This year, the first night of Hanukkah will fall on Christmas Day for the first time since 2005.
Both Christmas and Hanukkah always fall on the 25th, but in two different months, with Christmas falling on December 25 in the Gregorian calendar, and Hanukkah starting on the 25th of the month of Kislev in the Jewish calendar.
The start date of Hanukkah on the Gregorian calendar varies from year to year because it is based on the Jewish calendar. lunisolar calendar cycleAccording to Chabad, the months under the Hebrew calendar follow a lunar cycle, which lasts approximately 354 days. To avoid falling behind the approximately 365-day solar calendar, the Jewish calendar has a 13th month called a “leap year” every few years.
Another difference is that holidays in the Jewish calendar begin at sunset and continue until the next day, so Hanukkah, which lasts eight days, will begin a few hours after the beginning of Christmas this year.
According to the Jewish Federations of North America, Hanukkah and Christmas have coincided only a few times since 1900. The holidays started on the same day in 1910, 1921, 1959 and 2005. Rabbi Joshua Stanton, vice president of interfaith initiatives for the Jewish Federations of North America, sees this as an opportunity for learning, collaboration and solidarity.
“The goal is not to proselytize; it is to learn deeply from each other,” Stanton told CBS News in a statement. “The way you see yourself is the way others see you.”
Rabbi Moshe Hauer, executive vice president of the Orthodox Union, said he sees the combination of holidays as an opportunity to value the diverse religious landscape in America.
“This is something we've learned we must work hard to protect, especially in a time of rising anti-Semitism and other forms of hate,” Hauer told CBS News in an email.
The combination of holidays also provides unique opportunities and challenges for interfaith families. Some people celebrate what is known as “Chrismuska”, a name derived from the overlap of the holidays that was popularized by the television series “The OC”.
“I think that, especially as Hanukkah has come to be seen as the Jewish Christmas, we're seeing more interest in how they can match each other. Both the holidays in light and dark times. are interested in the presence of God,” Candida Moss, professor of theology at the University of Birmingham, told cbs news“And it certainly presents a great opportunity for interfaith families to celebrate both traditions with each other.”
Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, said he thinks each holiday should be given its due rather than being mixed together, “because I think it hurts the uniqueness of each one.”
“But closeness can actually lead us to understand more, to be more appreciative of those who practice different religions, and to create more light in an often very dark time of year,” Jacobs. told cbs news,
According to, the two holidays will fall again in 2035 and 2054 Hebkal,
It is also rare for Hanukkah to begin on Christmas Eve. This has happened twice in the last 50 years: in 1978 and 2016.