LUNAR’s Hanukkah Gathering Celebrates Jewish Asian Community

Photo courtesy of LUNAR.

Lunar: The Jewish-Asian Film Project brought together Asian Jews for a virtual and face-to-face Hanukkah celebration on Dec. 4. Community organizer Maryam Chishti told SoCal Jewish News that 40 people gathered in person and online in New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles. In L.A., the celebration took place at Beth Chayim Chadashim in partnership with NuRoots.

LUNAR’s Art Director Davi Cheng told SoCal Jewish News the L.A. Hanukkah event was a historic moment. “For the longest time, Asian Jews have been pretty invisible,” she said. “I have been to many Jewish events and functions representing my synagogue. Quite often, I am the only Asian Jew in a room full of hundreds of people. … In just a short period of time, LUNAR has created a space for Asian American Jews to come together and be seen.”

LUNAR, named because Jewish and Asian holidays revolve around lunisolar calendars, was established during the pandemic by Jenni Rudolph and Gen Slosberg. After sharing their experiences of being Asian and Jewish, they realized there were more Asian Jews than they initially thought. They then video recorded Asian Jews and edited the interviews into categories dealing with race, religion and identity. The growing organization aims to cultivate connection and visibility for Asian American Jews through multimedia storytelling.

Cheng said this Hanukkah gathering was the first and largest gathering for Asian American Jews in the U.S. During the L.A. gathering, Rudolph, Cheng and Creative Producer Jared Chiang-Zeizel gathered with some of the LUNAR staff, lit candles and viewed a screening of LUNAR’s latest video, titled “Why We Love Being Asian and Jewish.”

Chishti said it was powerful seeing so many Asian Jews gather together to light hanukkiyot. Many virtual attendees turned on their screens and kept them on for the duration of the event. She said she was awestruck by the entire experience.

“There hasn’t really been anything like this,” she said. “[To feel that energy] and say, ‘Hey, L.A.! Hey, Bay Area!’ There’s something so moving about being universally together after a feeling of isolation growing up. Not only are you not the only one, you weren’t the only one feeling that way. It’s so powerful.”