On Thursday, December 26, the second day of Hanukkah, Mila Kunis, who was born and raised Jewish in present-day Ukraine before her parents immigrated to the United States when she was 8, spoke about how she was taught never to speak about her faith openly.
While chatting with activist Noa Tishby about the eight-day-long Jewish holiday, the 41-year-old actress revealed she wasn't in touch with her faith before her marriage to Ashton Kutcher, who is Jewish by choice, as she grew up following no Jewish traditions at all. 'I always knew I was Jewish, but I was told never to talk about it. I think because I was in a country that didn't allow for religion,' Kunis said.
Kunis divulged that she and her husband have incorporated more religious practices into their home, which their two kids—daughter Wyatt, 10, and son Dimitri, 8—have also taken a liking to. 'I was raised culturally Jewish, so for me, it's a culture,' said the actress, before adding that for her kids, however, it's the religious aspect of Judaism that they are attracted to.
Asked by Tishby to share one thing that is culturally Jewish in her family, Kunis quipped it's superstition and guilt.
On a more serious note, she added that she does not appreciate the thought of someone being hungry, which she aligned with her faith. Kunis shared that she believes food fixes everything, from a cranky mood to a tired body.
Noa Tishby's Hanukkah special series will feature a new guest every episode until the end of the holiday. During Kunis's feature on the show, the ladies made a call to Kutcher to seek help with the right way to light the Hanukkah candles. The actor told his wife that while the candles are loaded from right to left, lighting them has to begin from the center, which marks the anchor candle, and then go from left to right.
After successfully lighting the menorah, Tishby jested, 'When in doubt about Judaism, call Ashton Kutcher, I guess.'
Gwyneth Paltrow was featured in Tishby's first episode.