First Candle Lighting of Chanukah
November 29th
Light before Shabbat starts
Eight candle lighting
ends on December 6th Friday
Chanukah, which always falls on the twenty-fifth of Kislev according to the Jewish Calendar, is usually held during the month of December. The Hebrew meaning of Chanukah is Dedication and Shamash is Servant. This year, the first evening of Chanukah candle lighting is on Friday, November 29th before we light Shabbat candles.
Chanukah is a eight-day holiday which celebrates the Jewish people defeating the Syrian-Greek armies and reclaiming the Temple in Jerusalem. After cleaning the Temple which was overgrown with vines and weeds, they finished their work on the twenty-fifth of Kislev. As they gathered to light the menorah, however, they could only find one small jar of pure olive oil which would last only one day. To their surprise, however, the oil burned and burned for eight days and nights until they could produce more oil. Thus, the eight-day long Chanukah holiday.
