Hanukkah for Christians
As the days grow shorter and the temperatures start to change, many people around the world are gearing up for the celebration of the birth of Jesus on the 25th of December. In 2004, long before Chris and I had children, we decided that we no longer wanted to celebrate Christmas. This decision was not to negate celebrating Jesus or his birth, and it certainly was not because we had adjusted our religious practices or traditions. The hyped-up celebration of the holiday was just something in which we found little value.
In 2007, when we rededicated our lives to Christ and started analyzing which customs and traditions our family would walk in, we were introduced to Hanukkah. To us, Hanukkah was always thought of as the Jewish replacement for Christmas. So, as we started looking into it, we were both shocked to find out that we really did not know anything about Hanukkah.
Hanukkah, the Jewish Christmas?
I did not grow up active in church like Chris did. However, both of us share a similar testimony that whenever we saw anything about Hanukkah or when it was talked about or brought up, it was marketed as the Jewish Christmas. This is something with which our family and friends still struggle.
Christmas is celebrated on December 25th every year by Christians, non-believers, and other religions around the world, whereas Hanukkah is not a static date. Hanukkah falls differently on our modern calendar every year because its dates are based on the Hillel calendar (Jewish calendar).
Hanukkah is a historical holiday that celebrates the victory of the Jewish people over the Greeks' multiple attempts to destroy and defile the Holy Temple. It is mentioned once in the Gospel of John (Chapter 10) in a very ambiguous manner.
Christmas is also a historical and cultural holiday that celebrates the birth of Jesus in a manger. The only element of the modern Christmas celebration that is mentioned in the Bible is the birth of Jesus. The tree, gifts, Santa Claus, etc. are not mentioned in the Bible.
Hanukkah is not the Jewish Christmas. It is a time where we remember that God protects, delivers, and strengthens His people. It is not about the birth of Jesus in any fashion. As believers in Jesus, we also celebrate Hanukkah as being a light to the world just as He was.
Christians and Hanukkah
Hanukkah is a great time for Christians to be reminded of what God has done and celebrate with the Jewish people. While an argument could be made that Jesus was not celebrating Hanukkah just by being in the Temple in the Gospel of John, it also implies at the very least He was not against it. The Bible is pretty clear when Jesus was opposed to something or someone.
For our family, we choose to make all of our daily celebrations during Hanukkah about Jesus – how He saved us, how He is the light of the world, how He gives blessings, how He gives peace, and how He is the salvation of the world.
How We Celebrate Hanukkah
Our celebrations have been fluid over the years. Sometimes, we are more traditional, and sometimes, we are more progressive. As our children are getting older, we have made the eight days of celebration less about gifts, gluttony, and selfish desires and more about peace, joy, and servanthood.
We emphasize thankfulness for Jesus being the light of the world. By lighting candles each evening, we are symbolically reminded that the light of Jesus is multiplied in us and can illuminate even the darkest of spaces.
We gather with friends and family. Whether it is at HFF’s progressive Hanukkah parties or just dinner, we make a concerted effort to gather together with fellow believers in Jesus to remember that everything we have is from God and that just like God did throughout history, He is protecting, leading, and building even today. Just like Jesus did throughout history. He is protecting, leading, and building even today.
We practice intentional family. Every night, we do something just for our family. Jesus is the head of the home, and together, we are the greatest gift to each other for which we could have ever asked. We truly are blessed.
We practice rejoicing. Whether this is through music, food, dancing, movies, or other activities – we celebrate! We celebrate Jesus as the light of the world. We celebrate the freedom we that have through Christ and His protection of the Israelites throughout history. We rejoice that God has been so good over the past year.
Hanukkah is not a commanded Feast or Festival of the Lord. It is a cultural and historical event. We are not commanded to celebrate it like Passover, Unleavened Bread, Pentecost, Trumpets, Day of Atonement, and Tabernacles. We choose to celebrate Hanukkah, not because we are Jewish, but because we are all one in Messiah. Hanukkah is a time to stand in unity with our Jewish brothers and sisters. It is a time to teach our children that even when others want darkness and destruction, God keeps His Word, fills His people, and is alive. Amen! Whether you call it the Feast of Dedication, Festival of Lights, or Hanukkah, our family has found great joy in remembering that God is bigger than we are.