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As I light the first Hanukkah candle tonight with my family, I will be thinking many things.
I will be treasuring all I have and holding it close. I will also, like many of you, be thinking about my child on a college campus facing unprecedented antisemitism. I will be thinking about my grandchildren and wondering in what kind of world they will live. I will be thinking about boycotted Jewish businesses (from one of which I have purchased my sufganiyot!). And I will be thinking about my friends and our collective extended family in Israel—the hundreds of Hanukkah tables shattered by trauma or missing loved ones who have been brutally murdered or are still held in captivity. A story too familiar in Jewish history.
Jews glibly summarize Hanukkah—and most Jewish holidays— with, “They tried to kill us, we won, let’s eat.” That rings both uncomfortably hollow yet staggeringly relevant this year. What will history write about this moment, as enemies once again try to kill us? The story of Hanukkah reminds us that Jews have always been strong in the face of those who would seek to destroy us. It reminds us that we will, again, prevail.
We have always been resilient in the wake of terror directed at the Jewish community.
We have always continued to shine brightly against the darkness of hate.
We shine brightly by being proud of our Jewishness and our heritage. Whether we light candles on Shabbat, or spin the dreidel at Hanukkah, or wear a Star of David necklace—we make sure that Jewish life and culture continues in our own ways.
We are seeing that at our own Museum Store where, after the October 7 attack on Israel, sales of ritual Judaica and wearable Jewish symbols skyrocketed. We are a community gripping tightly to our heritage and identity, fiercely determined not to let anyone take it from us.
The tradition of placing a hanukkiah in the window during Hanukkah is rooted in Jewish law—it is a commandment and a mitzvah to light the candles for others to see, to proudly and publicly share the light.
So, this Hanukkah, as you light your candles or wish a friend “Happy Hanukkah,” be proud. Be resilient. Shine brightly in the darkness for the world to see.
Chag Sameach,
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