Rabbi's Reflections ~ 7 Things You Didn't Know about Hanukkah
1. Gelt is a relatively new tradition — and no one knows who invented it. While coins – “gelt” is Yiddish for coins, or money – have been part of Hanukkah observance for centuries, chocolate gelt is considerably younger. Some credit America’s Loft candy company with creating it in the 1920s.
2. The first Hanukkah celebration was actually a delayed Sukkot observance. The second book of Maccabees quotes from a letter sent circa 125 BCE from the Hasmoneans (the Macabees’ descendants) to the leaders of Egyptian Jewry, describing the holiday as “the festival of Sukkot celebrated in the month of Kislev rather than Tishrei.” Since the Jews were still in caves fighting as guerrillas on Tishrei, 164 BCE, they had been unable to honor the eight-day holiday of Sukkot , which required visiting the Jerusalem Temple; hence it was postponed until after the recapture of Jerusalem and the rededication of the Temple. Many scholars believe it is this connection to Sukkot – and not the Talmudic account of the jar of oil that lasted eight days – that explains why Hanukkah is eight days long.
3. The books of Maccabees, which tell the story of Hanukkah, weren’t included in the Hebrew Bible – but they are in the Catholic Bible. There are different theories explaining why the first-century rabbis who canonized the scriptures omitted the Maccabees, ranging from the text’s relative newness at the time to fears of alienating the Roman leadership in control of Jerusalem at the time.
4. The game of dreidel was inspired by a German game played at Christmas, which is itself an imitation of an English and Irish one. Our Eastern European game of dreidel (including the letters nun, gimmel, hey, shin) is directly based on the German equivalent of the British totum game: N = Nichts = nothing; G = Ganz = all; H = Halb = half; and S = Stell ein = put in.
5. Oily food (latkes and sufganiyot) isn’t Hanukkah’s only culinary tradition. Traditionally, Hanukkah has included foods with cheese in recognition of Judith, whose liberal use of the salty treat facilitated a victory for the Maccabees.
6. On Hanukkah, we celebrate a grisly murder. The aforementioned Judith had an ulterior motive for plying Assyrian general Holofernes with salty cheese: making him thirsty so he would drink lots of wine and pass out, enabling her to chop off his head and bring it home with her. The beheading – particularly the fact that a woman carried it out – was said to have frightened Holofernes’ troops into fleeing the Maccabees.
7. The largest menorah in the world, according to the Guinness Book of World Records is 32 feet high and weighs 4,000 pounds. Guinness lists at least three other Hanukkah-related records: most dreidels spinning simultaneously for at least 10 seconds (820), most valuable dreidel ($14,000) most people simultaneously lighting menorahs (834) and largest display of lit menorahs (1,000).
בשלום Rabbi Susan
State Route 89 between the Phippen Roundabout and the Willow Lake Road Roundabout IS CURRENTLY CLOSED. Repairs to the road surface are expected to take 2-3 weeks. A detour has been posted using Willow Creek Road and Willow Lake Road.
Check out our website to view our calendar and discover the wonderful events coming up! View the TBS Calendar
This Week’s Calendar Thurs., Dec. 19 ~ 1:30 Discovering Judaism Fri., Dec. 20 ~ 5:30 Shabbat Service Sat., Dec. 21 ~ 10:00 Torah Study Sun., Dec. 22 ~ 1:00 Hike at Brownlow Trail Tues., Dec. 24 ~ 9:00 Men of TBS at Wildflower; 11:00 Mahjong; 1:00 Crafters Wed., Dec. 25 ~ TBS Closed for Hanukkah
TBS will be closed Wed., Jan. 1.
Tuesdays 1:00-2:30 ~ Crafters ~ Bring your yarn, your Diamond Art, your wood working, your birdhouse painting, your card or jewelry making, crafts of any kind and join us for 90 minutes of good conversation.
Sun., Dec. 22 at 1:00 ~ Hike at Brownlow Trail on Commerce drive between Willow Creek and Pioneer parkway.
Tues., Dec. 31 from 4-6pm ~ TBS New Year's Celebration. Bring an appetizer and a favorite board or card game. Sparkling cider toast to ring in 2025. Women's Book Group ~ Wednesdays at 11:00am Wed., Jan. 8 ~ The Jew Store by Stella Suberman (memoir) Wed., Mar. 12 ~ The Only Woman in the Room by Marie Benedict (biography) Wed., May 14 ~ The Weight of Ink by Rachel Kadish (historical fiction)
TBS Board Meeting ~ ישיבת דירקטוריון The next Board Meeting is Wednesday, January 15 at 5pm at TBS. Board meetings are open to all members in good standing. If you would like to attend or speak at a board meeting, please contact President Deborah Plotkin by Monday, January 13.
Kabbalatke is Friday, Dec. 27 at 5:30pm TBS's annual Hanukkah/Shabbat Celebration and Latke Potluck
Short Musical Service featuring the Adult Choir, MazelTones, and Children's Choir.
Contact Al Steinberg (uncleal81@gmail.com) if you can help set-up chairs & tables for Kabbalatke on Thurs., Dec. 26 at 3pm.
Special Announcements
Donate to Temple B'rith Shalom by buying your 2025 Mahjongg cards! $14 for a standard and $15 for a large card. Please collect from your group and send a check to Laury Shayne at: 1636 Granite Springs Drive Prescott, AZ 86305
Charitable Giving Dear Congregants: As 2024 draws to a close many of you may be considering your year-end donations. The Temple Finance Committee has developed a charitable giving document that may meet your needs. It explains in detail how to make a qualified charitable donation to Temple B'rith Shalom as a means of reducing a tax obligation. As always, any support is gratefully appreciated and continues our efforts for the many programs Temple B'rith Shalom provides.
Mitzvah Circle ~ מצווה Contact Suzi Abramson-Johnson at 602-570-9688 to participate or to request assistance. Mitzvah circle members send Condolence and Mi Shebeirach cards, offer rides, provide meals, and more. Do what you are comfortable doing to help congregants in need.
Note from Rabbi Susan - I hear often that your cards made a huge difference in people's lives. Please contact Suzi and perform this simple but powerful mitzvah.
Tikkun Olam ~ תיקון עולם
Co-Chairs Amber Caulkins and Allee Steinberg From the Talmud: It is not your duty to finish the work, but neither are you at liberty to neglect it.
Feed Your Neighbors at Prescott Farmer's Market is looking for 4-5 volunteers on Sat., Jan. 4 from 9-10:15am to box produce. No heavy lifting required. If interested, contact Allee Steinberg at allee2295@aol.com.
Weekly: Compost pickup (no plastic bags) in the bucket by the TBS entrance by 11am Saturday morning. Contact Lee Nackman at roleenack@yahoo.com
Religious School בית ספר דתי Jan. 5 Sunday School 9:30-11:45 Educating 27 children!
THE MOB: Men of Brith Shalom Join THE MOB every Tuesday at 9am at the Wildflower to schmooze over a cup of coffee.
Special Prayers ~ תפילות
Kaddish ~ קדיש We are remembering the following people at Shabbat this Friday, December 20. We are observing the Yahrzeits of loved ones who have passed from December 20-26. We also remember those who have left us in the last eleven months. These names have been taken from the member portion of our website. If you do not see your loved one's name (family members) and would like their name mentioned at services, please contact Jessica in the office.
Estelle Stern, mother of Linda McPherson Carol Freeman, grandmother of Karin Luedke Rose Sperling, mother of Michael Sperling Harriett "Happy" Perlmutter, cousin of Steve and Sue Weiss Daniel Silver, father of Claudia Ackerman Irwin Grusky, father of Melanie Taylor Judy O'Brien, daughter of Sally Contour Herbert Sperling, father of Michael Sperling Marcus Weiss, father of Steve Weiss Minnie Arnstein, grandmother of Trudy Steinhauer David Frankel, nephew of Steve and Sue Weiss Diana Couch, relative of Arlene Brownie Janet Crayne, close friend of Barbara Sussman Justin Flaherty, brother of Gerry Flaherty-Tate Marilyn Gilson, mother-in-law of Carol Gilson Howard (Chaim) Sherry, father of Alan Sherry John Yeakley, husband of Marilynne Yeakley Arlene Fultonderg, cousin of Laury Shayne Esther Cohn, mother of Dana Cohn and founding member of TBS Shirley Brohner, founding member of Temple B'rith Shalom Kay Germano, aunt of Phil Johnson Randi Chenkin, cousin of Gail Punyen-Davis Ellen Mechanic Schlossmann, cousin of Suzi Abramson-Johnson David Leon Weiss, son of Sue Robyn Henry David Gellerman, ex-husband of Leslie Gellerman Howard Eugene Herst, father of David Herst, grandfather of Jessica Herst Richard Lilley, brother of James Lilley, uncle of Heather Kaplan Sari Benson, cousin of Brian Schanerman Robert Caulkins, uncle of Josh Caulkins Barbara Fischer Moses, sister-in-law of Janet Rifkin Julie Gardner, sister of Bill Dahlin Estherly Allen, wife of Gene Galazan
Purchasing a Yahrzeit plaque is a beautiful way to honor and remember our loved one's who have passed. To purchase a plaque, please fill out this form and return it to the temple office. We kindly ask for $360 per Yahrzeit plaque. Yahrzeit Plaque Order Form
Healing Thoughts ~ מי שבעירך
Karyn Friend, Charles Plotkin, Peggy McCauley, Laurie Reiner, Carl Shulak, Gloria Hershman, Jeffrey Snell, Mary Sussman, Sue Weiss, Linda Patent, Leslie Adler, Rachel Coy, Vadim Vaynerman, Mike Wolf, Amy Snell Kingslinger, Rosario Maya, and Brian Shrager.
If you would like to add or remove your name or your family member's name from the healing list, please call or email the office at 928-708-0018 or office@brithshalom-az.org.
Donations ~ תרומות
Give Back to TBS! We are so grateful for your kindness and generous giving to Temple B'rith Shalom. Your contributions help Temple B'rith shalom to thrive and ensure a home for Jews in the Quad City area.
If you would like to make a donation now, click here. Did you know you could can give back to TBS at no additional cost to you simply by shopping at Frys? For more information, click here.
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Purchase a Leaf on our Temple Tree of Life. Mark a special occasion in a beautiful way.