Editing Hanukkah (section)

== Rituals ==
[[File:Children pull strings at Center to retell story of Hanukah, circa 1940 (4182471822).jpg|thumb|right|Children pull strings to tell story of Hanukah, {{circa|1940}}]]
Hanukkah is celebrated with a series of rituals that are performed every day throughout the eight-day holiday, some are family-based and others communal. There are special additions to the [[List of Jewish prayers and blessings#Hanukkah|daily prayer service]], and a section is added to the [[Birkat Hamazon|blessing after meals]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ou.org/holidays/chanukah/chanukah_with_torah_tidbits/ |title=Chanukah with Torah Tidbits |date=29 June 2006|website=OU.org|access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref>

Hanukkah is not a "Sabbath-like" holiday, and there is no obligation to refrain from [[39 categories of activity prohibited on Shabbat|activities that are forbidden on the Sabbath]], as specified in the ''[[Shulkhan Arukh]]''.<ref>''[[Shulkhan Arukh]]'' ''[[Orach Chayim]]'' 670:1</ref><ref name="ChanukahLaws">{{cite web|url=https://ohr.edu/1304|title=The Laws of Chanukah |last=Becher |first=Rabbi Mordechai |website=Ohr.edu|access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref> Adherents go to work as usual but may leave early in order to be home to kindle the lights at nightfall. There is no religious reason for schools to be closed, although in Israel schools close from the second day for the whole week of Hanukkah.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-1.581550|title=Education Ministry Changes Start of School Year – Again|first=Yarden|last=Skop|date=24 March 2014|newspaper=Haaretz|access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://edu.gov.il/special/students/Pages/Holiday-Calendar2018.aspx|title=לוח החופשות והימים המיוחדים לשנת תשע"ח|website=Edu.gov.il|access-date=6 October 2018|archive-date=7 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181007040316/https://edu.gov.il/special/students/Pages/Holiday-Calendar2018.aspx|url-status=dead}}</ref> Many families exchange gifts each night, such as books or games, and "Hanukkah Gelt" is often given to children. Fried foods—such as [[latke]]s (potato pancakes), jelly doughnuts ([[sufganiyot]]) and [[Sephardic]] [[bimuelos]]—are eaten to commemorate the importance of oil during the celebration of Hanukkah. Some also have a custom of eating dairy products to remember [[Judith]] and how she overcame [[Holofernes]] by feeding him cheese, which made him thirsty, and giving him wine to drink. When Holofernes became very drunk, Judith [[Judith beheading Holofernes|cut off his head]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.kashrut.com/articles/Chanukah_customs/|title=Chanukah: Performances and Customs|website=Kashrut.com|last=Glazer|first=Rabbi Chalm|access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref>

=== Kindling the Hanukkah lights ===
{{Further|Menorah (Hanukkah)|Miracle of the cruse of oil}}
[[File:A menorah defies the Nazi flag 1931.jpg|thumb|Chanukah Menorah opposite Nazi building in Kiel, Germany, December 1931.]]
[[File:Hanukkah, Brandenburg Gate (Berlin).jpg|thumb|Hanukkah festival at [[Brandenburg Gate]] in [[Berlin]], December 2019]]
[[File:Hanoukkia Bruxelles rondpoint Schuman 2020.jpg|thumb|right|Public Hanukkiah lighting in Brussels next to the [[Berlaymont building]], the headquarters of the [[European Commission]], 2020]]
[[File:PikiWiki Israel 146 Hanukka חנוכה.Jpg|thumb|Boy in front of a menorah]]
Each night throughout the eight-day holiday, a candle or oil-based light is lit. As a universally practiced "beautification" ([https://bethelbalto.shulcloud.com/blog/hiddur-mitzvah-torah-breastplate-choshen#:~:text=Hiddur%20Mitzvah%20is%20the%20Jewish,textures%2C%20colors%2C%20and%20artistry. hiddur mitzvah]) of the [[mitzvah]], the number of lights lit is increased by one each night.<ref>''[[Shulkhan Arukh]]'' ''[[Orach Chayim]]'' 671:2</ref> An extra light called a ''shammash'', meaning "attendant" or "sexton",<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chabad.org/holidays/chanukah/article_cdo/aid/103868/jewish/How-to-Light-the-Menorah.htm |title=How to Light the Menorah – Light Up Your Environment!|website=Chabad.org|access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref> is also lit each night, and is given a distinct location, usually higher, lower, or to the side of the others.<ref name="ChanukahLaws" />

Among [[Ashkenazic|Ashkenazim]] the tendency is for every male member of the household (and in many families, girls as well) to light a full set of lights each night,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ou.org/holidays/chanukah/practical-halacha-chanuka/ |title=Halacha L'Maaseh on Chanuka |publisher=Orthodox Union |last=Aiken |first=Richard B. |access-date=6 October 2018|date=2015-11-30 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.chabad.org/holidays/chanukah/article_cdo/aid/792891/jewish/Why-Dont-Women-Work-While-the-Chanukah-Candles-Are-Burning.htm |title=Why Don't Women Work While the Chanukah Candles Are Burning? |publisher=Chabad-Lubavitch Media Center |last=Posner |first=Menachem |access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref> while among [[Sephardic|Sephardim]] the prevalent custom is to have one set of lights for the entire household.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hakirah.org/Vol+7+Ajdler.pdf |title=Hakirah Volume 25, Fall 2018 |website=Hakirah.org |access-date=6 October 2018 |archive-date=7 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181007041442/http://www.hakirah.org/Vol+7+Ajdler.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

The purpose of the ''shammash'' is to adhere to the prohibition, specified in the Talmud,<ref>Tractate Shabbat 21b–23a</ref> against using the Hanukkah lights for anything other than publicizing and meditating on the Hanukkah miracle. This differs from [[Shabbat|Sabbath]] candles which are meant to be used for illumination and lighting. Hence, if one were to need extra illumination on Hanukkah, the ''shammash'' candle would be available, and one would avoid using the prohibited lights. Some, especially Ashkenazim, light the ''shammash'' candle first and then use it to light the others.<ref name="lonorw">''[[Shulkhan Arukh]]'' ''[[Orach Chayim]]'' 673:1</ref> So altogether, including the ''shammash'', two lights are lit on the first night, three on the second and so on, ending with nine on the last night, for a total of 44 (36, excluding the ''shammash''). It is Sephardic custom not to light the shammash first and use it to light the rest. Instead, the shammash candle is the last to be lit, and a different candle or a match is used to light all the candles. Some Hasidic Jews follow this Sephardic custom as well.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.midrash.org/halakha/hanukkah-how2.html |title=The following is a response from Hakham Ya'aqob Menashe |website=Midrash.org|access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref>

The lights can be candles or oil lamps.<ref name="lonorw"/> Electric lights are sometimes used and are acceptable in places where open flame is not permitted, such as a hospital room, or for the very elderly and infirm; however, those who permit reciting a blessing over electric lamps only allow it if it is incandescent and battery operated (an incandescent flashlight would be acceptable for this purpose), while a blessing may not be recited over a plug-in menorah or lamp. Most Jewish homes have a special [[candelabrum]] referred to as either a ''Hanukkah menorah'' (the traditional name, ''menorah'' being Hebrew for 'lamp') or a ''Chanukiah'' (the modern Israeli term). Some families use an oil lamp menorah (traditionally filled with olive oil) for Hanukkah; like the candle version, it has eight wicks to light plus the additional ''shammash'' light.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ouservices.org/resources/wEru2YXmwx/ous-chanukah-guide/ |title=OU's Chanukah Guide|publisher=Orthodox Union|access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref>

In the United States, Hanukkah became a more visible festival in the [[public sphere]] from the 1970s when Rabbi [[Menachem M. Schneerson]] called for public awareness and observance of the festival and encouraged the lighting of [[public menorah]]s.<ref>{{cite book|title=A Kosher Christmas: 'Tis the Season to be Jewish|url=https://archive.org/details/kosherchristmast0000plau|url-access=registration|last=Plaut|first=Joshua Eli|year=2012|publisher=Rutgers University Press|page=[https://archive.org/details/kosherchristmast0000plau/page/167 167]|isbn=9780813553818}}</ref><ref name="whitehouse">{{cite web|url=https://forward.com/opinion/120124/how-hanukkah-came-to-the-white-house/ |date=2 December 2009 |title=How Hanukkah Came to the White House |last=Sarna |first=Jonathan D. |publisher=Forward |access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Rebbe: The Life and Teachings of Menachem M. Schneerson, the Most Influential Rabbi in Modern History |last=Telushkin |first=Joseph |year=2014 |publisher=HarperCollins |page=269|title-link=Rebbe: The Life and Teachings of Menachem M. Schneerson, the Most Influential Rabbi in Modern History }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.chabad.org/news/article_cdo/aid/2778619/jewish/40-Years-Later-How-the-Chanukah-Menorah-Made-Its-Way-to-the-Public-Sphere.htm |title=40 Years Later: How the Chanukah Menorah Made Its Way to the Public Sphere |last=Posner |first=Menachem |date=1 December 2014 |access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref>

The reason for the Hanukkah lights is not for the "lighting of the house within", but rather for the "illumination of the house without", so that passersby should see it and be reminded of the holiday's miracle (i.e. that the sole cruse of pure oil found which held enough oil to burn for one night actually burned for eight nights). Accordingly, lamps are set up at a prominent window or near the door leading to the street. It is customary amongst some [[Ashkenazi Jews]] to have a separate menorah for each family member (customs vary), whereas most [[Sephardi Jews]] light one for the whole household. Only when there was danger of [[Antisemitism|antisemitic persecution]] were lamps supposed to be hidden from public view, as was the case in [[Iran|Persia]] under the rule of the [[Zoroastrianism|Zoroastrians]],<ref name=JewishEncyclopedia/> or in parts of Europe before and during World War II. However, most [[Hasidic Judaism|Hasidic]] groups light lamps near an inside doorway, not necessarily in public view. According to this tradition, the lamps are placed on the opposite side from the ''[[mezuzah]]'', so people passing through the door are surrounded by the holiness of ''[[Mitzvah|mitzvot]]'' (the [[613 commandments|commandments]]).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sefaria.org/Shabbat.22a?lang=bi|title=Shabbat 22a}}</ref>

Generally, women are exempt in Jewish law from time-bound positive commandments, although the Talmud requires that women engage in the mitzvah of lighting Hanukkah candles "for they too were involved in the miracle."<ref>Babylonian Talmud: Shabbat 23a</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://halachayomit.co.il/en/default.aspx?HalachaID=1692 |title=The Obligation of Women Regarding Chanukah Candles |first=Rabbeinu Ovadia |last=Yosef |website=Halachayomit.co.il |date=11 December 2017 |access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref>

Some Jews in North America and Israel have taken up environmental concerns in relation to Hanukkah's "miracle of the oil", emphasizing reflection on [[energy conservation]] and [[North American energy independence|energy independence]]. An example of this is the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life's renewable energy campaign.<ref>{{cite web|last=Waskow|first=Rabbi Arthur|date=16 November 2007|title=The Eight Days of Hanukkah: Eight Actions to Heal the Earth through the Green Menorah Covenant|url=https://theshalomcenter.org/node/1315|access-date=6 October 2018|publisher=The Shalom Center|archive-date=7 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181007040137/https://theshalomcenter.org/node/1315|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Hoffman|first=Gil|date=4 December 2007|title='Green Hanukkia' Campaign Sparks Ire|newspaper=The Jerusalem Post|url=https://www.jpost.com/Israel/Green-Hanukkia-campaign-sparks-ire|access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Dobb|first=Rabbi Fred Scherlinder|date=6 July 2011|title=CFL Hannukah Installation Ceremony|url=http://coejl.org/advocacy-and-policy-issues/pastcampaigns/cfl-installation-hanukkah/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20131128174911/http://coejl.org/advocacy-and-policy-issues/pastcampaigns/cfl-installation-hanukkah/|archive-date=28 November 2013|access-date=6 October 2018|publisher=Coalition on Environment and Jewish Life (COEJL)}}</ref>

=== Candle-lighting time ===
[[File:Bialahanukabp.JPG|thumb|upright|[[Biala (Hasidic dynasty)|Biala]] [[Rebbe#The Ḥasidic Rebbe|Rebbe]] lights the menorah]]
Hanukkah lights should usually burn for at least half an hour after it gets dark.<ref name="ChabadHowTo">{{cite web |url=https://www.chabad.org/holidays/chanukah/article_cdo/aid/603798/jewish/Chanukah-Guide.htm |title=How to Celebrate Chanukah |quote=[...] the menorah must contain enough fuel at the time of the lighting to burn until 30 minutes after nightfall. |access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref> Many light at sundown, while most Hasidim and many other communities light later, generally around nightfall.<ref>Shulchan Aruch OC 672:1, as understood by the Magen Avraham and others.</ref> Many Hasidic [[Rebbes]] light much later to fulfill the obligation of publicizing the miracle by the presence of their Hasidim when they kindle the lights.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://rabbikaganoff.com/some-light-chanukah-questions/ |title=Some Light Chanukah Questions |date=25 November 2013 |access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref>

Inexpensive small wax candles sold for Hanukkah burn for approximately half an hour so should be lit no earlier than nightfall.<ref name="ChabadHowTo"/> Friday night presents a problem, however. Since candles may not be lit on [[Shabbat]] itself, the candles must be lit before sunset.<ref name="ChabadHowTo"/> However, they must remain lit through the lighting of the Shabbat candles. Therefore, the Hanukkah menorah is lit first with larger candles than usual,<ref name="ChabadHowTo"/> followed by the [[Shabbat candles]]. At the end of the Shabbat, there are those who light the Hanukkah lights before [[Havdalah]] and those who make Havdalah before the lighting Hanukkah lights.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://sites.google.com/site/tiferetisraelorg/our-rabbi/halacha-tidbits/ctilawsandcustomsofchanukah-december16-232014 |title=CTI Laws and Customs of Chanukah |date=5 November 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170101233032/https://sites.google.com/site/tiferetisraelorg/our-rabbi/halacha-tidbits/ctilawsandcustomsofchanukah-december16-232014 |archive-date=1 January 2017}}</ref>

If for whatever reason one didn't light at sunset or nightfall, the lights should be kindled later, as long as there are people in the streets.<ref name="ChabadHowTo"/> Later than that, the lights should still be kindled, but the blessings should be recited only if there is at least somebody else awake in the house and present at the lighting of the Hannukah lights.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://njop.org/resources/holidays/complete-guide-to-holidays/chanukah/what-to-do-on-chanukah/ |title=What to do on Chanukah |access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref>

=== Blessings over the candles ===
{{see also|List of Jewish prayers and blessings#Hanukkah}}
Typically two blessings (''brachot''; singular: ''brachah'') are recited during this eight-day festival when lighting the candles. On the first night only, the [[shehecheyanu]] blessing is added, making a total of three blessings.<ref>''[[Shulkhan Arukh]]'' ''[[Orach Chayim]]'' 676:1–2</ref>

The blessings are recited before each candle is lit. On the first night of Hanukkah one light (candle or oil) is lit on the right side of the menorah, on the following night a second light is placed to the left of the first but it is lit first, and so on, proceeding from placing candles right to left but lighting them from left to right over the eight nights.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ou.org/holidays/chanukah/laws/ |title=The Lights of Chanukah: Laws and Customs |date=9 April 2014 |publisher=Orthodox Union |access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref>

==== Blessing for lighting the candles ====
{{Hebrew paragraph| בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה ה', אֱ-לֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו, וְצִוָּנוּ לְהַדְלִיק נֵר חֲנֻכָּה.<ref name=Celebrate>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KZJFAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA255|title= Celebrate!: The Complete Jewish Holidays Handbook |access-date=6 October 2018 |publisher=Jason Aronson, Incorporated |last=Ross |first=Lesli Koppelman |year=2000|isbn= 978-1-4616-2772-2}}</ref>}}

Transliteration: {{lang|he-Latn|Barukh ata Adonai Eloheinu, melekh ha'olam, asher kid'shanu b'mitzvotav v'tzivanu l'hadlik ner Hanukkah.}}

Translation: "Blessed are You, {{LORD}} our God, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to kindle the Hanukkah light[s]."

==== Blessing for the miracles of Hanukkah ====
{{Hebrew paragraph| בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה ה' אֱ-לֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, שֶׁעָשָׂה נִסִּים לַאֲבוֹתֵֽינוּ בַּיָּמִים הָהֵם בַּזְּמַן הַזֶּה.<ref name=Celebrate />}}

Transliteration: {{lang|he-Latn|Barukh ata Adonai Eloheinu, melekh ha'olam, she'asa nisim la'avoteinu ba'yamim ha'heim ba'z'man ha'ze.}}

Translation: "Blessed are You, LORD our God, King of the universe, Who performed miracles for our ancestors in those days at this time..."

==== ''Hanerot Halalu'' ====
After the lights are kindled the hymn ''Hanerot Halalu'' is recited. There are several different versions; the version presented here is recited in many Ashkenazic communities:<ref>''[[Shulkhan Arukh]]'' ''[[Orach Chayim]]'' 676:4</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Ashkenazi version:
! scope-"col" | Hebrew
! scope="col" | Transliteration
! scope="col" | English
|-
|lang="he" dir="rtl"|הַנֵּרוֹת הַלָּלוּ שֶׁאָנוּ מַדְלִיקִין, עַל הַנִּסִּים וְעַל הַנִּפְלָאוֹת וְעַל הַתְּשׁוּעוֹת וְעַל הַמִּלְחָמוֹת, שֶׁעָשִׂיתָ לַאֲבוֹתֵינוּ בַּיָּמִים הָהֵם בַּזְּמַן הַזֶּה, עַל יְדֵי כֹּהֲנֶיךָ הַקְּדוֹשִׁים. וְכָל שְׁמוֹנַת יְמֵי הַחֲנֻכָּה הַנֵּרוֹת הַלָּלוּ קֹדֶשׁ הֵם וְאֵין לָנוּ רְשׁוּת לְהִשְׁתַּמֵּשׁ בָּהֶם, אֶלָּא לִרְאוֹתָם בִּלְבָד, כְּדֵי לְהוֹדוֹת וּלְהַלֵּל לְשִׁמְךָ הַגָּדוֹל עַל נִסֶּיךָ וְעַל נִפְלְאוֹתֶיךָ וְעַל יְשׁוּעָתֶךָ.
|lang="he-Latn" style="font-style:italic;"|Hanneirot hallalu anu madlikin 'al hannissim ve'al hanniflaot 'al hatteshu'ot ve'al hammilchamot she'asita laavoteinu bayyamim haheim, (u)bazzeman hazeh 'al yedei kohanekha hakkedoshim. Vekhol-shemonat yemei Hanukkah hanneirot hallalu kodesh heim, ve-ein lanu reshut lehishtammesh baheim ella lir'otam bilvad kedei lehodot ul'halleil leshimcha haggadol 'al nissekha ve'al nifleotekha ve'al yeshu'otekha.
| We kindle these lights for the miracles and the wonders, for the redemption and the battles that you made for our forefathers, in those days at this season, through your [[Kohen|holy priests]]. During all eight days of Hanukkah these lights are [[Q-D-Š|sacred]], and we are not permitted to make ordinary use of them except for to look at them in order to express thanks and praise to Your great Name for Your miracles, Your wonders and Your salvations.
|}

=== ''Maoz Tzur'' ===
{{Main|Ma'oz Tzur}}
In the Ashkenazi tradition, each night after the lighting of the candles, the hymn [[Ma'oz Tzur]] is sung. The song contains six stanzas. The first and last deal with general themes of divine salvation, and the middle four deal with events of persecution in [[Jewish history]], praising God for survival despite these tragedies ([[the exodus]] from Egypt, the [[Babylonian captivity]], the miracle of the holiday of [[Purim]], the [[Hasmonean]] victory) and expressing a longing for the days when Judea will finally triumph over [[Ancient Rome|Rome]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ou.org/holidays/chanukah/maoz_tzur_translation_etc/ |title=Maoz Tzur: Translation & Explanation – Jewish Holidays|date=29 June 2006|publisher=Orthodox Union|access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref>

The song was composed in the thirteenth century by a poet only known through the acrostic found in the first letters of the original five stanzas of the song: Mordechai. The familiar tune is most probably a derivation of a German Protestant church hymn or a popular folk song.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/maoz-tzur-rock-of-ages/ |title=Maoz Tzur: Rock of Ages|work=My Jewish Learning |access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref>

=== Other customs ===
After lighting the candles and Ma'oz Tzur, singing other Hanukkah songs is customary in many Jewish homes. Some [[Hasidic Judaism|Hasidic]] and [[Sephardic Jews|Sephardi]] Jews recite [[Psalms]], such as Psalm 30, Psalm 67, and Psalm 91. In North America and in Israel it is common to exchange presents or give children presents at this time. In addition, many families encourage their children to give [[tzedakah]] (charity) in lieu of presents for themselves.<ref>{{cite news|last=Newman|first=Bruce|title=Hanukkah ushers in 'tzedakah,' a religious obligation to do what is right and just|url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2012/12/07/hanukkah-ushers-in-tzedakah-a-religious-obligation-to-do-what-is-right-and-just/|newspaper=The Mercury News|date=7 December 2012|access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.kveller.com/the-fifth-night-project-teaching-giving-during-hanukkah/ |title=The Fifth Night Project: Teaching Giving During Hanukkah |date=11 December 2012 |last=Maidenberg |first=Rhiana |access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref>

=== Special additions to daily prayers ===
{{quote box|align=right|width=30%|quote="We thank You also for the miraculous deeds and for the redemption and for the mighty deeds and the saving acts wrought by You, as well as for the wars which You waged for our ancestors in ancient days at this season. In the days of the Hasmonean Mattathias, son of Johanan the high priest, and his sons, when the iniquitous Greco-Syrian kingdom rose up against Your people Israel, to make them forget Your Torah and to turn them away from the ordinances of Your will, then You in your abundant mercy rose up for them in the time of their trouble, pled their cause, executed judgment, avenged their wrong, and delivered the strong into the hands of the weak, the many into the hands of few, the impure into the hands of the pure, the wicked into the hands of the righteous, and insolent ones into the hands of those occupied with Your Torah. Both unto Yourself did you make a great and holy name in Thy world, and unto Your people did You achieve a great deliverance and redemption. Whereupon your children entered the sanctuary of Your house, cleansed Your temple, purified Your sanctuary, kindled lights in Your holy courts, and appointed these eight days of Hanukkah in order to give thanks and praises unto Your holy name."|source=Translation of ''Al ha-Nissim''<ref>{{cite journal|journal=New Era Illustrated Magazine|volume=5|year=1905|page=621|via=[[Google Books]]|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CHwpAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA621|title=Chanukkah, or the Feast of Dedication|last=Singer|first=Isidore|author-link=Isidore Singer}}</ref>}}

An addition is made to the "''hoda'ah''" (thanksgiving) benediction in the [[Amidah]] (thrice-daily prayers), called ''[[Al HaNissim]]'' ("On/about the Miracles").<ref>''[[Shulkhan Arukh]]'' ''[[Orach Chayim]]'' 682:1</ref> This addition refers to the victory achieved over the Syrians by the Hasmonean Mattathias and his sons.<ref name="ou.org">{{cite web|url=https://www.ou.org/holidays/chanukah/chanukah_with_torah_tidbits/ |title=Chanukah with Torah Tidbits |date=29 June 2006 |publisher=Orthodox Union |access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/al-hanisim-concerning-the-miracles/ |title=Al Hanisim: Concerning the Miracles |last=Nulman |first=Cantor Macy |access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref><ref name=JewishEncyclopedia>{{Jewish Encyclopedia |title=Ḥanukkah |url=http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/7233-hanukkah|first=Kohler |last=Kaufmann |inline=1}}</ref>

The same prayer is added to the grace after meals. In addition, the ''[[Hallel]]'' (praise) Psalms<ref>{{bibleverse||Psalm|113–118|HE}}</ref> are sung during each morning service and the ''[[Tachanun]]'' penitential prayers are omitted.<ref name="ou.org"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ou.org/torah/halacha/hashoneh-halachos/tues_02_07_12/ |title=133. Days on Which Tachanun is Omitted |publisher=Orthodox Union |access-date=6 October 2018 |last=Abramowitz |first=Rabbi Jack|work=OU Torah }}</ref>

The Torah is read every day in the [[shacharit]] morning services in [[synagogue]], on the first day beginning from Numbers 6:22 (according to some customs, Numbers 7:1), and the last day ending with Numbers 8:4. Since Hanukkah lasts eight days it includes at least one, and sometimes two, [[Shabbat|Jewish Sabbaths]] (Saturdays). The weekly [[Parsha|Torah portion]] for the first Sabbath is almost always ''[[Miketz]]'', telling of [[Joseph (Hebrew Bible)|Joseph]]'s dream and his enslavement in [[Ancient Egypt|Egypt]]. The ''[[Haftarah]]'' reading for the first Sabbath Hanukkah is Zechariah 2:14 – Zechariah 4:7. When there is a second Sabbath on Hanukkah, the ''Haftarah'' reading is from 1 Kings 7:40–50.

The Hanukkah ''menorah'' is also kindled daily in the synagogue, at night with the blessings and in the morning without the blessings.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.torahmusings.com/2010/12/chanuka-lighting-in-shul/ |title=Chanuka – Lighting in Shul |website=www.torahmusings.com |date=7 December 2010 |last=Enkin |first=Rabbi Ari |access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref>

The menorah is not lit during Shabbat, but rather prior to the beginning of Shabbat as described above and not at all during the day.
During the [[Middle Ages]] "[[Megillat Antiochus]]" was read in the [[Italian rite Jews|Italian]] synagogues on Hanukkah just as the [[Book of Esther]] is read on [[Purim]]. It still forms part of the liturgy of the [[Yemenite Jews]].<ref name="pvgsyw">{{cite web|url=http://customerservant.com/2006/12/16/the-scroll-of-the-hasmoneans/|title=The Scroll Of The Hasmoneans|author=Rahel| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070528035707/http://customerservant.com/2006/12/16/the-scroll-of-the-hasmoneans/|archive-date=28 May 2007}}</ref>

=== ''Zot Hanukkah:'' Hanukkah as the end of the High Holy Days ===
The last day of Hanukkah is known by some as ''Zot Hanukkah'' and by others as ''Chanukat HaMizbeach'', from the verse read on this day in the synagogue Numbers 7:84, ''Zot Hanukkat Hamizbe'ach'': "This was the dedication of the altar". According to the teachings of [[Kabbalah]] and [[Hasidic Judaism|Hasidism]], this day is the final "seal" of the High Holiday season of [[Yom Kippur]] and is considered a time to repent out of love for God. In this spirit, many Hasidic Jews wish each other ''Gmar chatimah tovah'' ("may you be sealed totally for good"), a traditional greeting for the Yom Kippur season. It is taught in Hasidic and Kabbalistic literature that this day is particularly auspicious for the fulfillment of prayers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aish.com/h/c/t/sg/286646391.html |title=Hanukkah's Last Light |last=Gutfreund |first=Sara Debbie |work=aishcom |date=23 December 2014 |access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref>

Some [[Hasidic Judaism|Hasidic]] scholars teach that the Hanukkah is in fact the final conclusion of God's judgment extending [[High Holy Days]] of [[Rosh Hashana]] when humanity is judged and [[Yom Kippur]] when the judgment is sealed:

:Hassidic masters quote from Kabbalistic sources that the God's mercy extends even further, giving the Children of Israel till the final day of Chanukah (known as "Zot Chanukah" based on words which appear in the Torah reading of that day), to return to Him and receive a favorable judgment. They see several hints to this in different verses. One is Isaiah 27:9: "Through this (zot) will Jacob's sin be forgiven" – i.e., on account of the holiness of Zot Chanukah.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Ask the Rabbi |date=22 December 2017 |title=Final Judgment on Chanukah |url=https://www.aish.com/atr/Final-Judgment-on-Chanukah.html |access-date=1 December 2021 |website=www.aish.com |publisher=Aish HaTorah}}</ref>

=== Other related laws and customs ===
It is customary for women not to work for at least the first half-hour of the candles' burning, and some have the custom not to work for the entire time of burning. It is also forbidden to fast or to eulogize during Hanukkah.<ref name="ChanukahLaws" />

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