Gobble Tov! American Jews Ready For Thanksgivukkah
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Turkey day meets the Jewish festival of lights this year in a rare convergence that hasn't happened since 1888.
Thanksgiving falls on the first day of Hanukkah this year, earning the name Thanksgivukkah,
Preparations are already under way for the grand celebration.
A 9-year-old New York boy has invented a turkey-shaped menorah that he calls a "Menurkey" and has raised nearly $50,000 on Kickstarter to fund production.
Songs have popped up with lyrics like these from "The Ballad of Thanksgivukkah'': "Imagine Judah Maccabee, sitting down to roast turkey and passing the potatoes to Squanto ---'' Rabbi David Paskin, the song's co-writer and co-head of the Kehillah Schechter Academy in Norwood, Mass., proudly declares his Jewish day school the closest to Plymouth Rock.
American Jews Ready For Thanksgivukkah
"On lots of different levels there's some really wonderful connections between the two celebrations," Paskin told WCBS 880's Marla Diamond. "We have this unique opportunity to celebrate both cultures in which we live; to really celebrate the freedom, the liberties, and the opportunities that are afforded to us as American citizens."
Let's not forget the food mash-ups commemorating the staying power of the Pilgrims and the fighting prowess of the Jews, along with the miracle of one night's oil lasting eight days. Pumpkin latkes, apple-cranberry sauce and deep-fried turkey, anyone?
"It's pretty amazing to me that in this country we can have rich secular and rich religious celebrations and that those of us who live in both worlds can find moments when they meet and can really celebrate that convergence. There are a lot of places in the world where we would not be able to do that,'' Paskin said.
The convergence of the two holidays by one calculation won't happen again for 79,043 years.
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