Public lightings, special needs programming, gift-bringing (not just giving), and lots of latkes make up the Chanukah events taking place throughout our area beginning this Sunday. As of press time, here are the highlights, as assembled by Lois Goldrich and Beth Chananie:

December 10

Temple Beth-El in Jersey City will hold a Chanukah tot Shabbat, 10:30 -11:30 a.m. For pre-school children and their parents, it will be led by Sam Pesin, and includes storytelling, arts and crafts, music, and refreshments. Each child must be accompanied by at least one parent. (201) 333-4229 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

December 11

These two recipe books make lovely gifts for Chanukah — enjoy some of the featured recipes and remember to check my Cooking With Beth Blog at http://www.jstandard.com for some others.

The first two recipes come from “Temptations: Modern Kosher Recipes for Every Occasion,” published by ATARA (the sisterhood of Congregation Keter Torah in Teaneck). The cookbook is designed for today’s home chef and includes recipes (and spectacular photos of recipes) that are certain to produce mouthwatering dishes. The recipes are clearly marked meat, dairy, or pareve, and have step-by-step, easy-to-follow directions. There are also Pesach recipe conversions to make your favorite recipes available for the Festival of Unleavened Bread. There are wine pairings, too. “Temptations” can be purchased online at http://www.ketertorah.org/cookbook or at local establishments and Judaica emporia, including Glatt Express in Teaneck.

JERUSALEM — Latkes and sufganiyot, the jelly-filled doughnuts especially popular in Israel, are well-known Chanukah fare made with oil to signify the holiday tale.

Lesser known is the tradition of cheese and the story of Judith.

The books of the Chanukah story never made it into the Bible — and neither did the book of Judith. It tells of a beautiful widow whose town was under siege by the army of the Assyrians. She decided to visit the commander in chief of the army to ask him not to overtake the town. As the story goes, she gives him wine, he gets fall-down drunk, and falls into a stupor. Judith beheads the king and saves her people and the town.

No, this isn’t your mother wanting another update on your life. It’s not Dr. Phil’s provocative question through your TV/computer screen as you sit (safely) on your couch. And it isn’t someone reading you the Declaration of Independence wondering if you have really pursued this inalienable right enough.

It’s the holiday of Sukkot speaking.

The rabbis nicknamed the harvest festival “Zman Simchateinu,” the “time of our rejoicing.” How, exactly, does a holiday that invites us to eat all of our meals in a small hut al fresco — often in the chilly, windy days of late fall — have to do with being happy?

LOS ANGELES — Yom Kippur, the fourth quarter of the High Holy Days, is coming and time is running out. Our seats are waiting, the gates are closing.

Each year we look for a new way to prep for the day: Could football offer a strategy?

Though Yom Kippur certainly is no day for sports, like football it does have a time limit, sundown, and a playbook: the machzor. There is even a halftime and cheerleaders — liturgical cheerleaders, that is.

It’s a day when the liturgy seems to ask: Are you going to run, pass, or pray?

LOS ANGELES — You didn’t let Maimonides catch you napping on Rosh Hashanah, did you?

His famous quote, “Awake, awake, you slumberers from your sleep, inspect your actions and return” — usually found in the High Holy Days prayer book before the sounding of the shofar — is meant as the ultimate shluf alarm, his righteous tap on your shoulder.

But what if while sitting in the much longer services this Yom Kippur you should “accidentally” hit the snooze button and head off into the realm of somnambulant psalms?

For Lee Weissman, a Breslov chasid in Irvine, Calif., the onset of the High Holy Days capped a spiritual journey he began two months earlier with the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, and continued a month ago with the start of the Jewish month of Elul.

Weissman — a teacher at the Tarbut v’Torah Community Day School in Irvine and a scholar of Southeast Asian religions — says similar themes run through Ramadan and Elul, traditionally a month of repentance, charity, and extra prayers leading up to Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. And, he says, his close ties with local Muslims helped to put him in the “correct” frame of mind to begin his own month of penitence and prayer in preparation for the Days of Awe.

Preparing for a break-the-fast meal should not be overwhelming. It is as simple as being organized and ready to go with plans in place to make an organized break-the-fast happen.

First, make a workable list and follow it. If you are a list-writer normally and already have several in your kitchen, write this list on a really bright piece of paper, so you can find it easily. Think about your guests and their diets. Is there anyone who needs to be dairy-free? gluten-free? low sugar or low salt, etc.? People with special needs appreciate the extra care.