Photo by Clav
Do you wish people a Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, or a combination of the two -Happy Chrismukkah?
When I’m not timid, I wish the latter. There are more than a half-dozen ways to spell Chanukah (e.g. Chanukkah, Channukah, Hanukah, Hannukkah, Hanuka, Hanukka, Hanaka, Khanukkah), but one way to spell Christmas. Combine them and you get Chrismukkah or how about Chrismakah or some other variation of the two…
Chrismukkah is not a holiday you will find reference to in the Bible or the Torah; it is a portmanteau, the blending of the words Christmas and Chanukah, the blending of Christianity and Judaism… kind of. In my family, Chrismukkah refers to our Chanukah celebration on Christmas day. But its significance is quickly changing. All of my cousins married outside the Jewish religion, and those that married into Christian families celebrate both Christmas and Chanukah. Church on Christmas Eve for some and lighting the Menorah 8 days in a row.
My cousins are still Jewish and their loved ones remain Christian, but they make efforts to respect each other’s differences, and see no reason why not to embrace both holidays, and participate in creating a new one.
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[...] a cup of Starbucks coffee thanks to a Happy Chrismukkah gift card, I introduced myself to Daniel, and received a handshake that I will never forget. It was [...]