HANUKKAH OBSERVANCE BEGINS TONIGHT.

Byline: Holly Andres Staff Writer

Jewish families will celebrate Hanukkah, an eight-day holiday known as the Festival of Lights, starting at sundown today with the lighting of the first candle on the menorah.

Hanukkah celebrates the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem more than 2,000 years ago.

Rabbi Moshe Rothblum of Adat Ari El will use the symbolism of the Hanukkah lights in his message during the Shabbat service in the Valley Village synagogue on Friday.

``I've been thinking about the symbolism of the lights burning for eight days,'' he said. ``I'm going to present the idea of enlightenment both here and in Israel. In terms of the recent election, I'm hoping we can `see the light' and work together. For Palestinians and Israelis, if they want peace for their children, I'm hoping the adults see enlightenment, too.''

Hanukkah celebrates a miracle that, according to Jewish tradition, occurred when the temple in Jerusalem was recaptured from the Syrians in 165 B.C. The Jews at that time were under the rule of a king, Antiochus IV, who was determined to deny Jews religious freedom. The Jewish victory over the Syrians resulted in the rededication of the temple.

According to the story, only one vessel of sanctified oil to light the eternal flame was found in the desecrated temple. It would take eight days to obtain more oil. The miracle was that the small vial of oil burned for eight days.

Jews commemorate the miracle by lighting candles on a menorah for eight nights in a row.

Rabbi Steven Jacobs, of Kol Tikvah Temple in Woodland Hills, said his Hanukkah message this year will be something that has been weighing heavily on his mind.

``The message of Hanukkah is to overcome. So many people are comfortable in the San Fernando Valley, and yet there is an economic apartheid. At a time of gift giving, we should be examining our values. What can we give to others?

``I think it's important to have a perspective of what's going on in the world. We need to count our blessings and we need to have concern for others who don't even have hope.''

Congregations like Kol Tikvah Temple and Adat Ari El will include Hanukkah candle lighting just before Shabbat services start on Friday.

During Hanukkah, families gather for eight nights to light first one candle, known as the shamash. The shamash is then used to light small, colorful candles on the hanukkiah, or Hanukkah menorah. Blessings are said, praising and thanking God for commanding the lighting of the Hanukkah candles, for miracles past and present, and for reaching this joyous occasion.

Each night, another candle is placed on the nine-branched menorah. On the last night, Dec. 28 this year, nine candles, including the shamash, will be ablaze. Some families use hanukkiahs that use oil for the lights. Following a Hanukkah tradition of placing a menorah so that people on the street will see it, Jews often use an electric menorah placed near a window.

Reinforcing the remembrance of the oil that lasted for eight days, it is customary to eat foods fried in oil such as latkes, or potato pancakes, and doughnuts during the holiday.

Playing a game with a special top called a dreidel is another holiday pastime, especially for children. The dreidel has a Hebrew letter on each of its four sides that stands for the words, ``A great miracle happened there.''

Hanukkah ends at sundown Dec. 29.

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Photo:

Instructor Robyn Kaplan helps student Sarah Block spin a dreidel proclaiming a 2,000-year-old miracle during pre-Hanukkah activities at the West Valley Community Center Pre-School.

Evan Yee/Staff Photographer