Hanukkah and Environmental Stewardship

I am not Jewish, but I do think it is important to teach about the world's religions and what others believe. I also believe very strongly in teaching environmental stewardship. For these reasons, I am starting a new family tradition in our home to celebrate and teach Jewish tradition and also show our spirit for environmental conservation.

Photographed by Chayim B. Alevsky.
Email rabbicba@gmail.com

In the spirit of the Hanukkah story of how the sacred oil that was only enough for one day miraculously lasted for eight, I would like to start an eight-day Hanukkah tradition of energy conservation. You could use a menorah or any type of candles or oil lamps in your home for this. (Note that regular oil lamps burn toxic petroleum oil. Olive oil lamps are less toxic.)

I would like to have a celebration where our family uses no lights or electricity for the eight nights of Hanukkah. This means no videos, no Christmas tree lights, and possibly no cooking after dark. Instead, it would be fun to spend time together as a family on those eight nights. Jewish studies would be fun and interesting during this time as would learning about the Amish and Mennonite communities that live without electricity. We could play Jewish games as a family or make Jewish crafts.