‘MESSAGE OF LIGHT’
Rabbi Raphael Kats blows on one of the candles atop the 20-foot-tall menorah at the Saskatoon Farmer’s Market on Sunday, the first day of Hanukkah. The city’s Jewish community celebrates the annual festival of light for eight days.
Hundreds of people gathered Sunday at Saskatoon’s River Landing for the lighting of the menorah. The event celebrates the start of Hanukkah, which Rabbi Raphael Kats said is “the message of light ... Another act of goodness and kindness, another act of light, can make all the difference.”
Here are a few things to know about celebrations in Saskatoon:
■ The 20-foot menorah was lifted Sunday by a forklift and kindled at the Farmers Market by Mayor Charlie Clark as the sun set. Hundreds of people were in attendance and they followed the lighting ceremony by singing, dancing and devouring traditional treats such as latkes and jelly doughnuts.
■ Kats calls the menorah a “symbol of Saskatoon’s dedication to preserve and encourage the right and liberty of all citizens to practice their faith freely and with pride ... How beautiful and how Canadian it is that we have the freedom to celebrate and enjoy the festival of Hanukkah publicly and proudly.”
■ The eight-day Jewish celebration started Sunday and continues until Dec. 30. Hanukkah is also known as the Festival of Lights and celebrates the victory of the Jewish people over the Syrian Greeks who had overrun Israel. After recapturing the Temple, the Jewish people discovered what they thought was enough undefiled oil to burn for just one day — but it instead lasted for eight. Thus, Hanukkah is celebrated for eight days each year.
■ The menorah in Saskatoon is one of more than 15,000 large public menorahs in about 100 countries sponsored by Chabad. Notable landmarks with a menorah include the White House, Eiffel Tower and Kremlin.