On Chanukah we celebrate the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem after its defilement by the Syrian Greeks in 164 BCE, when the Jews successfully revolted against King Antiochus of the Seleucid Empire.

Judah the Maccabee, the eldest son of the priest Mattathias, led the revolt. The eight-day celebration was patterned after Sukkot, though later rabbinic tradition attributed the length of the festival to a miraculous small amount of oil that burned for eight days.

A central part of the holiday is the lighting of the chanukiah, or menorah, an eight-branched candelabrum to which one candle is added on each night of the holiday until the chanukiah is full of light on the eighth night. To commemorate the oil that kept the menorah lit, we eat foods fried in oil, such as latkes and jelly donuts.

Each year Havurah hosts at least one Chanukah celebration, bringing people of all ages together for singing, candle lighting, story telling, and more. The popular CD, "Just in Time for Chanukah," was produced by Havurah Music Coordinator Ilene Safyan and Havurah founding member Margie Rosenthal. You can find many of their songs here on CD Baby.