City Hall celebrates Chanukah with lighting
WOONSOCKET – The light of Chanukah was brought into historic Harris Hall this week as members of Chabad of Northern Rhode Island held their second annual Menorah lighting ceremony in the third- floor meeting place.
The lighting program included setting up and lighting a traditional Menorah with candles lit to the seventh day of Chanukah, a sing-along for traditional religious Chanukah songs and time-honored children’s’ favorites, and then a snack meal of hot Latkes, or potato pancakes, and an assortment of pastry sweets and candy filled dreidels — special spinning tops — for the kids.
Rabbi Aryeh Laufer of Chabad NRI opened the lighting ceremony by saying that on behalf of the Jewish community in Northern Rhode Island and behalf of the city of Woonsocket under Mayor Lisa Baldelli-Hunt, “We wish the entire community a happy Chanukah.”
The message of Chanukah is a
special one for the Jewish community, he said, in that it recalls a time more than 2,000 years ago when a small group, the Maccabees, fought to retake Jerusalem from the Syrian Greeks. Under their rule, Jews in Jerusalem had been barred from practicing their religion as they wished and the Temple of Jerusalem desecrated, Rabbi Laufer explained.
“The Maccabees said, ‘We can’t let this continue,’ and they stood up and fought, and although they were only few in the hands of many and they were outnumbered in many ways, they ultimately chased out the Greeks and rededicated the Temple and established the freedom to practice, as one wished, in terms of religious practice.” Rabbi Laufer said.
The holiday of Chanukah, however, is not celebrated for the success of a battle, but instead a miracle that followed the retaking of the Temple.
The Temple had a large Menorah inside that was fueled by jugs of special kosher olive oil, and after the restoring the Temple, the faithful wished to relight the Menorah.
Rabbi Laufer said there was an immediate problem to that plan when only one jug of the special oil, just enough for a single day of light, could be found.
“One jug was only enough to last for one day and it would take much more time, seven additional days to bring in new oil to light the Menorah,” he said. “They said we have one jug of oil, we are going to use it and that is what they did, they lit the first night and they figured they would come back the next night and the candles would be out, it would be dark,” Laufer said. “But low and behold, the candles, the oil, burned for a second day and a third day, until eight days, when they had time to bring back new oil,” he said.
“So the message is clear, even if one only has a small jar of oil inside of their heart or inside their spirit, use it, and miraculously it can turn into two, into three, into four even if there are many obstacles surrounding us,” Laufer said. “And that is why it is important to light the Menorah in such a place, not only inside our homes but to take the spirit of the Menorah outside to the world and light up the world, just one candle, everyday adding another,” Rabbi Laufer said.
After the group lit the Shamash, or attendant candle in the middle, seven of the remaining eight candles were lit on the Menorah. The group finished with the Chanukah songs, and then invited Baldelli-Hunt to give a few remarks.
“First of all I would like to thank you for returning this year. As some of you may know, this is the second year that we celebrate with you,” Baldelli-Hunt said.
“And we were honored last year that you reached out to us because we feel that it is very important especially in a community like Woon- socket, that is very diverse, in order to understand everyone’s beliefs, be tolerant of everyone’s beliefs, and to share in celebration,” she said.
Baldelli-Hunt said she was thrilled to have been asked back to the lighting ceremony this year and recounted the strong Jewish community the city has been home to for many years.
The many businesses and mills they owned “provided a lot of employment for the residents in the city and due to their talents and their commitment to the city they allowed families to have a very comfortable life,” she said. Baldelli-Hunt continued that she was happy to attend the ceremony with other members of her administration and “share in your holiday, and for us to learn a little more each year.’’