News Photo by Steve Schulwitz Ken Diamond, the president of the congregation for Temple Beth-El in Alpena, shows off a pair of menorahs on Wednesday. Tonight is the beginning of Hanukkah and the first candle on the menorah will be lit.

ALPENA — The Jewish holiday Hanukkah has a bit of a different meaning to those celebrating it this year, as the war between Israel and Hamas continues to unfold in the Middle East.

Hanukkah is the Jewish eight-day, wintertime “festival of lights,” celebrated with a nightly menorah candle lighting, special prayers, and fried foods. It celebrates the rededication of the Holy Temple at the beginning of the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire in the 2nd century.

For the Jewish and others who have converted to Judaism, the kickoff to the holiday is tonight and will wrap up on Dec.15.

Ken Diamond, the president of the congregation for Temple Beth-El in Alpena, said Hanukkah is a celebration, but the lost and captured overseas will be remembered.

“It is a joyous holiday where we light the candles, sing, and exchange gifts, but of course, we are going to mourn and grieve all of the victims in Israel and the Gaza Strip,” Diamond said.

Because there is a small Jewish population in northern Michigan, Diamond said people who are not Jewish don’t usually understand Hanukkah and how significant the holiday is to those who practice Judaism.

“I think a lot of people think it is a Jewish Christmas,” he said. “They may be celebrated around the same time, but they are two different holidays with two separate meanings.”

During Hanukkah, Jews and people who practice Judaism, light candles on a menorah in the early evening each night of Hanukkah. The first candle called a Shammash, or attendant, is used to light another candle each night for the duration of the holiday until all the candles are lit. Hymns or prayers are also done before the candles are lit and games and food follow.

Diamond said Temple Beth-El is the only temple east of I-75 from Bay City to Sault Ste. Marie and that the nearest temple to Alpena is in Petoskey.

In all, Diamond said 17 families are members of the temple, and they are from other communities around northern Michigan.

The temple and congregation are made up of three sectors of the congregation. He said those more strict with Jewish teachings are called orthodox Jews, but the other two sectors include a conservative portion of the membership and a more modern reform group.

He said some people at the temple have mixed marriages, and even celebrate both Hanukkah and Christmas.

“Our congregation is small, but it really makes us like a family,” Diamond said. We are all very close.”

Diamond said the temple in Alpena was built in the 1870s and moved to its current location on White Street in 1891, where services have been held since.