As Jews, we have the opportunity to celebrate the New Year not once, but several times. The Jewish year has four different New Year celebrations: Rosh HaShanah, Passover, Tu BiShvat, and Elul. Many Jews also celebrate the Gregorian New Year in January. That means we get five opportunities every year to do an accounting of our soul (cheshbon hanefesh) and make resolutions for growth and betterment.

Conversations about Hanukkah are few and far between in our ancient texts; most of what the Talmud records about Hanukkah is within a few pages in the tractate called Shabbat. But, as is so often the case, those millennia-old words have grown in significance as we prepare for Hanukkah 5783.

One of the biggest challenges parents can face during Hanukkah is helping their children see that it is a distinct holiday, rather than just a "Jewish Christmas." We sat down with co-authors Joelle Reizes (she/her) and Rabbi Joseph B. Meszler (he/him) to talk about all things Hanukkah.

As Hanukkah is deeply entwined with food, especially fried food, we've found some delicious Sephardic recipes to add to your celebration, sourced with permission from Hélène Jawhara Piñer's cookbook, Sephardi: Cooking the History.

There are a lot of creative ways to make Hanukkah meaningful when we pause to ask ourselves a few good questions before automatically going into shopping mode.

During this pandemic, I was determined that my hero receive his medal in person – and I could think of no better location for his medal presentation than the top of the mountain where he rescued me,

This Hanukkah, it hit me: We can do anything. The beauty of this holiday — and especially of experiencing it amidst a global pandemic —is that we have the opportunity to make it our own.

My husband and I will still maintain many of our traditions this Hanukkah. Eating latkes with applesauce. Lighting candles each night. “Betting” on which candle lasts the longest. Watching Hallmark Christmas movies... wait, what?!

No matter what we face in the world right now, we still can thank God for what we have – including the blessing of each new day and the hope for a brighter tomorrow.