Chanukah or Hannukah is Hebrew for “dedication.” It is an eight-day festival celebrated among God’s people from the second century B.C. before Messiah Yeshua (Christ Jesus). It commemorates the rededication of the God’s temple in Yerushalayim (Jerusalem) in B.C. 165 after the Greek Seleucid king Antiochus IV desecrated it about nine years earlier during a campaign to stamp out the worship of the LORD in Israel.
Mentioned in John 10 in the Gospels, Chanukah is celebrated over eight days, starting on the 25th day of the ninth month of Israel’s calendar, which falls in December or November, depending on the year. This year, Chanukah runs from sunset Dec. 18 to sunset Dec. 26.
Events during Chanukah:
- Hallel Fellowship will be holding a congregational celebration during the days of Chanukah, on Saturday night, Dec. 24, 5:30 p.m., home in Windsor
- Make a booking on this page by 3 p.m. Friday, Dec. 23, to let us know you plan to attend.
- Chabad Sonoma (Hassidic Orthodox Jewish) lighting celebrations:
- Sunday, Dec. 18, 4 p.m., Montgomery Village, 911 Village Ct, Santa Rosa, CA 95405
- Monday, Dec. 19, 5 p.m., Oakville Grocery, 124 W. Matheson St., Healdsburg, CA 95448
A common tradition is to light one candle in your home each evening. Usually, a special nine-branch candelabra called a chanukiah is used for this festival, but one can also group nine candles together, using one as the “servant,” or shamash, candle to light the others.