“…on this night, we dip twice.” That’s the line from the Passover Haggadah.
Except, not on the night before Christmas.
If you are Jewish, you are most likely dipping far more than twice. You are probably dipping four or five times.
Fried noodles in the duck sauce.
This evening, I will be participating in the ancient Jewish custom of eating Chinese food at a restaurant with beloved congregants. No doubt, we will run into other members of the tribe there. We could probably act out Fiddler On The Roof from memory.
But, why? Why did eating Chinese food on Christmas (and in many places, going to the movies as well) become a Jewish “thing?”
There are any number of theories as to how this minhag (custom) developed. Let me sum up two for you — and throw in a third.
The urban geography argument: If you consider the history of Jewish and Chinese settlement in the United States (and other places, too) you will discover that Jews and Chinese people have often lived in close proximity. Consider the major example: New York City’s Chinatown and the Lower East Side.
It is also true that Asians often move into formerly-Jewish areas and/or areas that are undergoing ethnic transition. Therefore, that brings Jews and Chinese (and Italians, and others) living cheek to jowl, with a certain amount of culinary exchange.
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Source: Religion News Service
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