The main story I wanted to cover in this edition of Cache is the fear that many people have over saying Merry Christmas, and how leaning into it is an opportunity for you and your brand to stand out and create goodwill. Then Bondi Beach happened, and it seemed like talking about the fear that Christians and other Canadians have about saying Merry Christmas paled in comparison to the fear and murder that Jews are facing when it comes to Hanukkah. Hence this post.

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The lead story in this edition of Cache discusses the fear that many people feel about saying Merry Christmas to their clients.

That fear is based on the possibility that they might make someone who doesn’t celebrate Christmas feel uncomfortable, or that they might make a Christmas non-celebrator feel excluded, all with a possible detrimental effect on their relationships or business.

Much consternation – usually whispered – as to this situation exists in wide swaths of the Canadian population. Many Christians, and other people who simply like Christmas, are quietly dismayed at this state of affairs. Someone I know said roughly this: When we as a country have to worry about making a statement of kindness and even love to others, we really have some soul-searching to do and some action to take.

But here is something to consider: Canadians’ fear of saying Merry Christmas is not based on a possibility of being murdered en masse for their views.

This fear, of being killed at any time (potentially in great numbers) for your religious beliefs, is the hatred and terror that the Jewish community faces – abroad and right here in the Canadian community in which you live – and it is utterly unacceptable that this is so.

Ask your Jewish friends, colleagues and neighbours how they are feeling. Many are afraid to do something as simple as wear a yarmulke or other dress or symbols that will identify them, on Canadian streets, as Jews.

The at least 15 people who were massacred on Bondi Beach, and the more than 40 others who were injured, were in the process of celebrating Hanukkah, a Jewish religious holiday. News reports indicate they were between the ages of 10 and 87. They included two rabbis and a Holocaust survivor.

The first of many unconscionable offences here is that these people were targeted specifically because of their religious beliefs.

A second and aggravating factor is that they were in the process of celebrating a religious holiday. For those observing, Hanukkah commemorates a moment in Jewish history when a persecuted community reclaimed its right to live according to its beliefs. It is marked by lighting candles over eight nights, symbolizing resilience, hope, and the idea that even a small light can push back great darkness. This year, Hanukkah runs from sundown on December 14 to nightfall on December 22.

So here we go: not only will I wish Merry Christmas to all, with all of the love it represents, but also Happy Hanukkah to all, with the hope that the light will indeed last long enough to lead us out of this darkness.

If you are wondering: I, as a gentile, did first ask a Jewish friend if it would be appropriate to wish Happy Hanukkah to everyone. He replied that not only would it be appropriate, but also appreciated – especially in this very (and watch his word choice here) dark time for Jews.

Merry Christmas!
Happy Hanukkah!