This year, the first night of the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah will fall on the same day as Christmas for the first time since 2005.
Christmas and Hanukkah still fall on the 25th, but in two different months, with Christmas falling on December 25 in the Gregorian calendar and Hanukkah beginning on the 25th day of the month of Kislev in the Jewish calendar.
The start date of Hanukkah on the Gregorian calendar varies from year to year because the Jewish calendar is based on lunisolar calendar cycles. According to Chabad, the months of the Hebrew calendar follow a lunar cycle, lasting approximately 354 days. To avoid falling behind the solar calendar by approximately 365 days, there is a 13th month on the Jewish calendar every few years to create a “leap year”.
Another difference is that in the Jewish calendar, the holiday begins at sunset and continues until the next day. Hanukkah, which lasts eight days, will begin this year a few hours after the start of Christmas.
This festival, also known as the “Festival of Lights”, famous the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem in the 2nd century BC after the Jews had defeated the domination of the Greeks. In rededicating the Temple, they found a small quantity of ritually pure oil, enough for a single day, and used it to light the menorah, a multi-branched candelabra. This oil miraculously lasted eight days.
This year’s celebration will continue until January 2, 2025.
The first day of Hanukkah and Christmas have coincided only a few times since 1900, according to the Jewish Federations of North America. The holidays began on the same day in 1910, 1921, 1959 and 2005. Rabbi Joshua Stanton, vice president of interfaith initiatives for the Jewish Federations of North America, sees it as an opportunity for learning, collaboration and fellowship.
“The goal is not to proselytize; it’s about learning deeply from each other,” Stanton told CBS News in a statement. “It’s other people who see you the way you see yourself.”
Rabbi Moshe Hauer, executive vice president of the Orthodox Union, said he sees the convergence of holidays as an opportunity to value the diversity of the religious landscape in the United States.
“This is something we have learned and must work hard to protect, especially in a time of rising anti-Semitism and other forms of hatred,” Hauer told CBS News in an email.
The convergence of holidays also offers unique opportunities and challenges for interfaith families. Some people celebrate what is called “Chrismukkah,” a name derived from the overlapping holidays made popular by the television series “The OC.”
“I think, especially as Hanukkah has become a sort of Jewish Christmas, we’re seeing more and more interest in how they might fit together. Both holidays are about light and presence of God in Dark Times,” Candida Moss, professor of theology at the University of Birmingham, told CBS News “And of course, this represents a huge opportunity for interfaith families to celebrate the two traditions together.”
Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, said he believes each holiday should be given its due, rather than mixing them together, “because I think that detracts from the uniqueness of each.”
“But proximity can actually lead us to better understanding, to more appreciation of those of different faiths, and to creating more light in what is often a very dark time of year,” Jacobs told CBS News.
The two holidays will coincide again in 2035 and 2054, according to Hebcal.
It is also rare for Hanukkah to begin on Christmas Eve. This has happened twice in the last 50 years: in 1978 and in 2016.
