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A kosher Christmas : 'tis the season to be Jewish / Joshua Eli Plaut ; forward by Jonathan D. Sarna.
LIBRA GT4986.A1 P53 2012
Available from offsite location
Athenaeum of Philadelphia - Circulating Collection GT4986.A1 P53 2012
Available
- Format:
- Book
- Author/Creator:
- Plaut, Joshua Eli.
- Sarna, Jonathan D., author of introduction.
- Language:
- English
- Subjects (All):
- Christmas--United States.
- Christmas.
- United States.
- Jews--United States--Social life and customs.
- Jews.
- Manners and customs.
- United States--Social life and customs.
- Physical Description:
- xvii, 207 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm
- Place of Publication:
- New Brunswick, N.J. : Rutgers University Press, [2012]
- Summary:
- Historically, Jews in America, whether participating in or refraining from recognizing Christmas, have devised a multitude of unique strategies to respond to the season. This book portrays how Jews are shaping the public and private character of Christmas by transforming December into a joyous holiday season belonging to all Americans.
- Creative and innovative in approaching the holiday season, these responses range from composing America's most beloved Christmas songs, transforming Hanukkah into, the Jewish Christmas, creating a national Jewish tradition of patronizing Chinese restaurants and comedy shows on Christmas Eve, volunteering at shelters and soup kitchens on Christmas Day, dressing up as Santa Claus to spread good cheer, campaigning to institute Hanukkah postal stamps, to blending holiday traditions into an interfaith hybrid celebration called "Chrismukkah" or creating a secularized holiday such as Festivus.
- Through such venerated traditions and alternative Christmastime rituals, Jews publicly assert and proudly proclaim their Jewish and American identities to fashion a universally shared message of joy and hope for the holiday season. Book jacket.
- Contents:
- 1 Coming to the New World: Can the American Jew Keep Christmas? 10
- 2 Hanukkah Comes of Age: The New Jewish Christmas 41
- 3 We Eat Chinese Food on Christmas 65
- 4 "'Twas the Night Before Hanukkah": Remaking Christmas through Parody and Popular Culture 87
- 5 The Christmas Mitzvah: 'Tis the Season to Be Giving 115
- 6 Chrismukkah and Festivus: Holidays for the Rest of Us 137.
- Notes:
- Includes bibliographical references and index.
- Local Notes:
- Athenaeum copy: Schneidman Fund bookplate.
- ISBN:
- 9780813553795
- 0813553792
- 9780813553801
- 0813553806
- 9780813553818
- 0813553814
- OCLC:
- 768417877
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