Hanukkah Quiz

Hanukkah starts tomorrow at sunset so here is a short quiz on the holiday.

1. Which is not a correct spelling of the holiday?

a. Channukah
b. Xanuka
c. Chanuko
d. Khanukkah
e. they are all considered correct

2. Which is not a reason given for Hanukkah being 8 days long?

a. Because that is how long the oil lasted in the Miracle of the Lights
b. In honor of 7 brothers and their mother that were tortured and killed because they refused to give up there Jewish faith.
c. Because 8 is considered a perfect number in Jewish mysticism.
d. To make up for the holiday that they couldn’t celebrate when oppressed.

3. Hanukkah is first called the Feast of Lights by this famous Jew.

a. Rabbi Shmuley Boteach
b. Josephus
c. Jesus
d. Rabbi Hillel the Elder

4. As you may know there are all sorts of laws on being Kosher, so according to the Code of Jewish Law your menorah can be no taller then. . . .

a. You (max height 6 feet)
b. a horse (max height 7 cubits)
c. a two story house (max height 30 feet)
d. the length of your rabbi’s beard (varies)

5. All of the famous people below are Jewish, once were or have hinted at maybe being Jewish except. . .

a. Madonna (the singer)
b. Stephen T. Colbert (either the person or TV personality)
c. Bob Dylan
d. Adam (as in 1st man)





Answers:
1. e. they are all considered correct. Other spellings include Hanukkah and Kanukkah although spell check refuses to believe me.
2. c. Because 8 is considered a perfect number in Jewish mysticism. There are many important numbers in the mystic branches of Judaism such as 6, 7, 12, and 40 but as far as I know 8 isn’t one of them and I have never heard of it being a reason for Hanukkah’s length. For more info on the correct answers click here.
3. b. Josephus. Josephus was a very important first century C.E. Jewish historian.
4. c. a two story house (max height 30 feet) officially it can be up to 20 cubits high, which is 360 inches or 30 feet to be Kosher. The world’s tallest one was over 60 feet tall.
5. d. Adam (as in 1st man) As there was no one but his family around and what we think of as Judaism wasn’t started until the times of Abraham and Moses, Adam wouldn’t have called himself a Jew or any other religion. Madonna of course is into Kabala, a Jewish mysticism (She would have no problem with question number 2.) Bob Dylan (aka. Robert Zimmerman) was born in a Jewish family, was a practicing Jew for a time, became Christian and then I have no idea what he is now as he seams to go back and forth. And Stephen T. Colbert found out threw tracing back his genetic heritage that he has a 75% chance of being part Jewish.

1-3 right: Come one, you could have gotten 4 right just by reading last Hanukkah’s blogs. Read more WNBNI!!!!

4 right: Congratulations!!!! You have either read the Hanukkah blogs from last year on WNBNI, or you know a lot about it.

5 right: Great job give yourself a gold star, or silver to be more festive (unless you are unable to find a kosher sticker then imagine one.)