Greetings!
Thank you to each and every one of you that attended our Holiday Party at Shoreline Billiards, it was a blast! CHAC and Outlet will be closed Dec. 22 to Jan. 4th. We will re-open on January 5th 2009! Happy Holidays and have a fabulous 2009. We are all diverse individuals, coming from different cultures, religions, to different sexual orientations and gender identities, hence we all celebrate different holidays with our loved ones. Below see a list of holidays celebrated this season. Start planning for 2009: Monday Jan. 5th- Monday Night Group 6:15-7:45pm, no appt. necessary. Thursday Jan. 8th- Thursday Social Hours: We're watching the movie "Transamerica". 6-8pm. Friday Jan. 9th- De Ambiente: Latino/Spanish Speaking Group, come play LOTERIA! Peace and Love, Dulce p.s. Disclaimer: Please bear with me. I was brought up Catholic and although I continue to practice my religion, I am much more spiritual now. I love celebrating the diversity in our community and it has been exciting for me to learn about all the different holidays. I got my information off the Internet and the resources I list will be lgbtq friendly. I apologize ahead of time if I get anything wrong about these holidays. Please feel free to send me an email and correct me! Thanks! p.s.s. Next Week's Holidays: Chinese New Year's & 3 Kings Day
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Hanukkah: Began at Sundown on
Dec. 11th
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 Hanukkah, also spelled, Chanukkah, is a Jewish holiday that began at sundown on Dec. 11th this year and continues for 8 days. The extremely shortened version is basically this... once the Jewish people won back control from Antiochus, they wanted to rededicate the Temple by lighting the candles of the Menorah. The Menorah was supposed to stay lit every night throughout the night in the Temple. They only had enough oil for one day, but it lasted 8 days, long enough for them to prepare enough oil for the Menorah. Thus, the 8 day celebration.
Hanukkah is not as important a holiday as Rosh Hashannah or Yom Kippur for instance, but it receives attention in the US because it falls around Christmas. Some of the traditions around Hanukkah are lighting the menorah each night, playing dreidel and eating latkes (potato pancakes). See Judaism 101 for more info.
One of the best resources I have found for LGBTQ and ally Jews is Jewish Mosaic. Based in Denver, Co. it also has an office in San Francisco. Excellent affirming resource for any lgbtq Jew (AKA Twice Blessed!)! If you click on "links", you will find everything you need from organizations to welcoming Temples to blogs and chat rooms! Check it out!
Happy Hanukkah! |
Winter Solstice: Dec. 21st
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Winter Solstice marks the beginning of winter. In ancient cultures people worried as they watched the sun seem to disappear more and more during what we call autumn. They thought it would be gone forever eventually leaving them cold and hungry. Winter Solstice is that time of year, usually Mid to late December, when the sun leaves the least amount of light, and therefore the longest night of the year occurs. However, from then on, more and more light comes slowly and gradually, which is why Winter Soltice, or Yule became a time of celebration. These ancient people began to realize that the sun would always come back. It became a time of rebirth and light, celebrating death and life and the natural cycle of life.
People who identify with the Pagan or Wiccan spiritualities celebrate Winter Solstice in many different ways. It is believed that celebrating Yule dates back long before Christmas, so the traditions and celebrations have evolved throughout centuries in various cultures. It's actually very interesting to read about! If you want to know more, check out these sites...
Wikipedia - for the more scientific information.
Many of the traditions we see today for other holidays seem to stem from natural events like this. |
| Christmas: Dec. 25th |
Christmas is traditionally celebrated by Christians on December 25th as the birth of Christ. As I read a few different sites on the history of Christmas I was astonished by how much I didn't know! I just assumed that Christmas was always celebrated in the United States. I found out that its "recent" history is much more complicated than that (I knew a little about the complications in ancient history). Christmas didn't become a federal holiday in the US until 1870. It was banned in Boston from 1659-1681 because the Puritans at the time disapproved of it. However, the Virginians and the New Yorkers still celebrated. I also was not fully aware of how much controversy there was and still is around this holiday. If you are interested in this history, I would encourage you to check out these sites:
Some of the traditions people have for celebrating Christmas are decorating their house with lights inside and out, decorating a tree, giving gifts and eating!
Here are a few links to lgbt friendly churches to celebrate Christmas:
PFLAG (list of welcoming congregations) |
| Kwanzaa: Dec. 26th to Jan. 1st |
Kwanzaa was created in 1966 by Dr. Maulana Karenga as an African American celebration that Africans worldwide also celebrate. This is not a religious holiday but a celebration of culture and community. Similar to other celebrations at this time, it is symbolic of harvest and is observed from Dec. 26th through Jan. 1 each year. Kwanzaa is derived from the phrase "matunda ya kwanza" which means "first fruits" in Swahili or Arabic, depending on what you read. The 7 Principles are Unity (Umoja), Self-determination (Kujichagulia), Collective Work and Responsibility (Ujima), Cooperative Economics (Ujamaa), Purpose (Nia), Creativity (Kuumba), and Faith (Imani). There is some controversy surrounding Kwanzaa, but it is certain to be an important holiday for many people. For more information check out these sites:
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Know someone who doesn't know Outlet? Forward these announcements to them and tell them to sign up if they like it! It's easy to sign up! Just put your email in the "Join our mailing list" box below!
Spread the joy! :) | |
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Tips for LGBTQQ Youth on How to Survive the Holidays
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"Going home for the holidays can be hard no matter what your sexual orientation, but for LGBTQQ folks, it can be especially stressful. Here are some tips that will hopefully make your holidays go a little smoother. You've decided to spend the holidays with your birth family this year. Gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and Trans folks are a diverse lot. We come from many different kinds of families. Some of us are out to our parents, others are not. Some of our parents love and support our life choices (yeah, PFLAG!) and others are completely opposed to homosexuality and do not want any mention of it in their home. I hope these tips will help you no matter what you situation." - Kathy BelgeCheck out these sites for more information on how to Survive the Holidays: Surviving the Holiday BluesGoing home for the Holidays
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