From December 18-26 this year, Jews all over the world will celebrate the Festival of Lights, Hanukkah, which commemorates the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire that took place in 164 BCE. While this ancient festival may seem foreign to many people in America, it’s full of fun and meaningful traditions that are worth learning about and embracing.
At S&G Cleaning, we appreciate diversity in New Jersey and hope to heighten cultural awareness through our professional cleaning service’s platform. Here’s what you need to know about Hanukkah, its meaning, and its celebration!
The History of Hannukah
Hanukkah is a Jewish holiday that commemorates the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. Hanukkah lasts for eight nights and starts on the 25th day of Kislev on the Hebrew calendar. During the eight nights of Hanukkah, a special menorah is lit. Each night, one more candle is added until all eight are burning. Hanukkah is also a time for gift giving and feasting. Families gather to eat fried foods, play games, and exchange gifts. There are many different types of foods eaten during this festival, but latkes (fried potato pancakes) and sufganiyot (jelly doughnuts) are the most popular.
Hannukah Traditions and Festivities
Hanukkah has similar traditions to Diwali, and is known as the Jewish festival of lighting lights, during the darkest time of the year. It celebrates rededication, rekindled spirits, hope and determination. Together, the community recollects on stories of the past and commemorates a historical event, as well as the diligence of their loved ones. They cherish these virtues and quality time with family members and friends.
How to Decorate
One of the best things about Hanukkah is getting to decorate your home with all sorts of festive lights and dreidels. Of course, there is a special menorah with the appropriate candles. But, families also opt to decorate with other lights. They tend to decorate using blue and white, as the colors are significant to the religion and its texts. The tallit, Jewish prayer shawl, is typically made in a white fabric with black stripes and one blue string. This blue fringe is known to come from a unique blue snail dye that is mentioned throughout the Torah. The color blue is also mentioned throughout other religious texts. Hence, blue and white signify Judaism and Hanukkah when decorating.
Holiday Recipes
One of our favorite recipes to make is Babka, a unique cinnamon streusel bread that can also be made in several other flavors! You can check out the original recipe here.
The main ingredients you will need are:
- all purpose flour
- dry yeast
- milk
- butter
- salt
- egg
- sugar
- heavy cream
Then you can use the following ingredients to customize based on the flavor of your choice:
- cocoa powder
- cinnamon
- chocolate hazelnut spread
The list goes on!
Eight Night Activities for the Family
Activities include lighting the menorah, praying, and cherishing their ancestors. There are dreidel games and contests, as well as several songs to sing along to. There are also lots of delicious snacks, as aforementioned. In addition, there are desserts and chocolates known as gelt, unique disc shaped, coin-like chocolates. There is also gift giving. Most importantly, there is lots of family time. Instead of being celebrated in the Synagogue, Hanukkah is mainly celebrated at home. This reduces formalities and encourages people to slow down, show gratitude, and cherish time with their loved ones! No matter how you spend Hanukkah or your holiday of choice, S&G Cleaning is here to take chores off of your plate, so you can enjoy such activities!
Contact Us!
Let us take some of these chores off of you and your loved ones’ plates so you can truly enjoy Hanukkah and the holiday season! We’ll do what we do best – the cleaning! Our team loves to clean and enjoys making our clients smile while we are at it. That is why it is our job!
S&G Cleaning Services values consistent, quality service and trustworthy business practices. You can rest assured that your place will be taken care of effectively and efficiently with us. If you reside in Somerset County, NJ or nearby areas in New Jersey, contact us today at (908) 722-9254 to clean up your living space, as well as your loved ones’. Our cleaners will leave it spotless as we uphold our satisfaction guarantee.
