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Hanukka, oh Hanukka! When I was growing up in New York, my older brother, Charlie, was hooked on the soap opera "All My Children" and he got me into it also. Back then, there was a handsome doctor on the show named Cliff Warner. The actor who played Warner left the program after a few years and turned up later in a commercial for a popular pain reliever. He'd begin the ad by saying, "I'm not a doctor, but I played one on TV," as though that would give him some credibility to dispense medical advice!
SO, IF I tell you now that I'm not a Judaic scholar, nor have I even played one on television, I hope you'll give my observations about Hanukka the appropriate weight. That said, I see an interesting similarity between the holidays of Purim and Hanukka. Both have post-biblical origins that involve a miraculous rescue of the Jewish nation. While Purim was more involved with physical redemption, however, the Hasmonean revolt was about saving the Jewish People's "unique spiritual character." This distinction gives Hanukka special meaning in the Jewish calendar, but doesn't explain the overwhelming popularity it enjoys across the religious spectrum, from Orthodox to secular. Even gentiles are crazy about the holiday. Somebody give me the number of the PR firm that handles the Hanukka account. I want them to represent me!
Best of all is their multimedia section, with apropos music and video selections, including a children's Hanukka play, justifiably described as "too cute for words." You have eight days to send an e-card to all your friends. While there are countless places to find animated greeting cards on the Web, I've always liked the wide selection and creativity found at Blue Mountain (http://www.bluemountain.com/eng/hanukkah/ index.html). This year, they have an option to bombard your special someone with a card for each day of the holiday, in an easy one-step process. If you're one of those people who prefers to make the cards yourself, you could pick up some festive clip art at Jewish Art Source (http://www.jewishartsource.com/clipart.html). What's more, there are no pieces of colored paper and glitter to clean up afterwards. HANUKKA is a long holiday, and usually somewhere in the middle I begin to forget how many candles I have to light that night. Torah.org's On-line Menora (http://www.torah.org/chanukah.html) keeps track so you don't have to. Its simple hanukkiya graphic eliminates all possible confusion, and the page is updated at a specific time each day so you can be sure you're getting the right number, wherever you are. A message whimsically reminds visitors that viewing the candles on the web page is not a substitute for the real thing. The On-line Menora page links back to Torah.org's Hanukka home page, which features scholarly commentary which would be a shame to overlook. NOW THAT the candles are lit, let's eat! Potato latkes and jelly doughnuts may be the most popular foods, and you'll find recipes for them on just about every Hanukka site. For the culinary adventurous, however, there are many other traditional dishes to choose from. The Hanukka menus at Epicurious (http://www.epicurious.com/e_eating/e04_hanukkah/hanmenus.html) include mouthwatering Sephardic and Italian meals with a gourmet appeal. For a wide selection of dishes, I recommend the All Recipes site (http://holidayrecipe.com/directory/925.asp). These reader-submitted recipes are rated by others who have already tried them, so you can see how well the meals really turn out. Click on the rating to read the comments. This site also lets you view the recipes in either US or metric measurements, which I find particularly useful. Still hungry for more holiday cooking ideas? CNN.com created a Hanukka foods section for their Web site last year. In case you missed it, the section is still available (http://www.cnn.com/FOOD/specials/1999/hanukkah) and the tips as timely as ever.
NO HANUKKA evening would be complete without a game of dreidel. In a world of Sony Playstations and Sega Dreamcasts, the venerable four-sided top doesn't quite have the entertainment value among children that it once had, but it more than makes up for it in tradition and simplicity. It's comforting that there are some things that the Internet will never replace. Unless of course, you'd like to play dreidel on-line. That's just the option that is available to you at sites like Billy Bear's Playground (http://www.billybear4kids.com/holidays/hanukkah/hanukkah.htm) and Cyberkids (http://www.cyberkids.com/fg/ho/hannukah/dreidel). Purists needn't despair, though. These fairly crude simulations lack the charm of the wood or plastic originals. The traditional dreidel's place in Hanukka festivities remains secure - for now. Hanukka's festive atmosphere can also be a learning opportunity for the entire family. The Department for Jewish-Zionist Education (http://www.jajz-ed.org.il/festivls/hanuka) has suggested programs, educational games and activities for children and adults. Elsewhere on the Net, you might test your knowledge with an on-line quiz (http://www.mznet.org/holidays/ chanukah/chanquiz.html). Holiday vocabulary skills are taught at the Hanukka House (http://www.zigzagworld.com/draw), where you can create a virtual room with a Hanukka theme by selecting items from a list of Hebrew words.
WITH A cloud of uncertainty around us this year, it would be easy to get caught up in the news and pay little attention to Hanukka. There isn't much of a desire to celebrate under a veil of tension and fear. But Hanukka has lessons to see us through the darkest times, as illustrated by one moving story about the Holocaust (http://users.systec.com/kimel/hanuka.html). Now, especially, we should try to let the festival lighten our mood and lift our spirits. There is a lot of hope to be found in the holiday which reminds us each year that "a great miracle happened here."
Send comments and suggestions to: ahron@jpost.co.il
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HANUKKA needs no help promoting itself these days, thanks in no small part to the work of Habad. For years, Habad emissaries have organized public hanukkiya-lighting ceremonies in practically every city, town, and burg where Jews reside. You can get the whole story on their site with the name you won't forget, Hanukka.com (