The weeks leading up to Christmas are a time when many American Jews, even those who are not religiously observant or do not think often about their Jewish identity, feel conscious of being Jewish and not being part of the Christian majority.
Whether you ignore Christmas altogether (not so easy amid the commercials, office parties, holiday decorations etc.), use it as an excuse to go to a movie and eat Chinese food, or celebrate it with non-Jewish friends or family, the holiday — and its proximity to Hanukkah — can provoke a lot of emotions. Parents often feel pressure to make Hanukkah extra elaborate to quell their children’s (or their own) Christmas envy.
For interfaith families in particular, December can be a stressful time, demanding decisions about whether to celebrate one or both holidays and how to deal with hurt feelings or disapproval from extended family.
Below are some articles (from a wide range of perspectives) and resources for those grappling with, or simply wanting to learn more about, the “dilemma.” Feel free to add more suggestions in the comments section. Scroll down for articles that are interfaith family-specific.
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General
How Christmas Transformed Hanukkah in America
Taking the Christmas Out of Hanukkah
Why I’m Having My Jewish Kids Decorate a Christmas Tree
You Need to Talk to Your Jewish Kids About Santa
I Celebrate Hanukkah — But Here’s Why I Love Christmas
Should Hanukkah Be the Jewish Christmas?
The Joy of Not Celebrating Christmas
Ask the Expert: Should I Go to My Office’s Christmas Party?
How to Lose the Chip on Your Shoulder During Christmas
When You Feel Like the Only Kid in Town Without a Christmas Tree
An Overdue Apology to Santa from a Nice Jewish Girl
Don’t Let Your Kids Ruin Santa for Their Christian Friends
The Jewish Mother’s Guide to Surviving Santa
Can You Celebrate Both Hanukkah and Christmas? Tips For Interfaith Families
A great resource for interfaith families (and not just in December) is InterfaithFamily, which offers a Guide to December Holidays for Interfaith Families along with numerous blog posts/essays about navigating the December holidays.
Holiday Tips for Interfaith Families
Enough Already With the Christmas Wars!
The Great Hanukkah Christmas Debate Roundup
Why I’m Not Afraid of Natalie Portman’s Christmas Tree
An Apology to My Husband: Sorry for Ruining Christmas, Again
The Interfaith Evergreen Dilemma
Oy, Tannenbaum: There’s a Christmas Tree in My Dining Room
How We Celebrate Both Hanukkah and Christmas
A Rabbi’s Take on the Whole Celebrating Christmas and Hanukkah Thing
Actually You Can’t Celebrate Both Hanukkah and Christmas
My Family Tree is Loaded With Tinsel
My Jewish Son’s Love of Christmas
Cheery and Challenging Hanukkah-Christmas Chatter
Shedding Light on One Family’s December Dilemma
Explore Hanukkah’s history, global traditions, food and more with My Jewish Learning’s “All About Hanukkah” email series. Sign up to take a journey through Hanukkah and go deeper into the Festival of Lights.
Hanukkah
Pronounced: KHAH-nuh-kah, also ha-new-KAH, an eight-day festival commemorating the Maccabees’ victory over the Greeks and subsequent rededication of the temple. Falls in the Hebrew month of Kislev, which usually corresponds with December.
Help us keep Jewish knowledge accessible to millions of people around the world.
Your donation to My Jewish Learning fuels endless journeys of Jewish discovery. With your help, My Jewish Learning can continue to provide nonstop opportunities for learning, connection and growth.
