After last year’s attack in Lexington, let’s begin Chanukah with peace and light

This Sunday begins the festival of Chanukah, during which Jews around the world will celebrate the Festival of Lights and religious freedom.

Chanukah celebrates the victory of the people of Israel over the Seleucid Greeks who had forbade the Jews from religious worship in their Holy Temple. When the Jews finally reentered the Temple, they found only one cruse of sanctified oil enough to last for just one day. Miraculously, the oil lasted a full eight days until new oil could be produced. As such, the Menorah is the first symbol of religious freedom.

This message of freedom to worship and our ability to be sources of light culminate in the lighting of the Menorah, an eight-branched candelabra, in every Jewish home. In addition, large community Menorahs will be lit at the Government Center on Main street, The Summit at Fritz Farms, Fayette Mall, UK’s campus, and Triangle Park.

While there are over 10,000 public menorah lightings across the world, including over a dozen in Kentucky, this year’s Grand Menorah at Triangle Park will be historic. This Chanukah, every Jewish organization in Lexington will join together, with each group hosting an event on one night of the festival in Triangle Park.

The concept of grand public Menorah lightings goes back to 1974 when the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the foremost Jewish leader in the modern era, encouraged his student to celebrate Chanukah in a public manner, citing America’s principle of religious freedom, and thereby enabling those who did not own a menorah to take part in the celebration. Public lightings began in Philadelphia and S. Francisco following which the idea quickly took off and within several years Chabad was hosting public Menorah lightings in major cities and famous landmarks across the world. In 1979, President Carter lit a menorah outside the White House beginning a new national tradition that continues until today.

The idea was not without its critics, however, and lawsuits began in an attempt to ban the menorah from public spaces. Some opposition lawsuits even came from other Jewish organizations. History has shown time and time again that hiding does not diminish hatred. As the Rebbe taught us, one can only combat darkness with light.

This Chanukah, a year after one of the most violent anti-semitic attacks in Kentucky’s history occurred at a Menorah lighting at the UK Chabad Jewish Student Center, Lexington will make history as every Jewish organization in town joins in a public-private partnership to bring more light to our city.

Chabad, the Jewish Federation, the Synagogue, the Temple, the Jewish Student Center, and others will all come together in a grand Community celebration, the first of its kind nationwide.

This city-wide endorsement of the Rebbe’s message of pride, publicizing the miracle, and sharing our message with the world serves as an example for cities all across America and the world.

The entire community is invited to join the celebration and to be a source of light at one of the menorah lightings at Triangle Park or one of the many other celebrations around the city.

The answer to darkness is unity and light. And Lexington is showing the way.

Rabbi Shlomo Litvin is executive director of Chabad of the Bluegrass.

This story was originally published November 24, 2021 at 1:28 PM.