When Jesus Crashes the Hanukkah Party
By Ron Kampeas December 19, 2014
(JTA) — Sure, his birthday usually falls around the same time as Hanukkah, but Jesus and the Jewish holiday generally don’t mix.
This year, however, two Jesus-Hanukkah juxtapositions have been getting a lot of social media attention.
First, there’s Bud Williams, the Springfield, Mass., city counselor who said “Jesus is the reason for the season” — at a menorah lighting.
And there’s the morning host of St. Louis’ Fox affiliate, Kim Kelly Hudson. who sported a T-shirt bearing an image of Jesus on the cross while she interviewed a local rabbi about Hanukkah.
Asked about the T-shirt by Jim Romenesko, via Twitter, Hudson explained that she routinely wears T-shirts promoting local events — this one was for a Christian rap concert the same evening. “No insult was intended,” she said.
Williams seemed surprised at the ruckus, telling MassLive that when folks speak of a “bright light” from 2,000 years ago — as did rabbis at the ceremony — Jesus naturally comes to mind.
“I thought it added something to the service; it didn’t take away,” he said.
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
