The Zeidermans stand in front of their menorah to celebrate Hanukkah, which started yesterday. From left, the Zeiderman family, Dr. Arnold Zeiderman, his son Aric, wife Peggy and son Matt. Photo by: Scott Thomas Anderson

In the early days of the Gold Rush, some of the hardiest pioneers who tamed the wild land and settled Amador County were Jewish. Throughout the 1850s and 1860s, a vibrant Jewish community flourished in Jackson - surviving, prospecting, breaking the land - helping pave the way for the life we know today. As the Jewish observance of Hanukkah rolls around, a number of windows will be lit with the soft glow of menorahs, shining as a reminder that, though small, the Jewish culture is still alive and well in the foothills.

It's not clear exactly when the extensive Jewish presence in Amador went into decline. In 1854, a synagogue called "B´nai Israel" was established on the hill where Jackson Elementary School now stands. By conservative estimates, the group had sold the land by turn of the century. Many of the younger families moved away while the older ones died out. From that point on, the Jewish culture that was once part of the county's backbone became relatively modest in size.

In the 1990s, the loosely-knit circle of Jewish residents in Amador created the Foothill Jewish Community. In 1999 the group stopped meeting before re-establishing their ties again last year. They now meet the first Wednesday of every month at the Amador Senior Center, where they often invite rabbis from other areas to come speak, as well as Christian and other non-Jewish friends who are interested in their culture. One aspect of that ancient culture is Hanukkah.

Hanukkah, or "Chanukkah" spelled properly, is famously known as The Festival of Lights. Because its eight days coincide with the spirited imagery of Christmas, many non-Jews tend to think of this festival of lights as a similar expression of passive, harmonious cheer. But historically, Hanukkah is actually a day of revolution. After the death of Alexander the Great, the Hellenistic rulers over Judea became increasingly hostile and oppressive toward their Jewish subjects. They eventually committed the ultimate insult by desecrating the Jewish Holy Temple and filling it with numerous Greek idols whom the Jews considered false gods. The Jewish people rebelled. Today, the modern celebration of Hanukkah honors the re-capturing and rededication of the temple by Judea Maccabee. Tradition holds that the priests had only a tiny amount of oil to cleanse the temple, and yet that oil miraculously burned for eight nights. Today, the eight candles on a menorah represent each of those nights of rededicating the Temple.

Despite its many comparisons with Christmas, Hanukkah is not a major Jewish holiday. Unlike Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, it's not considered an especially holy time. Its major importance is as a celebration of religious freedom. For each day of Hanukkah, one of eight candles is lit at sunset while a blessing is read. Jewish families tend to eat oily foods like potato pancakes to honor the memory of the oil as well. One of the more lively traditions of the holiday is spinning the dreidel - a four-sided top that allows people to gamble for pennies, matchsticks or chocolate coins. Each side of the dreidel is inscribed with a Hebrew letter: Either Nun, Gimel, Hei or Shin. They stand for the term "Nes Gadol Hayah Sham," which translates as "a great miracle happened here."

Sharyn Cunningham is a member of the Jewish Foothill Community. Cunningham is preparing for Hanukkah this week by taking her menorah out and putting it up in the window of her Sutter Creek shop, Up Stairs Antiques. "I doubt many people will notice it or care," laughed Cunningham. "But the whole candle-lighting part of the holiday is so beautiful I just wanted to share it anyway."

Cunningham admitted it can be difficult to get excited about Hanukkah when its existence doesn't seem to register with the majority of your friends and acquaintances. "Most people in the foothills don't celebrate it. It's not that there aren't a good number of people with Jewish ties, but as time goes on some people forget or lose interest in their traditions. That's why we worry about the traditions kind of fading away in an area like this. Even for those of us in Amador who are committed to remembering Jewish celebrations, it's still hard because the Jewish community up here is small and situated away from the larger Jewish community."

With an upbeat swing, Cunningham added that, despite the isolation, Hanukkah celebrations will still be held in Amador. "I think a lot of us will be lighting the candles, having some traditional Jewish foods and mentioning it to our non-Jewish friends who are interested. If nothing else, as a symbolic expression of our heritage."

Another house in Sutter Creek that will be celebrating Hanukkah is the Zeiderman residence. Dr. Arnold Zeiderman, his wife, Peggy, and their sons Matt and Aric have already decorated for Hanukkah, which began yesterday, and are lighting the menorah. They have CDs or Jewish music ready to play, including Theodore Bikel and Hankus Netsky. They also plan on eating potato pancakes some time in the week. "It's not a really big holiday," said Zeiderman. "But I still think it's a great one because it's family-centered. For many Jewish people, it's time to be together at home. I also really like Hanukkah because its celebration taps into so many interesting elements of the Jewish culture, particularly music, food and Jewish history."

The Zeidermans will also participate in gift-giving. Many Jewish scholars argue that gift-giving was never a traditional part of Hanukkah throughout the centuries, and has mostly evolved out of its close association with Christmas. Many families give one small gift for each of the eight days of Hanukkah, with some opting to give a larger gift on the final day.

"When I was younger, a lot of the kids at school thought I got a huge present every day for eight days," Matt said. "That's not actually the way it is."

In the end, according to Zeiderman, each family comes up with their own take on the issue of gift-giving. "I think there's a general consensus among Jews in this country that its fine to be integrated into American customs, as long as you're mindful of the more traditional parts of the holiday," Zeiderman said.

The Zeiderman house is also decorated with Christmas ornaments as Peggy is a Christian. The couple plan to drive down to Morgan Hill this week to spend time with what's known as a "bridge" church, meaning a Christian congregation with strong ties and interests in the Jewish roots of their faith. Such interfaith groups have become more common in the United States in recent years, and Zeiderman said many of his Christian friends in Amador County are curious about the Jewish link to their beliefs. "I think most historians will tell you that Jesus was about as Jewish as it gets," said Zeiderman. "I have a lot of my Christian friends want to learn more about the traditions from the world he came from."

In Amador County, not only have Christians showed a growing interest in the Jewish culture, but so have historically minded people. Last year for Matt's Eagle Scout project, he restored Jackson's historic Jewish cemetery from the 1800s called "The Hills of Eternity." Before Matt started the project, the old resting place for pioneers was so badly overgrown with weeds and vegetation that few people even knew it was there. For his contributions to county history, Matt was given an award by the city of Jackson.