Menorah lighting welcomes all to celebrate religious freedom
Published 1:30 am Saturday, November 24, 2018
LYNNWOOD — It’s time for light.
An annual menorah-lighting ceremony returns to Lynnwood City Hall at 4 p.m. Dec. 2, a week from Sunday.
The celebration is being organized by the Chabad Jewish Center of Snohomish County, for the seventh year in a row. People of all faiths are welcome.
“I think we’re going to have a really nice event,” Rabbi Berel Paltiel said.
Chabad sees its celebration of light and warmth as an answer to darkness and destruction in the world. It’s a way of responding to tragedies such as the recent mass shootings at a Pittsburgh synagogue and a bar in Thousand Oaks, California.
“I think people want to make positive noise in response to show that we’re all the same,” Paltiel said.
Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights, is observed over the course of eight days. Each night, a candle is lit on the menorah, a nine-branch candelabra. The ninth candle is used to light the others.
The holiday commemorates a military conflict in the second century B.C., when a band of rebels known as the Maccabees overthrew a much stronger army. The candles represent a one-day supply of oil that miraculously lasted the Maccabees for eight days.
The centerpiece of the Lynnwood event is the kindling of a 9-foot-tall menorah. More than 100 people have attended in past years.
This year features the return of The Klez Katz klezmer band. Children’s activities include face-painting, balloon-twisting and traditional Hanukkah sweets.
Noah Haglund: 425-339-3465; nhaglund@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @NWhaglund.
Celebrate
Celebrate a community menorah lighting at Lynnwood City Hall at 4 p.m. Dec. 2. Address: 19100 44th Ave. W., Lynnwood, WA 98036.
More info: www.jewishsnohomish.com
