This year, the bulk of Hanukkah falls during the university semester at Dal, and some students such as Liane Cloutier are carving time out of their busy exam schedules to celebrate the festive Jewish holiday.
For Liane, a fourth-year Biology student from Kitchener, Ont., it will be an opportunity to learn more about some of the holiday鈥檚 many traditions and to gather with friends.
鈥淔or the last two years, there hasn鈥檛 been much on campus,鈥� she says. 鈥淪o this year will be a great year to learn.鈥�
Educated at a French Catholic school for language reasons and with minimal emphasis on religion at home, Liane knew very little about the Jewish roots on her mother鈥檚 side growing up.
She decided a few years ago to change that, convincing her mother, sister and brother to get involved, too. 鈥淎ll of us together decided we wanted to do Passover and learn more about Judaism,鈥� she says.
Finding connections
A trip to Israel with her older sister the summer before she started at Dal was another significant step in Liane鈥檚 educational journey. It also led to a connection with someone at Hillel Atlantic Canada 鈥� the division of the Atlantic Jewish Council that caters to Jewish university students in the region.
鈥淚 was blown away by how inviting they were,鈥� says Liane of Hillel Atlantic, which counts many Dal students among its ranks. She says the group has opened her up to a whole new community of friends.
Now a board member at Hillel, she鈥檚 one of the organizers of a once-a-month Shabbat dinner (a free Friday evening affair that begins the weekly day of rest) and other social events linked to Jewish holidays, such as a masquerade ball during Purim in March.
And this year, she鈥檒l finally get to know Hanukkah 鈥� one of the most widely observed of all Jewish religious observances.
The eight-day celebration symbolizes the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem through the lighting of a candle on each day of the festival. Hanukkah tends to be less liturgical than other holidays in the Jewish calendar and revolves more around personal experiences rooted in family gatherings.
Making time
With many students still away from family during exams this year, Hillel organized several events to help create a feeling of home away from home, including a Hanukkah-themed dinner on Dec. 1 that incorporated several hallmarks of the season such as candle lighting, foods cooked in oil (potato latkes, etc.), and traditional prayers.
And coming up there will be two candle-lighting events, one on the first night of the festival (Dec. 12) and another on the final night (Dec. 20). Depending on staffing, the group may open their doors during the other evenings as well.
鈥淚t鈥檚 nice for people to have a place to come and light candles if they want,鈥� says Liane, who has made time to help plan and staff the events on top of studying for four exams.
For her, it鈥檚 yet another step in her quest to learn more about her Jewish roots.
鈥淚鈥檓 slowly getting more into it, which is amazing,鈥� she says. 鈥淢y friends who aren鈥檛 Jewish at all are super supportive and they come to my events all the time. They鈥檙e like 鈥業 love that you鈥檙e growing and learning all this,鈥� and I鈥檓 like, 鈥榤e, too. It鈥檚 awesome.鈥欌��