Throughout this week, Jewish people around the world are celebrating the "Festival of Lights" - Hanukkah.

For Vickie Semmel, treasurer of Temple Israel of Lehighton, family is the word that comes to mind when she thinks of Hanukkah."I love seeing the little ones together, the looks on their faces when the candles are lit. And the 5-year-olds salivating for when they get to be old enough to light the candles," she said.Members of the synagogue provided some insight Tuesday evening into what the holiday is all about.Semmel said there are several spellings of Hanukkah. The ch of "Chanukah" actually corresponds to the Hebrew letter, but the English pronunciation is with the h-sound and is often spelled Hanukkah.Harry Berger, vice president of the synagogue, explained that Jewish holidays usually have three components: agriculture, military and miracle.For the military component, Hanukkah is the story of when the Jewish people in ancient days defeated the large Seleucid (Syrian Greek) military and forced them out of their land.The Seleucids had defiled the temple and tried to force the Jewish people to abandon their faith. Once they were gone, the Jewish people began the work of reclaiming and rededicating it to God. The word Hanukkah actually means rededication.For the miracle, the oil in the temple kept burning for eight days even though there was only enough for one day. Jewish temples kept an oil lamp burning continuously in the temple. It took them eight days to prepare more ritually pure oil.Rabbi Rachel Rembrandt said that because Hanukkah does not have an agriculture component, it is categorized as a minor holiday. It is celebrated because it represents religious freedom and to remember the joy the people felt. It teaches each generation about how they overcame adversity and oppression."Not by might, not by power, but by the spirit alone," said Rembrandt, quoting the prophet Zechariah. "The spirit inside and the spirit of God - that is how we overcame.""There's a lot of pride in that holiday," Semmel said.Hanukkah lasts for eight days and is usually celebrated by the family in the home. The date fluctuates based on the Jewish lunar calendar, Rembrandt said.The menorah, which is a lamp, holds eight candles in a line for each night and a central candle used to light the others. Instead of candles, the menorah may have eight holders of oil with cotton wicks.Prayers of thanksgiving to God are said, and then the center candle is used to light the first candle on the far right. On the second night, the candle next to the one lit the first night is lit first, followed by the candle lit on the first night. This continues each evening with the newest candle always being lit first. The candles have to burn for at least 30 minutes on weeknights and one and a half hours on Friday evening."We go from one (candle) and go up, because we want to increase our joy," Rembrandt said.With the use of apps, Skype and FaceTime, people are able to light the candles with family members in different parts of the world. Jeanine D'Andrea, secretary of the synagogue, said she uses an app to celebrate the holiday with family in Israel. The only difficulty is the seven-hour time difference, she said.As far as gifts, yes, one gift is given each night to each child, but that is a newer tradition, Rembrandt said. Years ago, children were given some coins to give to the needy or chocolate coins to use when playing with the dreidel. Both are still popular.The dreidel is a toy with four sides and a point for spinning. It was created as a way for the Jewish people to pass on the story of Hanukkah to children when Greek oppressors outlawed Jewish schools.The Hebrew letters on each side are an acronym for "Nes Gadol Hayah Sham" or "A great miracle happened there." Semmel said the ones that have the letter for "here" mean that the dreidel was made in Israel.Rembrandt said all people are welcome to visit the synagogue. The community Hanukkah celebration was on Dec. 16, but other event dates and times are available at

www.templeisraeloflehighton.com. For more information, call 610-379-9591 or email

contact@templeisraeloflehighton.com. The synagogue is at 194 Bankway St., Lehighton.