18 Nov Shanghai Chanukah; Transforming Darkness to Light
Celebrating Chanukah also in a Traditional Way…
‘Shanghai Chanukah’ … remembering the stories of Jews of Shanghai, and other Chanukah stories is just something we do to reach out to others to help understand and commemorate a recent-times transformation of darkness to light.
During the Holocaust the Mir Yeshiva fled to Shanghai where they were able to find refuge and survive to be able to give a re-birth to the yeshiva world (education of a higher Jewish learning) we know today. This is an overture to sharing many other Chanukah stories of transforming darkness to light.
In our home we celebrate the miracle of the burning oil of the 8 days of Chanukah and the transformation of a time of darkness to a time of Light with words of Torah, and instead of latkes or sufganiyot (doughnuts) we share fried Chinese foods such as spring rolls, fried rice, fried noodles and desert fried wontons…. mmmm!
(PS, my wife is Chinese, an Observant Jew which inspired this idea)
We’d like to mention that although we have veered from what many have come to know as the ‘traditional Ashkenazi or Sephardic’ way, we have been mindful to not in any way diminished the sanctity of the festival. It was important to to be sure to never diminish the value of observance or festival by speaking to an Orthodox Rabbi.
The Jews of Kaifeng
An (orthodox) Jewish community has existed in Kaifeng since the Northern Song Dynasty (960–1127), though some scholars date their arrival to the Tang Dynasty (618–907) or earlier.[3] Kaifeng, which was then the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty, was a cosmopolitan city on a branch of the Silk Road.
After many years and much assimilation.. After contact with Jewish tourists, some of the Jews of Kaifeng have reconnected to mainstream Jewry.[30] In 2005 Arutz Sheva reported that a family of Kaifeng Jewish descendants formally converted to Judaism and accepted Israeli citizenship.[31] Their experiences are described in the documentary film, Kaifeng, Jerusalem.[32] On October 20, 2009, the first group of Kaifeng Jews arrived in Israel, in an aliyah operation coordinated by Shavei Israel.[33][34][35]” (Wikipedia)”
Leib Getzel (Lawrence) Lax
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