History Happy Hour: How Hanukkah Came to the White House

For most of American history, the only December holiday ever celebrated in the White House was Christmas. Now, however, the White House hosts an annual Hanukkah party where traditional holiday candles are ceremonially lit on an official White House Hanukkah menorah. When and how did this happen, and what does it mean?

In this episode of History Happy Hour, Jonathan D. Sarna, University Professor and the Joseph H. & Belle R. Braun Professor of American Jewish History at Brandeis University, and Chief Historian of The Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia will examine “How Hanukkah Came to the White House,” in a program moderated by Laura Apelbaum, former executive director of DC’s Jewish Historical Society.

Sarna’s talk will trace Hanukkah at the White House from 1979, when President Jimmy Carter crossed over to Lafayette Park to light a Hanukkah menorah and deliver brief remarks, to the present-day practice of hosting both a Hanukkah party and an official candle-lighting ceremony within the White House itself. Recent presidents have added to the White House celebration, he will show.

Come join us on Thursday, December 5 at 6:00 pm ET, and hear how this introduction to Hanukkah testifies to America’s burgeoning religious pluralism.