FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
1 DECEMBER 2021
NSW Treasurer to Bring Light and Hope with Lighting the Hanukkah Menorah
Chabad North Shore To Light Up One of 15,000 Public Menorahs Worldwide, Bringing a Message of Light and Hope
ST IVES, NSW — Chabad North Shore will light a public 4 metre Hanukkah menorah at St Ives Village Green, on Wednesday, 1 December. This is part of the annual Chanukah on the Green event which is supported by Woolworths and Ku-ring-gai Council. The scope of the celebration will once again be as big as ever and as always the lights will shine forth!
This year’s menorah lighting is done with the recognition of the crucial need for a message of hope during what for so many has been a very difficult time few months.
“The menorah serves as a symbol of light and hope for us today as we emerge from the darkness, as it did for generations before us,” said Rabbi Nochum Schapiro, director and spiritual leader of Chabad North Shore. “The flames of the menorah shine out into the night, reminding us that even when confronted with much darkness, a tiny light can dispel it all. Another act of goodness and kindness, another act of light, can make all the difference.”
This year we are indeed privileged to have the NSW Treasurer, the Hon. Matt Kean MP to light the Menorah. In addition, local Federal and State MPs, local Councillors and community leaders will be participating in the celebrations.
The Rebbe—Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory—would often teach, the menorah is a reminder that light can be brought to the darkest of times, and uniquely, at the core of the holiday’s observance is sharing the light with others who may not be experiencing it.
Indeed, coronavirus has hit us all very hard, all in different ways. Not only those infected by the virus but also those who have suffered economic and emotional devastation.
Throughout the pandemic, Chabad North Shore has been on the front lines of providing social, humanitarian and spiritual support to Sydneysiders, specifically on the upper North Shore. The covid-safe menorah lighting is the latest of many innovative programs created in response to these unique times including weekly food packages for needy families.
All Public health orders will be met to ensure the safety of all participants. This years celebration will be feature a live band, and a special performance by the Masada College Jazz Band, Amusement rides with dodgems, sizzler, swings and many more; Magic to the Max Brendan; an array of roaming entertainers; traditional Chanukah foods latkes and doughnuts and a delicious barbecue and of course the lighting of the giant Menorah.
The menorah lighting is part of the worldwide Hanukkah campaign launched by the Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory, in 1973. The campaign highlights and encourages the central theme of the holiday—publicizing the story of the Hanukkah miracle and the victory of light over darkness, a message of hope greatly needed today. In the decades since the Rebbe’s Hanukkah awareness campaign began it has revitalized widespread observance of the Festival of Lights and brought it to the mainstream, returning what some have mistakenly dismissed as a minor holiday to its roots as a public proclamation of the ultimate triumph of freedom over oppression.
This year has seen illness, death, quarantine, closures and business collapses, all amidst an overwhelming sense of sheer confusion and despair. In light of this heightened sense of urgency to share the message, spirit and hope of Hanukkah, the Chabad-Lubavitch movement worldwide is preparing the largest Hanukkah awareness campaign in history.
This year’s global campaign will see Chabad reach 8 million Jews in more than 100 countries. With safety measures limiting many in-person gatherings, Chabad will erect some 15,000 large public menorahs, which will be seen by millions on streets and public squares around the world, including in front of landmarks such as Martin Place in Sydney CBS, the White House, the Eiffel Tower, and the Kremlin.
Chabad-organized menorah parades will see over 6,500 Hanukkah menorah-topped cars hit the road, bringing the Hanukkah message of hope and joy through the city and into residential neighbourhoods, allowing families to safely share the joy and light of Hanukkah with pride. With many events curtailed, others opting for a drive-in model and many people isolating, Chabad will help families bring the light and celebration of Hanukkah into their homes and will distribute approximately 32 million Hanukkah candles, more than 700,000 menorah kits, 350,000 family at-home Hanukkah kits and 2.5 million holiday guides in 17 languages.
Throughout the State of NSW, Chabad will be organizing scores of menorah displays and lightings, including Westfield Warringah Mall, Westfield Hornsby, Westfield Chatswood, and St Ives Shopping Village.
To find a local event in NSW, or practically anywhere throughout the world, visit the international Hanukkah event directory at www.ChabadHouse.org.au/HanukkahEvents.
For more information about Hanukkah and a local schedule of events visit www.ChabadHouse.org.au/Hanukkah.
EVENT:
What: Chanukah on the Green
Where: St Ives Village Green, Memorial Ave, St Ives
When: Wednesday, 1 December 2021
Cost: FREE ENTRY. Tickets essential due to COVID.
# # #
ABOUT HANUKKAH
Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights, begins this year on the evening of Thursday, December 10 and concludes the evening of Friday, December 18. It recalls the victory of a militarily weak Jewish people who defeated the Syrian Greeks who had overrun ancient Israel and sought to impose restrictions on the Jewish way of life and prohibit religious freedom. They also desecrated and defiled the Temple and the oils prepared for the lighting of the menorah, which was part of the daily service. Upon recapturing the Temple only one jar of undefiled oil was found, enough to burn only one day, but it lasted miraculously for eight. In commemoration, Jews celebrate Hanukkah for eight days by lighting an eight-branched candelabrum known as a menorah. Today, people of all faiths consider the holiday a symbol and message of the triumph of freedom over oppression, of spirit over matter, of light over darkness. Additional information about the Hanukkah holiday is available at www.ChabadHouse.org.au/Hanukkah.
ABOUT THE SPONSORING ORGANIZATION
Chabad North Shore offers Jewish education, outreach and social service programming for families and individuals of all ages, backgrounds and affiliations. For more information, contact Rabbi Sufrin, Chabad North Shore, at 0425 248 182 or visit ChabadHouse.org.au.