LINCOLN PARK — Chabad Lincoln Park led the lighting of a 15-foot menorah on the sixth night of Hanukkah Thursday at Mid-North Park, 401 W. Belden Ave.
"We're not lighting the menorah only at home where we're warm and cozy," said Rabbi Menachem Benhiyoun, director of Chabad Lincoln Park. Despite a chilly evening, dozens were in attendance. "We're here to warm someone else's life," Benhiyoun said.
Ald. Michele Smith (43rd) joined the ceremony, followed by dancing, singing and the serving of sufganiyah (jelly doughnuts) and latkes.
According to Benhiyoun, it's one of more than 15,000 large public menorahs sponsored by Chabad in more than 90 countries around the world, including in front of landmarks such as the White House, the Eiffel Tower and the Kremlin, "helping children and adults of all walks of life discover and enjoy the holiday message."
Hanukkah marks the miracle recounted in the Torah and the Bible in which a day's worth of consecrated oil burned for eight days after a Jewish military victory that reclaimed a defiled temple.
"The message of Hanukkah is that we publicize the miracle," Benhiyoun said. "It's not something we keep to ourselves, but we share with others."
"I want my kids to grow up with pride in their Jewish heritage and a feeling of equality and self-confident as an American," said local resident Lisa Goldberg. She called the public menorahs "one of the most important developments ever to help my child's education," adding, "I wish they had this where I grew up."
"Now more than ever," Benhiyoun said, "in our society and our country and throughout the world, we need that light that brings us together and not darkness which divides us."
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