Confronting a Hanukkah Candle Conundrum

December 7, 2007

Author: Susan Kinzie

Source: The Washington Post

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/06/AR2007120602760.html

Around Thanksgiving, it hit Tamar Strauss-Benjamin: She would not be home for Hanukkah. And at American University, as at most colleges, candles aren't allowed in the dorm rooms. So the sophomore wouldn't be able to light her menorah.

It's a common puzzle for rabbis on campus this time of year: how to observe the holiday without breaking school rules. Hanukkah, a Jewish holiday, is celebrated by lighting a menorah each night. What many schools, including American, have done is create a public lighting ceremony that lets students enjoy the holiday -- without torching the dorms.