to light the menorah shortly after sunset; other communities light it at nightfall.
“In either case, the menorah must contain enough fuel at the time of the lighting to burn until 30 minutes after nightfall.”
Damon C. Williams is a Philadelphia-based journalist reporting on trending topics across the Mid-Atlantic Region.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: When is Hanukkah in NJ? What to know about the Festival of Lights