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Many Jewish families will use this year's Festival of Lights to switch out incandescent and halogen light bulbs with more environmentally friendly compact fluorescent light bulbs, commonly referred to as CFLs.



Will you make an effort to have a "green" holiday? Join the discussion at the Debatables blog.


The idea is to connect the eight-day Hanukkah observance, which begins tonight with the lighting of candles, with taking care of the environment.



"It almost seems obvious to me," said Rabbi Andy Koren of Temple Emanuel , which has a recycling committee that advises the congregation on a year-round basis. "Environmentalism is not Judaism. However, the Bible begins with stories about creation and man's responsibility to partner with God in caring for all of creation."



The religious community has awakened to the green movement in recent years, and the movement has crept into religious observances.



Hanukkah celebrates the victory of a small band of Jews over religious oppressors and the miracle of the lights in the temple, when a one-day supply of oil lasted eight days. Hanukkah lasts eight days to mark the miracle.



As part of this year's celebration at Beth David Synagogue , cost-efficient and energy-efficient bulbs were purchased at a discount from Lowe's for a fundraiser and public awareness campaign. The bulbs will be sold to the public through the end of the holiday.



A green Hanukkah guide, promoted by the North Carolina Interfaith Power and Light group (www.nccouncil



ofchurches .org), offers tips for making the Jewish celebration and other winter holidays easier on the environment.



"I think people in churches speak with authority, but they also lead by example," said Rob Jackson, a Duke University professor and director of the school's Center on Global Change . He speaks about the subject to clergy groups across the state, including one attended recently by Koren in Greensboro.



"I think it's important that churches and synagogues and people of all faith get involved with this," Jackson said.



Gift-giving at Hanukkah, for example, comes from the tradition of giving children coins during the holiday. Most families now give children coin-shaped chocolates and other gifts. The paper they're wrapped in? Reuse paper from a gift you've received.



The Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life (www.coejl.org/index.php) offers ways to help the environment one day of Hanukkah at a time.



Day 2: Cut back on the use of your car. Day 3: Make your own Hanukkah gifts. Day 6: Send holiday e-cards to save paper.



"You have to start with a few people to make a cultural change I see this at the verge of breaking open," said Alice Loyd , director of Interfaith Power and Light.



"We are not as far into it as I'd like for us to be, but it's more than just a congregation here and there," she added. "Consistently in every city that we are able to do outreach we find rabbis and other clergy helping forward this movement."

Contact Nancy H. McLaughlin at 373-7049 or nmclaughlin@news-record.com