WASHINGTON (RNS) The latest Hanukkah tune is coming from an unexpected place this year: the halls of Congress and the pen of a conservative Mormon senator.
Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, is the co-writer of a revamped Hanukkah song that debuted this week on the site of a Jewish online magazine, Tablet.
Hatch, a noted songwriter, created the tune at the behest of Jeffrey Goldberg, a writer for The Atlantic. Goldberg complained a decade ago to Hatch about the lack of sufficient Hanukkah tunes and the senator promised to write something. He didn’t follow through.
A decade later, Goldberg revisited the issue on his blog, and this time, Hatch came through, with his collaborator, Madeline Stone, a Jewish writer who traditionally authors Christian music.
The song, titled “Eight Days of Hanukkah,” was recorded by Rasheeda Azar, a Syrian American. The accompanying video on Tablet’s site shows Azar singing while Hatch and Goldberg listen in the studio. At one point, Hatch unbuttons his shirt to reveal a mezuzah he wears around his neck.
“He has an affinity for Jews,” Goldberg said. “I think as a Mormon, the story of Hanukkah resonates.”
The song tells the story of the miracle of Hanukkah in broader detail than most English songs, including the lyrics: “A small band of people led the way/Through the darkest night they prayed/Seeking religious freedom/Did more than just survive.”
“Anything I can do for the Jewish people, I will do,” Hatch told The New York Times. “Mormons believe the Jewish people are the chosen people, just like the Old Testament says.”
Matthew E. Berger
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