Jewish Communities Warn on Chanukah and Christmas in Public Schools Children light Hanukkah candles in Denver, 1965. (Duane Howell/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
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Jewish communities throughout the United States began preparations today to deal with the frequently abrasive problem of Yule and Chanukah observances in the nation’s public schools. Chanukah begins this year on December 18.
The standard position, enunciated several years ago by the National Community Relations Advisory Council, is that all religious observances, whether Christian or Jewish and whether done separately or jointly, violate the constitutional principle of church-state separation. In recognition of the fact that majority opinion is often publicly hostile to attempts to bar Christian observances, local Jewish Community Relations Councils began issuing statements urging parents not to take individual action in such situations without prior consultation with the JCRC.